Does restrictive screen use before bedtime improve sleep in the long run? A randomised controlled trial among young adults with sleeping problems.
ICD-10 Version: 2019: G47.9 Sleep disorder.
Brief name Restricted/no use of mobile phone/screen use 30 minutes before bedtime. Why Theory: The best way to test the hypothesis is a randomized controlled trial (RCT). The RCT handles biases and confounders. Due to the nature of the intervention, blinding is impossible. In primary care, pragmatic approaches must often be used to answer complex questions. As for theories using the results, these theories may be useful: the Self-Determination Theory (SDT), in which the context and quality in motivation are important for behavioural changes; the Health Belief Model (HBM), a sociopsychological health behaviour change model; and the transtheoretical model of health behaviour change, which posits six stages of change: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance, and termination. Given that the feasibility of sustained screen restriction among young adults remains largely unexplored, the RCT will be complemented by several qualitative components, oral and written. This mixed-methods design enables a nuanced understanding of the results in the study. The main rationales are to find out whether the advice of screen restriction works, what effect restriction might have on sleep quality, how it is experienced by the participants, and how sleep is perceived during a year. Follow-ups at 3, 6 and 12 months. What Two hundred and twenty university students aged 20–29 years from universities in Region Västra Götaland (VG), who are self-reporting sleeping problems and use a mobile phone, are recruited from 1102 students who have already answered a questionnaire about sleep and screen use. If needed, additional participants will be recruited through collaboration with the student unions and health organizations. Region VG is a mini-Sweden regarding the composition of the population. Restriction implies not using mobile phones or any screens for 30 minutes before bedtime and during the night. Participants in the restriction group will be told to put their
1. Students and former students from Swedish universities and colleges 2. Ages 20-29 years 3. The participants use iPhone or Android mobile phones 4. The participants experience sleeping problems
Not meeting the key inclusion criteria.