The Moderating Effect of Sleep Disturbance on the Association of Stress with Impulsivity and Depressed Mood

Objective This study was performed to investigate the associations of life event stress with impulsivity, anxiety, and depressed mood as a function of the presence of a sleep disturbance.Methods In total, 214 participants (age 38.96±10.53 years; 111 females) completed self-report questionnaires, including the Life Experience Survey (LES), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Barratt’s Impulsivity Scale (BIS), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). The presence of a sleep disturbance was defined as a PSQI score >5.Results In total, 127 participants presented with a sleep disturbance (age 39.33±10.92 years; 64 females), whereas the remaining 87 did not (age 38.43±9.97 years; 47 females). Negative LES scores were significantly correlated with BIS (r=0.22, p=0.001), BAI (r=0.46, p< 0.001), and BDI (r=0.51, p<0.001) scores, and PSQI scores were significantly correlated with BAI (r=0.49, p<0.001) and BDI (r=0.60, p< 0.001) scores. Moderation analysis revealed statistically significant interactions between negative LES scores and the presence of a sleep disturbance on BIS (p=0.044) and BDI (p=0.014) but not on BAI (p=0.194) scores.Conclusion The findings of the present study suggest that life event stress has varying degrees of influence on mental health, especially impulsivity and depressed mood, depending on the presence or absence of a sleep disturbance.

Life Events in Borderline Personality Disorder

In order to examine the role of life events in the clinical presentation of borderline personality disorder, the Life Experience Survey was given to three groups of subjects; one consisting of patients suffering from borderline personality disorder and two consisting of control subjects for the purpose of comparison. The results showed that patients suffering from borderline personality disorder did not experience a greater number of life events, but those life events that they did report were related to their psycho-pathology, which were, in turn, associated with the break-ups of important relationships or with effects of impulsive actions.

Negative Life Stress and Anxiety: Problem Solving as a Moderator Variable

The present study evaluated the moderating role that social problem solving would serve in relation to negative life stress and both state and trait anxiety. 310 university students completed the Life Experience Survey, the Problem Solving Inventory, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Multiple regression analyses supported problem solving as a moderator variable and confirmed previous research in which a significant relationship was obtained between negative life events and anxiety. Also neither state nor trait anxiety was related to positive life events.