Socioeconomic status and health: the role of sleep.
OBJECTIVE
Examine the role of sleep in the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and health.


METHODS
Self-reported measures of income and education, sleep quantity and quality, and mental and physical health were obtained in a community sample of 1139 adults.


RESULTS
More education was associated with higher income (p <.001), and higher income was associated with better physical health (p <.001) and psychological outcomes (p <.001). The effects of income on both mental and physical health were mediated by sleep quality (p values <.01), and sleep quantity was related to both measures of health (p values <.01) but to neither index of SES.


CONCLUSIONS
Sleep quality may play a mediating role in translating SES into mental and physical well-being, and income seems to mediate the effect of education on sleep and, in turn, health.
Moore
Philip J
PJ
Department of Psychology, George Washington University, 2125 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20052, USA. pjmoore@gwu.edu
Adler
Nancy E
NE
Williams
David R
DR
Jackson
James S
JS
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008297:Male; D008824:Michigan; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012890:Sleep; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors