• Baylor lab studies the value of a good night’s sleep

    Baylor sleep study

    How does sleep impact your memory, creativity or ability to function at work or in class? Baylor researchers are studying these very questions at the university’s Sleep Neuroscience and Cognition Laboratory.

    There, you’ll often find student research subjects settling into one of the lab’s private bedrooms for the night, while electrodes attached around the dome of their head measure sleep quality. That may sound a bit intimidating, but soft lighting, quiet rooms and soft music playing in the lobby set the stage for participants to feel at ease. It’s a unique setup directed by Dr. Michael Scullin, assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience at Baylor, and the data gleaned from its overnight guests is providing insight into the impact of sleep on the way we function in an increasingly busy world.

    The sleep lab opened last fall, when it began welcoming students to participate in research studies on sleep habits and memory. Students spent three nights in the lab, and were given memory tasks at intervals before and after sleep; their answers were compared with the amount of sleep they received.

    Not surprisingly, the sleep lab research continually found that consistent sleep helps people perform at their best. Yet while the conclusion may seem obvious, it’s one we often ignore when we get busy — a decision that, these studies show, has a negative impact on our memory and cognition.

    Most recently, Scullin teamed with Baylor interior design professor Elise King, BS ’08, to study how sleep impacts creativity. Interior design and architecture students were administered two creativity tests a week apart, and the students’ sleep was monitored in between. Results showed a strong correlation between sleep and creativity. Students who improved in creative performance in that one-week span maintained strong, consistent sleep patterns throughout the week, while those whose performance diminished had slept less and went to bed at inconsistent times.

    Dr. Scullin and his team will be expanding their research in the months and years ahead, and participants will continue to be needed. But whether you’re in the lab or at home in your own bed, you can benefit from Baylor’s sleep research by following some simple advice.

    “Given our research on maintaining a normal sleep schedule, people really need to set a time when they’re going to go to bed and stick to it,” Scullin suggests. “Pick a time, put your cell phone across the room, and take some time away from it. Reduce distractions, and be consistent in the time you sleep.”

    Sic ’em, Baylor sleep researchers!