Sleep quality and mood regulation strategies among Australian young adults

The aim of the research was to explore sleep quality, sleep disturbances and associated correlates of emotional and physical health among 327 young Australian adults. A mixed methods design consisting of both variable and person-oriented approaches revealed three distinct profiles of sleep disturbances which reflected the extent to which young adults experienced each of the four types of sleep disturbances including, insomnia, hypersomnia, parasomnias and sleep apnoea. The findings support the importance of implementing person-oriented approaches when examining sleep disturbances by revealing distinct sleep disturbance profiles amongst young adults. Finally, the findings emphasise the importance of recognising subthreshold sleep disturbances given that a proportion of young adults in the current study who reported experiencing subthreshold disturbances to their sleep also reported poorer physical and mental health outcomes.