Observing the Relationship Between Sleep and Anxiety in College Students

This research project examines the relationship between sleep and anxiety through naturalistic observation of behavioral indicators. The purpose of the study is to explore whether signs associated with lower sleep levels are related to behaviors commonly linked with anxiety in everyday settings. Sleep will be operationalized as the frequency of yawns observed, and anxiety will be operationalized as the frequency of fidgeting behaviors such as foot tapping, playing with hair, shifting posture, or drumming fingers. Observations will take place in a public study space at the University of Maryland, College Park, where students commonly sit and work. Each participant will be observed for 1 minute, and the number of yawns and fidgeting behaviors will be recorded for a total of 60 participants. The goal of the study is to examine whether there is a relationship between these behaviors, with the expectation that individuals who appear more tired (shown through more frequent yawning) may also display higher levels of fidgeting behaviors associated with anxiety. This study aims to better understand how observable behaviors in everyday environments may reflect underlying psychological states.