Presence of Sleep Disturbances Among Child Trauma Survivors: Comparison of Caregiver and Child Reports

A significant body of research has been devoted to demonstrating high rates of sleep impairment, and the subsequent adverse implications of sleep difficulties, among adult trauma survivors, particularly those diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Yet considerably less work has been focused on sleep disturbances among trauma-exposed children, especially preschoolers. Pediatric research is paramount in light of the numerous developmental and functional implications that may result from sleep impairment. Prior studies have also documented disagreement between caregiver’s and children’s reports of trauma-related symptoms; however, the level of concordance rates regarding sleep difficulties is unknown in this population. The present study investigated the rates of multiple types of sleep disturbances using caregiver’s and children’s reports as well as caregiver-child concordance rates regarding these difficulties. Three hundred and forty-two treatment-seeking children ages of 3–18 years (M = 9.68, SD = 4.00; 61.1% female, 60.4% Black) and their caregivers were included in the study. Sleep disturbances were common in this sample, and children endorsed higher levels of sleep symptoms (range 46–72%) than their caregivers (range 14–51%). Nearly half (47%) of preschool children evinced significant sleep impairment per their caregiver. Inter-rater agreement between caregiver’s and children’s reports for all sleep symptoms were below acceptable levels (range κ = 0.01-.13), indicating that the concordance rate for caregiver-child trauma-related sleep problems is quite low. Findings illustrate the relevance of sleep disturbances among trauma-exposed children and point to the need to assess both caregiver’s and children’s symptoms regarding sleep impairment. © 2017, Springer International Publishing AG.