Sleep Deprivation In College

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When most people hear the words “sleep” and “college” uttered from a student, they start to cringe. This is an obstacle that so many of us college students must battle each day as we try to maintain our sanity in our continuous fight against time as we attempt to manage our hectic schedules filled with academics, athletics, arts, work, service, and socialization. Many students have already surrendered to this monumental task and thus have to suffer through the effects of sleep deprivation. Through my various interactions and observations of other students, it has become blatantly obvious how tall of an order it is for college students at Gonzaga University and around the world to fit in an adequate amount of sleep in their already chaotic lives. …show more content…
There are a plethora of negative effects that stem from sleep deprivation, and this is a reality that so many college students are exposed to. In fact, according to Shelley D Hershner and Ronald D Chervin who are both workers at the Department of Neurology at the …show more content…
As noted by June Pilcher and Amy Walters of the Journal of American College Health, who surveyed 44 college students when completing the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal, and took note of several factors such as concentration, effort, performance, etc. through questionnaires. The data collected from this study indicates, “Participants performed significantly worse than the nondeprived participants on the cognitive task. However, the sleep-deprived participants rated their concentration and effort higher than the nondeprived participants did. In addition, the sleep-deprived participants rated their estimated performance significantly higher than the nondeprived participants did” (Pilcher, Walters). This is a very concerning reality as part of the effects of sleep deprivation and how deeply it can alter a student’s ability to think both critically and coherently. What I find most disturbing is the fact that the deprived participants’ overly-confident mindset reflects the mentality of a significant number of college students today. Now, given that Gonzaga University is a Jesuit institution dedicated towards upholding certain standards in order to ensure a healthy lifestyle for its students, it should be no surprise that there is a burning desire to address the

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