Poor sleep and reactive aggression: Results from a national sample of African American adults

Abstract

Background: We know that poor sleep can have important implications for a variety of health outcomes and some evidence suggests a link between sleep and aggressive behavior. However, few studies have looked at this relationship among African-Americans in the United States.

Methods: Data from the National Survey of American Life (NSAL) and the NSAL Adult Re-Interview were used to examine associations between sleep duration and self-reported quality of sleep on reactive aggression among African American and Caribbean Black respondents between the ages of 18 and 65 (n = 2499).

Results: Controlling for an array of sociodemographic and psychiatric factors, sleep was found to be significantly associated with reactive aggression. Specifically, individuals who reported sleeping on average less than 5 h per night were nearly three times more likely to report losing their temper and engaging in a physical fight (AOR = 3.13, 95% CI = 1.22-8.02). Moreover, individuals who reported being "very dissatisfied" with their sleep were more than two times more likely to report losing their temper and engaging in physical fights (AOR = 3.32, 95% CI = 1.50-7.33). Persons reporting everyday discrimination and problems managing stress were more likely to sleep poorly.

Conclusions: The present study is among the first to document an association between poor sleep and reactive violence among African-Americans. Findings suggest that reducing discrimination may lead to improved sleep and subsequently reduce forms of reactive violence.

Keywords: African-Americans; Aggression; Discrimination; Sleep; Stress; Violence.