Insomnia is the inability to obtain an adequate amount or quality of sleep. The difficulty can be in falling asleep, remaining asleep, or both. People with insomnia do not feel refreshed when they wake up
3 types of insomnia;
Transient (a few nights)
Short term (two or four
weeks) Chronic (longer
than a month)
Tr and ST can be caused
by stress, change of
environment whereas Ch
can be caused by
mental/physical disorders
Internal Factors
Familial Fatal Insomnia
affects both sexes eqaully
with high likelihood of being
genetically carried on
Lugaresi and Montagna:
Italian family. 14 members
had insomnia which led to
death. Shows insomnia is
hereditory
Lacks generalisability
Storms and Nisbett:
Insomniacs were given a
pill that would either
sedate or arouse. Those
who expected arousal
went to sleep faster as
they attributed their
arousal with the pill and
went to sleep
Watson: Twin
studies indicate that
50% of the variance
for insomnia can be
attributed genetically
Not 100%, must be
other factors
External Factors
Can be caused by the
use of stimulants such
as caffeine
Nicotine is a
stimulant and it is
found smokers take
longer to fall asleep
Can be caused
by drugs, such as
alcohol
Noise and light
can also affect sleep
Irregular sleeping
hours and an inactive
lifestyle can cause
insomnia
Pain
Campbell and Murphy:
shone a light on the
back of a participants
knees and it shifted
their Arcadian
Shows that
environmental factors
can lead to insomnia
Sleepwalking
Internal Factors
Oliviero: GABA system
that normally inhibits motor
neurone activity isn't
developed sufficiently in
children and some adults
10x more likely if an FDR has
it, therefore can be inheritied
Bassati: 74 people
that have SW, 50%
had s specific gene
which regulates the
immune system
Other 50%
Lecendreux: 50% CR
for MZ twins
Not 100% must be
environmental
factors
External Factors
Sleep deprivation
Drugs
Diathesis-stress model
Evaluation
We need to know the
difference between
Primary/Secondary
Insomnia. It is no good
treating insomnia if it's
a secondary disorder
If someone has
depression, it's
better to treat the
depression than the
insomnia
Oyahon and Roth:A
study of almost 15000
Europeans found that
insomnia often
preceded another
mood disorder
However, can
we generalise
to other
cultures?
Watson: Twin
studies indicate that
50% of the variance
for insomnia can be
attributed genetically
Bonnet and Arand:
Insomniacs experience
hyperarousal, which
makes it more difficult to
get to sleep
Diathesis-Stress model. We
have the genetic
predispositions, but we need
the environment to trigger it
Evaluation
Bassati: 74 people
that have SW, 50%
had s specific gene
which regulates the
immune system
Lecendreux:
50% CR for MZ
twins
Oliviero: GABA system that
normally inhibits motor neurone
activity isn't developed
sufficiently in children and
some adults