Relations Between Physiological and Cognitive Regulatory Systems: Infant Sleep Regulation and Subsequent Executive Functioning

  1. Annie Bernier1,
  2. Stephanie M. Carlson2,
  3. Stéphanie Bordeleau3,
  4. Julie Carrier3

Article first published online: 15 NOV 2010

DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01507.x

Issue

Child Development

Child Development

Volume 81, Issue 6, pages 1739–1752, November/December 2010

Additional Information

How to Cite

Bernier, A., Carlson, S. M., Bordeleau, S. and Carrier, J. (2010), Relations Between Physiological and Cognitive Regulatory Systems: Infant Sleep Regulation and Subsequent Executive Functioning. Child Development, 81: 1739–1752. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01507.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    University of Montreal

  2. 2

    University of Minnesota

  3. 3

    University of Montreal

* concerning this article should be addressed to Annie Bernier, Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, P.O. Box 6128, Downtown Station, Montreal, QC H3C 3J7, Canada. Electronic mail may be sent to annie.bernier@umontreal.ca.

  1. The research described in this article was supported by grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Fonds de Recherche en Santé du Québec, and the Fonds Québécois de Recherche sur la Société et la Culture to the first author. We gratefully acknowledge Natasha Whipple, Émilie Rochette, Natasha Ballen, Isabelle Demers, Jessica Laranjo, Célia Matte-Gagné, Chantal Mongeau, Marie-Pier Nadeau-Noël, and Nadine Marzougui for help with data collection. Special thanks go to the participating families of the Grandir Ensemble project who generously opened their homes to us.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 15 NOV 2010
  2. Article first published online: 15 NOV 2010

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The aim of this report was to investigate the prospective links between infant sleep regulation and subsequent executive functioning (EF). The authors assessed sleep regulation through a parent sleep diary when children were 12 and 18 months old (N = 60). Child EF was assessed at 18 and 26 months of age. Higher proportions of total sleep occurring at night time, at both 12 and 18 months, were related to better performance on executive tasks, especially those involving a strong impulse control component. Most relations held above family socioeconomic status, prior mental development and concurrent verbal ability. These findings add to previous results with school-age children in suggesting that sleep favors the development of higher order cognitive functions requiring prefrontal cortex involvement.

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