Makara Journal of Health Research
Vol. 29, No. 2

The Association Between Irregular Sleep Patterns and Learning Outcomes: Implications for Students’ Health in Iraq

Ali, Hazhmat (Unknown)
Musa, Dildar Haji (Unknown)
Mohammed, Ary Habeeb (Unknown)
Abdulraheem, Hiwa (Unknown)
Salahadeen, Sherzad (Unknown)
Mustafa, Alind (Unknown)



Article Info

Publish Date
31 Aug 2025

Abstract

Background: Students often exhibit irregular sleep patterns due to rigorous academic workloads, which exert a considerable negative impact on their mental health. The present study aims to investigate the influence of irregular sleep on academic performance. Methods: This study recruited a cohort of 409 medical students of both genders. Upon their consent, participants filled out a closed-ended questionnaire on various sleep parameters, including sleep habits, duration, and environment. Results: Students with irregular sleep patterns reported higher rates of sleep deprivation, late sleep onset, and troubled sleep. Moreover, they spent a longer duration using smart devices before bedtime and experienced higher levels of stress. Irregular sleep demonstrated a positive correlation with sleep deprivation, sleep duration, troubled sleep, and the duration of smart device use (p = 0.000), energy drink consumption (p = 0.040), and junk-food intake (p = 0.000). Students exhibited poor academic performance, frequently experienced fatigue, and were unfocused. Irregular sleep was positively correlated with overall academic performance (p = 0.002), fatigue, and focus in class (p = 0.000). Conclusion: The findings indicate a significant impact of irregular sleep on learning outcomes and mental health among medical students. Thus, effective strategies are critically required to enhance sleep within this population.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

publication:mjhr

Publisher

Subject

Description

Makara Journal of Health Research (MJHR) is a peer-reviewed and scientific journal published by Universitas Indonesia. Starting from 2019 onwards, MJHR is redirecting its scope, focusing on publishing research articles relevant to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) addressing issues of surveillance, ...