Police stops and adolescent sleep problems: findings from the UK millennium cohort study

Abstract

Youth-police contact has been shown to undermine various facets of adolescent health and well-being. The present study extends this body of research by assessing the association between police stops and sleep problems among a large, representative sample of adolescent in the UK (N = 11,200). The findings reveal youth–police contact was associated with all facets of sleep examined, including shorter sleep durations, longer sleep latency, and frequent mid-sleep awakenings. Ancillary analyses of a subsample of youth using daily time-use diaries (TUDs) largely corroborate these findings in the case of short sleep durations. Additionally, the odds of experiencing multiple sleep problems were greatest among youth who were arrested/taken into custody, but significant nonetheless even in the absence of arrest. These findings indicate the need for strategies and interventions among both public health practitioners and law enforcement that mitigate the adverse repercussions of police stops for adolescent sleep health.