Should I Sleep Less to Study More? Research Shows Otherwise.

Opinions from researchers, psychologists and physicians.

Dr. Michael Breus, PhD , Psychologist.

"It might seem like a reasonable sacrifice to give up a little sleep to hit the books late into the night, but new research says this strategy doesn’t work. This study found that students who stay up late doing homework are more likely to have academic problems the next day. This is true regardless of how much overall studying the student does, according to the study results.

Researchers at UCLA examined the daily sleep and study habits of 535 students in grades 9, 10, and 12. All the students were enrolled in Los Angeles schools, and represented a range of socioeconomic and ethnic groups. For two weeks, students kept diaries recording their daily study amounts and sleep amounts. They also kept track of two different types of academic problems:

• Having trouble understanding material being taught in class
• Doing poorly on tests, quizzes, or homework assignments

Researchers found that opting to delay bedtime in favor of studying was linked to an increased risk of both types of academic difficulty. And this was true regardless of the total amount of students’ study time.

The remedy to this problem is not to study less, but rather to create a schedule that allows for sufficient study time and sufficient sleep time. Is that easier said than done? Probably. But extra study time at the expense of sleep is likely to create academic problems, not solve them."


Jaimes Roe, Researcher.

"You learn better and faster when you sleep well. It's really that simple. So get your studying wrapped up by your normal bedtime, sleep the amount your body needs (this can be anywhere from 6 - 10 hours, and varies from person to person). Your circadian rhythm also plays a big role.

Sleep plays a major role in memory, so studying at the expense of sleep is going to result in learning and remembering less."

Robert Stickgold, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

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