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Sleep / Wake Disorders

Associations among Trait and State Experiential Avoidance and Sleep Disturbance

(PS13-D86) Associations Among Trait and State Experiential Avoidance and Sleep Disturbance

Sunday, November 19, 2023
9:00 AM – 10:00 AM PST
Location: Regency Ballroom, Level 7
Sleep disturbance has been strongly associated with a range of psychopathological symptoms (Espie et al., 2019). Thus, it is important to identify potential mechanisms that contribute to the development and maintenance of sleep problems, including insomnia. Experiential Avoidance (EA) has been conceptualized by third-wave cognitive behavioral therapies (e.g., ACT) as a transdiagnostic mechanism and core treatment target (Hayes et al., 2006; Chawla & Ostafin, 2007). Notably, research suggests that ACT ameliorates sleep problems, showing beneficial effects on sleep quality and duration, insomnia, and dysfunctional beliefs about sleep (Paulos-Guarnieri et al., 2022; Rafihi-Ferreira et al., 2020). However, it is unclear how EA, specifically, may be associated with different forms of sleep disturbance and insomnia symptoms (Sakiei et al., 2022). This study investigated whether trait and state EA are associated with insomnia, indices of sleep disturbance, and dysfunctional beliefs about sleep using baseline questionnaires and a one-week daily diary paradigm. 132 undergraduate students completed baseline questionnaires assessing depression (Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale [DASS-D]), trait EA (Brief Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire [BEAQ]), insomnia (Insomnia Severity Index [ISI]), sleep disturbance (Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index [PSQI]), and beliefs about sleep (Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about sleep [DBAS]).Participants then completed daily diary questionnaires assessing sleep quality and state EA over one week. Sleep was assessed once per day in the morning, and EA was surveyed three times per day in six-hour intervals. Baseline correlations and linear mixed models were conducted to explore associations between trait and state EA and sleep disturbance at baseline and over the course of one week. Significant associations were found between: trait EA (BEAQ) and ISI-Total (r = .37, p < .001), PSQI-Sleep Disturbance (r = .28, p< .01), and DBAS-Total (r = .31, p < .01). After controlling for depression, baseline trait EA predicted decreased sleep quality (β = -0.01, t (225.88) = -2.17, p < .05) across 7 days. Increases in state EA over the week predicted decreased sleep quality (β = -0.01, t(604.02) = -3.05, p < .01). Findings demonstrate EA’s association with a range of sleep problems (sleep quality, insomnia, and beliefs), suggesting EA as a critical target for sleep-related symptoms. Given sleep’s association with reward system functioning (Boland et al., 2020), alterations in EA may be an important mechanism to upregulate the positive affect system, enhance hedonic responding, and increase well-being. Future research is needed to fully characterize the relationship between EA and different forms of sleep disturbance and extend these findings in clinical samples.