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Using Mental Imagery to Deliver Self-Regulation Techniques to Improve Sleep Behaviors

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Annals of Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

Background

Poor sleep habits and insufficient sleep represent significant workplace health issues.

Purpose

Applying self-regulation theory, we conducted a randomized, controlled trial testing the efficacy of mental imagery techniques promoting arousal reduction and implementation intentions to improve sleep behavior.

Method

We randomly assigned 104 business employees to four imagery-based interventions: arousal reduction, implementation intentions, combined arousal reduction and implementation intentions, or control imagery. Participants practiced their techniques daily for 21 days. They completed online measures of sleep quality, behaviors, and self-efficacy at baseline and Day 21; and daily measures of sleep behaviors.

Results

Participants using implementation intention imagery exhibited greater improvements in self-efficacy, sleep behaviors, sleep quality, and time to sleep relative to participants using arousal reduction and control imagery.

Conclusions

Implementation intention imagery can improve sleep behavior for daytime employees. Use of arousal reduction imagery was unsupported. Self-regulation imagery techniques show promise for improving sleep behaviors.

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Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University, Sunway Campus, Jalan Lagoon Selatan, 46150, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia

    Marisa H. Loft PhD

  2. University of California, Merced, CA, USA

    Linda D. Cameron PhD

Authors
  1. Marisa H. Loft PhD
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  2. Linda D. Cameron PhD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marisa H. Loft PhD.

Additional information

Neither author has any conflicts of interest in that no organization has financial interest in the subject matter of this paper. This research was conducted in Auckland, New Zealand

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Loft, M.H., Cameron, L.D. Using Mental Imagery to Deliver Self-Regulation Techniques to Improve Sleep Behaviors. ann. behav. med. 46, 260–272 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-013-9503-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-013-9503-9

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