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Abstract
Background: Adolescence is a critical developmental period characterised by profound biological, cognitive, and psychosocial changes that substantially influence health and educational outcomes. Sleep plays an indispensable role in neurocognitive functioning, particularly memory consolidation, attention, and executive processes that underpin academic achievement. Increasing academic demands, extensive digital media exposure, irregular sleep schedules, and psychosocial stress have contributed to widespread sleep disturbances among adolescents worldwide. Despite growing evidence linking sleep quality with cognitive and educational outcomes, limited research has comprehensively examined the mechanisms through which sleep quality influences academic performance, particularly in the Indian context.
Objective: This study investigated the relationships among sleep quality, memory functioning, and academic performance among adolescents and examined whether memory functioning mediates the association between sleep quality and academic performance.
Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional design was employed among 102 adolescents selected using purposive sampling. Participants completed standardized questionnaires assessing sleep quality, memory functioning, and academic performance. Descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, Pearson's correlation, multiple regression, and mediation analyses were conducted using SPSS.
Results: Sleep quality demonstrated significant positive associations with memory functioning and academic performance. Memory functioning was also significantly associated with academic performance and emerged as the strongest predictor in the regression model. Mediation analysis revealed a significant indirect effect of sleep quality on academic performance through memory functioning, indicating that improvements in sleep quality may enhance academic outcomes by strengthening memory processes.
Conclusion: The findings highlight memory functioning as an important cognitive pathway linking sleep quality with academic performance. The study underscores the importance of promoting healthy sleep behaviours among adolescents to support cognitive development and educational achievement. School-based sleep education, parental awareness, and early behavioural interventions may contribute substantially to improving both psychological well-being and academic success.
Keywords: Adolescents; Sleep Quality; Memory Functioning; Academic Performance; Cognitive Functioning; Mediation Analysis
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