Auburn University Sleep Study (AUSS) Publications

Empirical Articles

Erath, S. A., Keller, P. S., Altinoz, Z. S., Philbrook, L. E., & El-Sheikh, M. (2026). Stress and sleep in adolescence: The interactive effects of skin conductance level reactivity and parental psychological control. Developmental Psychobiology, 68(5), e70202. https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.70202

McWood, L. M., Erath, S. A., Hinnant, B., & El-Sheikh, M. (2026). Discrimination, sleep, and physical health: Moderation by respiratory sinus arrythmia reactivity. Journal of Health Psychology, 31(1), 280–295. https://doi.org/10.1177/13591053241310165

Thompson, M. J., Kelly, R. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2026). Quadratic associations between harsh parenting and changes in children's nightly sleep. Sleep Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2026.08.015

Fuller-Rowell, T. E., Zeringue, M. M., Saini, E. K., Sultana, S., & El-Sheikh, M. (2025). Changes in actigraphy-assessed sleep from childhood to adolescence: The role of neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage. Sleep Health, 11(4), 431–438. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2025.04.002

Gillis, B. T., Shimizu, M., Brigham, E. F., Hinnant, B., & El-Sheikh, M. (2025). What keeps night owls well during the week? Sleep onset consistency as a moderator between morningness-eveningness and adolescent development. Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 23(1), 92–104. https://doi.org/10.1080/15402002.2024.2412331

Thompson, M. J., McWood, L. M., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2025). From counting dollars to counting sheep: Exploring simultaneous change in economic well-being and sleep among African American adolescents. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 12(6), 4199–4208. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40615-024-02212-9

Fuller-Rowell, T. E., Zeringue, M. M., Saini, E. K., Yip, T., & El-Sheikh, M. (2024). Do sleep problems exacerbate the mental health consequences of discrimination among adults? Psychosomatic Medicine, 86(4), 324–333. https://doi.org/10.1097/PSY.0000000000001305

Thompson, M. J., Gillis, B. T., Hinnant, J. B., Erath, S. A., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2024). Trajectories of actigraphy-derived sleep duration, quality, and variability from childhood to adolescence: Downstream effects on mental health. Sleep, 47(8), zsae112. https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsae112

Thompson, M. J., Hinnant, J. B., Erath, S. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2024). The legacy of harsh parenting: Enduring and sleeper effects on trajectories of externalizing and internalizing symptoms. Developmental Psychology, 60(8), 1482–1499. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0001754

Fuller-Rowell, T. E., Saini, E. K., & El-Sheikh, M. (2023). Social class discrimination during adolescence as a mediator of socioeconomic disparities in actigraphy-assessed and self-reported sleep. Sleep Medicine, 108, 61–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2023.05.021

Gillis, B. T., McWood, L. M., Brigham, E. F., Hinnant, J. B., & El-Sheikh, M. (2023). Family income as a moderator of relations between sleep and physical health during adolescence. Sleep Health, 9(6), 868–875. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2023.09.009

Hinnant, J. B., Buckhalt, J. A., Brigham, E. F., Gillis, B. T., & El-Sheikh, M. (2023). Socioeconomic disparities, nighttime bedroom temperature, and children's sleep. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 86, 101530. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2023.101530

Zeringue, M. M., Saini, E. K., Fuller-Rowell, T. E., Hinnant, J. B., & El-Sheikh, M. (2023). Neighborhood environment and adolescent sleep: The role of family socioeconomic status. Sleep Medicine, 109, 40–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2023.06.014

El-Sheikh, M., Zeringue, M. M., Saini, E. K., Fuller-Rowell, T. E., & Yip, T. (2022). Discrimination and adjustment in adolescence: The moderating role of sleep. Sleep, 45(1), zsab215. https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsab215

Kouros, C. D., Keller, P. S., Martín-Piñón, O., & El-Sheikh, M. (2022). Bidirectional associations between nightly sleep and daily happiness and negative mood in adolescents. Child Development, 93(5), e547–e562. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13798

McWood, L. M., Zeringue, M. M., Martín-Piñón, O., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2022). Linear and nonlinear associations between the sleep environment, presleep conditions, and sleep in adolescence: Moderation by race and socioeconomic status. Sleep Medicine, 93, 90–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2021.11.004

Kelly, R. J., Erath, S. A., Martín-Piñón, O., & El-Sheikh, M. (2021). Longitudinal relations between parents' sleep problems and harsh parenting. Journal of Family Psychology, 35(8), 1181–1191. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000851

