Sleepiness as a pathway linking race and socioeconomic status with academic and cognitive outcomes in middle childhood.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined self-reported sleepiness as a pathway of effects underlying racial and socioeconomic disparities in children's academic and cognitive performance.

DESIGN: The study design was longitudinal, and path modeling was used to test study hypotheses.

SETTING: Data were collected from participants residing in semirural communities and small towns surrounding Auburn, AL.

PARTICIPANTS: Children (N = 282; 52% boys) participated in the study when they were 9 (M = 9.44, SD = .71) and 11 (M = 11.33, SD = .69) years old. The sample was 65% White/European American and 35% Black/African American. The majority of the children (63%) were living at or below the poverty line.

MEASUREMENTS: At age 9, children reported on their daytime sleepiness over the prior 2 weeks. At ages 9 and 11, children completed cognitive assessments in the laboratory, teachers reported on children's academic functioning, and schools provided state (Alabama) standardized test scores.

RESULTS: African American children and children from lower socioeconomic status homes reported greater sleepiness. Greater sleepiness, in turn, predicted lower academic functioning, cognitive performance, and Alabama standardized test scores. Sleepiness was a significant intervening variable, but not a mediator, in these pathways. Race was a stronger predictor of sleepiness than socioeconomic status when both were entered in the same model.

CONCLUSIONS: Results highlight sleepiness as a pathway of effects linking race and socioeconomic status to academic and cognitive outcomes. Psychoeducation targeting sleepiness for African American and lower-socioeconomic status children may be beneficial for boosting achievement.