Date of Award
12-24-2025
Date Published
January 2026
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Social Science (MSSc)
Department
Psychology
Advisor(s)
Katie Kidwell
Second Advisor
Michelle Zaso
Keywords
adolescence;disordered eating;eating disorders;emotion dysregulation;sleep disturbances
Subject Categories
Clinical Psychology | Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences
Abstract
Accruing evidence suggests a significant relationship between sleep disturbances and disordered eating. Early adolescence is a period of heightened vulnerability for sleep disturbances and disordered eating. However, the longitudinal relationship between sleep disturbance and disordered eating remains unclear in early adolescent samples. The current study aims to examine if sleep disturbance longitudinally predicts disordered eating in early adolescents three years later, how the odds of having clinically significant disordered eating change per each unit increase in sleep disturbance, and if emotion dysregulation mediates these relationships. It is hypothesized that baseline sleep disturbance will predict greater disordered eating at follow-up, and that those early adolescents with greater baseline sleep disturbance will have greater odds of having clinically significant disordered eating at follow-up. Further, it is hypothesized that emotion dysregulation will be a partial mediator of these relationships. A sample of 6,161 early adolescents from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive DevelopmentSM Study (ABCD Study®) was examined with data extracted from baseline, two-year follow-up, and three-year follow-up. Results indicated that greater sleep disturbance at baseline was associated with higher levels of disordered eating and clinically significant disordered eating at three-year follow-up, and emotion dysregulation partially mediated these relationships (all ps<.001). These findings may inform prevention and intervention efforts for early adolescents with disordered eating. Sleep disturbances in early adolescence may signal emerging disordered eating, underscoring the importance of addressing sleep problems to reduce risk. Interventions targeting emotion regulation may help reduce the impact of sleep problems on disordered eating in early adolescents.
Access
Open Access
Recommended Citation
Hamilton, Antonia Louise, "Longitudinal Association Between Sleep Disturbance and Disordered Eating in Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Emotion Dysregulation" (2025). Theses - ALL. 999.
https://surface.syr.edu/thesis/999