Saini, E. K., Gillis, B. T., Elmore-Staton, L., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2021). Longitudinal relations between sleep and cognitive functioning in children: Self-esteem as a moderator. Journal of Sleep Research, 30(3), e13209. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.13209

Saini, E. K., Keiley, M. K., Fuller-Rowell, T. E., Duke, A. M., & El-Sheikh, M. (2021). Socioeconomic status and sleep among couples. Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 19(2), 159–177. https://doi.org/10.1080/15402002.2020.1721501

Shimizu, M., Zeringue, M. M., Erath, S. A., Hinnant, J. B., & El-Sheikh, M. (2021). Trajectories of sleep problems in childhood: Associations with mental health in adolescence. Sleep, 44(3), zsaa190. https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsaa190

Zeringue, M. M., Erath, S. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2021). Exposure to peer aggression and adolescent sleep problems: Moderation by parental acceptance. Journal of Family Psychology, 35(7), 897–905. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000713

El-Sheikh, M., Shimizu, M., Philbrook, L. E., Erath, S. A., & Buckhalt, J. A. (2020). Sleep and development in adolescence in the context of socioeconomic disadvantage. Journal of Adolescence, 83, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2020.06.006

El-Sheikh, M., Philbrook, L. E., Kelly, R. J., Hinnant, J. B., & Buckhalt, J. A. (2019). What does a good night's sleep mean? Nonlinear relations between sleep and children's cognitive functioning and mental health. Sleep, 42(6), zsz078. https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsz078

Kelly, R. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2019). Reciprocal relations between parental problem drinking and children's sleep: The role of socioeconomic adversity. Child Development, 90(6), 1987–2000. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13074

Bagley, E. J., Fuller-Rowell, T. E., Saini, E. K., Philbrook, L. E., & El-Sheikh, M. (2018). Neighborhood economic deprivation and social fragmentation: Associations with children's sleep. Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 16(6), 542–552. https://doi.org/10.1080/15402002.2016.1253011

Philbrook, L. E., Shimizu, M., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2018). Sleepiness as a pathway linking race and socioeconomic status with academic and cognitive outcomes in middle childhood. Sleep Health, 4(5), 405–412. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2018.07.008

El-Sheikh, M., Hinnant, J. B., & Philbrook, L. E. (2017). Trajectories of sleep and cardiac sympathetic activity indexed by pre-ejection period in childhood. Journal of Sleep Research, 26(5), 578–586. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.12491

Kouros, C. D., & El-Sheikh, M. (2017). Within-family relations in objective sleep duration, quality, and schedule. Child Development, 88(6), 1983–2000. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12667

Philbrook, L. E., Hinnant, J. B., Elmore-Staton, L., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2017). Sleep and cognitive functioning in childhood: Ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and sex as moderators. Developmental Psychology, 53(7), 1276–1285. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0000319

Kelly, R. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2016). Parental problem drinking and children's sleep: The role of ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Journal of Family Psychology, 30(6), 708–719. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000209

Bagley, E. J., Kelly, R. J., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2015). What keeps low-SES children from sleeping well: The role of presleep worries and sleep environment. Sleep Medicine, 16(4), 496–502. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleep.2014.10.008

Bagley, E. J., Kelly, R. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2015). Longitudinal relations between children's sleep and body mass index: The moderating role of socioeconomic risk. Sleep Health, 1(1), 44–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2014.12.001

El-Sheikh, M., Hinnant, J. B., & Erath, S. A. (2015). Marital conflict, vagal regulation and children's sleep: A longitudinal investigation. In M. El-Sheikh & A. Sadeh (Eds.), Sleep and development: Advancing theory and research. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 80(1), 89–106. https://doi.org/10.1111/mono.12146

El-Sheikh, M., Keiley, M., Bagley, E. J., & Chen, E. (2015). Socioeconomic adversity and women's sleep: Stress and chaos as mediators. Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 13(6), 506–523. https://doi.org/10.1080/15402002.2014.940110

El-Sheikh, M., Kelly, R. J., Koss, K. J., & Rauer, A. J. (2015). Longitudinal relations between constructive and destructive conflict and couples' sleep. Journal of Family Psychology, 29(3), 349–359. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000083

Erath, S. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2015). Linking bioregulatory systems: Reciprocal autonomic activation predicts sleep over one year in middle childhood. Developmental Psychobiology, 57(1), 17–24. https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.21246

Erath, S. A., Tu, K. M., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2015). Associations between children's intelligence and academic achievement: The role of sleep. Journal of Sleep Research, 24(5), 510–513. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.12281

