Sleep, aggression, and psychosocial adjustment in male prisoners

Purpose: The current study examines sleep quantity and quality and their association with anger-related reactions, symptoms of ADHD, depressive symptoms, physical health complaints, and life satisfaction in male prison inmates. Furthermore, we examine whether good sleep hygiene in the prison context (physical exercising during the day, switching the television off at night, limiting caffeine and cigarette consumption) is related to sleep quantity and quality. Methods: 49 prison inmates (mean age = 39.4; SD = 13.9) completed questionnaires assessing sleep quality and quantity, sleep hygiene, and psychosocial and physical functioning. Results: Short sleep duration of 6h or less and poor sleep quality were related to higher levels of aggressiveness in provoking social situations and more physical health complaints. Additionally, poor sleep quality was related to higher levels of rumination and more symptoms of ADHD. The sleep hygiene variable daily caffeine consumption was related with shorter sleep duration. Conclusion: Results suggest that among a sample of male prison inmates adequate sleep duration and good sleep quality were associated with better psychosocial adjustment.