Social-Ecological Risk and Protective Factors for Insufficient Sleep in Adolescents: A Nationally Representative Investigation.

Purpose: To explore the impact of risk and protective factors on insufficient sleep among adolescents and to investigate whether these associations vary by race/ethnicity.

Methods: This study utilized data from the 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, a nationally representative sample of high school students (N = 8,289). Race/ethnicity and a sum of six community risk factors and four interpersonal protective factors were used to predict odds of insufficient sleep (<7 hours/night).

Results: Black and multiracial non-Hispanic adolescents had a 32%-45% increase in odds of reporting insufficient sleep compared to White adolescents. Endorsing fewer interpersonal protective factors and more community risk factors were independently associated with higher odds of insufficient sleep. Only one significant interaction with protective factors and race/ethnicity emerged for multiracial non-Hispanic (vs. White) adolescents.

Discussion: Risk and protective factors each play a unique role in predicting sleep duration among racially/ethnically diverse adolescents.