Abstract
Effects of the quality of nighttime sleep on children’s cognitive and emotional functions are reviewed. The existing studies show strong link between nighttime sleep and children’s higher cognitive functions, which are supposed to rely on neural network including prefrontal cortex as in adults. However, some studies indicate the possibility that influences of nighttime sleep vary according to developmental stage. Furthermore, it has been shown that detrimental effects of poor nighttime sleep can be ameliorated by higher socio-economic status. Therefore, it is indispensable to take into consideration children’s age and background information in evaluating the effects of nighttime sleep on children’s cognitive and emotional functions.
