Depriving ourselves of sleep is never a good idea. It is no secret that a good night’s sleep is important for a healthy life. At times a person isn’t well-rested, despite sleeping for 8-9 hours a day because the quality of sleep is more crucial as compared to sleeping more.
A new study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology finds that the duration of the sleep does not matter for the well-being of individuals rather the quality of sleep matters. The researchers also found that short daytime naps do help productivity and well-being.
The study was conducted by MIT economists among the low-income workers in Chennai. The researchers studied the participants at their home during their daily routine. The researchers managed to increase the sleep of the individuals by about half an hour per night. However, the increased duration of sleep did not improve the productivity, earnings, financial choices and sense of well-being of the participants, the MIT researchers found.
The long duration of sleep reduced the work hours of the participants. “To our surprise, these night-sleep interventions had no positive effects whatsoever on any of the outcomes we measured,” said Frank Schilbach, an MIT economist and co-author of the research findings.
The researchers found that short daytime naps played a vital role in aiding the well-being and productivity of the participants. Sleeping with interruptions does not benefit the individuals the way a quality sleep with no interruptions does, the MIT study concluded.
“In contrast to the night sleep intervention, we find clear evidence of naps improving a range of outcomes, including their productivity, their cognitive function, and their psychological well-being, as well as some evidence on savings,” added Schilbach.
According to Schilbach, the sleep quality of the Chennai workers was extremely poor as it included multiple interruptions, which is why increasing the sleep duration by around 30 minutes could not be beneficial for them.
To test the effectiveness of sleeping, the study was conducted among 452 people over a month where some participants were given financial incentives to sleep more and others were given tips for better sleep and encouragement. The participants were engaged in data-entry jobs with flexible hours.
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