Bagley, E. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2014). Relations between daytime pre-ejection period reactivity and sleep in late childhood. Journal of Sleep Research, 23(3), 337–340. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.12117

El-Sheikh, M., Bagley, E. J., Keiley, M. K., & Erath, S. A. (2014). Growth in body mass index from childhood into adolescence: The role of sleep duration and quality. Journal of Early Adolescence, 34(8), 1145–1166. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431613519499

El-Sheikh, M., Kelly, R. J., Sadeh, A., & Buckhalt, J. A. (2014). Income, ethnicity, and sleep: Coping as a moderator. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 20(3), 441–448. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036699

Keller, P. S., Kouros, C. D., Erath, S. A., Dahl, R. E., & El-Sheikh, M. (2014). Longitudinal relations between maternal depressive symptoms and child sleep problems: The role of parasympathetic nervous system reactivity. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 55(2), 172–179. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12151

Kelly, R. J., Marks, B. T., & El-Sheikh, M. (2014). Longitudinal relations between parent-child conflict and children's adjustment: The role of children's sleep. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 42(7), 1175–1185. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-014-9863-z

Staton, L., Hinnant, J. B., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2014). Sleep and cognitive performance: The role of income and respiratory sinus arrhythmia reactivity. Developmental Psychobiology, 56(7), 1528–1540. https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.21247

Bagley, E. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2013). Familial risk moderates the association between sleep and zBMI in children. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 38(7), 775–784. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jst031

El-Sheikh, M., Bagley, E. J., Keiley, M., Elmore-Staton, L., Chen, E., & Buckhalt, J. A. (2013). Economic adversity and children's sleep problems: Multiple indicators and moderation of effects. Health Psychology, 32(8), 849–859. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030413

El-Sheikh, M., Erath, S. A., & Bagley, E. J. (2013). Parasympathetic nervous system activity and children's sleep. Journal of Sleep Research, 22(3), 282–288. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.12019

El-Sheikh, M., Kelly, R. J., & Rauer, A. J. (2013). Quick to berate, slow to sleep: Interpartner psychological conflict, mental health, and sleep. Health Psychology, 32(10), 1057–1066. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031786

Del Giudice, M., Hinnant, J. B., Ellis, B. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2012). Adaptive patterns of stress responsivity: A preliminary investigation. Developmental Psychology, 48(3), 775–790. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026519

El-Sheikh, M., Kelly, R. J., Bagley, E. J., & Wetter, E. K. (2012). Parental depressive symptoms and children's sleep: The role of family conflict. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 53(7), 806–814. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2012.02530.x

Conceptual Papers, Reviews and Meta-Analyses

Thompson, M. J., Ehrhardt, A. D., Saini, E. K., Brigham, E. F., Altinoz, Z. S., Yip, T., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2026). Unpacking sleep and mental health disparities across childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic and systematic review. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 85, 102206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2025.102206

Thompson, M. J., Ehrhardt, A. D., Saini, E. K., Yip, T., Buckhalt, J. A., & El-Sheikh, M. (2025). Socioeconomic and racial/ethnic disparities in sleep and cognitive and academic functioning across childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic review. Sleep, 48(10), zsaf166. https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsaf166

El-Sheikh, M., Gillis, B. T., Saini, E. K., Erath, S. A., & Buckhalt, J. A. (2022). Sleep and disparities in child and adolescent development. Child Development Perspectives, 16(4), 200–207. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12465

El-Sheikh, M., & Kelly, R. J. (2017). Family functioning and children's sleep. Child Development Perspectives, 11(4), 264–269. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12243

El-Sheikh, M., & Erath, S. A. (2011). Family conflict, autonomic nervous system functioning, and child adaptation: State of the science and future directions. Development and Psychopathology, 23(2), 703–721. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579411000034

Book Chapters

El-Sheikh, M., Kelly, R. J., & Philbrook, L. E. (2017). Sleep and development: Familial and socio-cultural considerations. In S. M. McHale, V. King, & O. M. Buxton (Eds.), Family contexts of sleep and health across the life course (pp. 25–49). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-64780-7_2

Bagley, E. J., & El-Sheikh, M. (2013). Children's sleep and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. In A. R. Wolfson & H. E. Montgomery-Downs (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of infant, child, and adolescent sleep and behavior (pp. 381–396). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199873630.013.0027

Buckhalt, J. A. (2013). The role of schools in identification, treatment and prevention of sleep problems. In A. R. Wolfson & H. E. Montgomery-Downs (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of infant, child, and adolescent sleep and behavior (pp. 292–301). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199873630.013.0019