Managing stress, sleep and technologies: an exploratory study of Australian university students

Abstract

Student life is stressful and many students do not get enough sleep to perform well in class and in assignments. Technology use has been found to contribute to sleep deficits, but it offers a means to investigate sleep patterns and student workload. Hence the aim of this research is to explore how students at Australian universities manage stress, sleep and technologies throughout the semester. We combined rich qualitative insights from contextual interviews and cultural probes with quantitative insights from a student survey. The findings showed that (1) students consciously prioritise academic success over a healthy sleeping pattern; (2) students are sleeping one hour less than they think they should; (3) technologies both add to sleep deficits as well as help to wind down; and (4) students manage sleep and stress through a combination of planning ahead and pushing through stressful times with little sleep. We discuss the implications of these findings and highlight design opportunities for new technologies to support the strategies of planning and pushing through to encourage healthy sleep patterns and foster wellbeing.