Inclusion and Diversity Committee (IDC) Update

For many Family Science professionals, the words that describe the theme of this issue’s Family Focus might not inspire thoughts of inclusion and diversity. However, as the role and mission of the Inclusion and Diversity Committee (IDC) is to “engage members in scholarly dialogue,” please indulge us by thinking about how this theme does include elements related to inclusion and diversity.

Recently, Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington made sleep the focus of her post-CEO life. Her book The Sleep Revolution (2016) explores many facets of sleep and its implications for the physiological (e.g., obesity), emotional (e.g., happiness), and intimate (e.g., sex) aspects of the human experience. She argues that we need a sleep revolution to take back our lives from the harried and fast-paced nature of contemporary life. While we certainly agree with her argument, we want to extend the discussion a little further by suggesting a more nuanced perspective on how sleep patterns also evidence inequality, and some potential steps that Family Science scholars can take to consider the impact of lack of sleep on family life.

Research by Stamatakis, Kaplan, and Roberts (2007) has shown that the lowest quintile of income earners get the least amount of sleep. The implications of this lack of sleep include poorer health outcomes such as heart disease, reproductive problems, and gastrointestinal complications. Socially, the lack of sleep can increase stress, which has long been associated with family maladaptation (McCubbin & Patterson, 1983).

Another issue is infant mortality. The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, housed in the National Institutes of Health, has worked for many years to reduce the rate of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The institute’s 2012 analyses revealed that African American babies die of SIDS at a rate that far exceeds that of other ethnicities/races. This problem has been linked to culturally based sleep patterns. To combat the problem, several campaigns (e.g., Safe Sleep) have launched to help eradicate the risk of such loss.

Finally, adolescents and young adults are reported to need about 9.25 hours of sleep a night, yet many do not receive as much as that. Lack of sleep can cause unintentional injuries, affect student grades, create negative moods, including depression, and lead to increased use of stimulants. Normal school schedules are not compatible with teen sleep schedules. According to the Sleep Foundation, having later school start times is one way to help teens overcome the lack of sleep. One school district in New Mexico has worked to combat this problem by purchasing “sleep pods” for teens who are not getting enough sleep at night. With these pods, students can take a nap during the day if needed.

So when we discuss making this world more just, or at least creating opportunities that provide a pathway to well-being for all families, we should also take time to consider how the current structure of our society places an additional burden on low-income families through the basic need for sleep. A lack of proper sleep patterns or cultural factors may lead to family practices that result in loss of sleep. The major activity adults sacrifice sleep for is paid work (Byrne, 2015). Those who have less sleep at night tend to be workers who have multiple jobs, irregular hours, and longer commutes. Studies find that low-income workers and those with less education have fewer hours of sleep. Clearly, this basic human need is not equally available to all families and individuals.

Our point is not to suggest that we focus only on the negative associations between sleep and family but rather that when we consider the role of sleep in family life, we should also consider how such a relationship evidences inequality among families. Further, we question how Family Science scholars do (or can) use this information to reduce inequality and/or loss.

This discussion has several implications for family scholars’ pursuit of social justice:

Policy: Consider (or reconsider) policy such as minimum-wage rates. For instance, it might be possible for the minimum wage to be high enough that no family member is required to work multiple jobs to meet the basic needs or expenses for his or her family. Such employment structures reduce the opportunity for family members to get enough quality rest, which has negative implications for family well-being.

Community programming: Family scholars can advocate for funding of public relations campaigns about sleep routines that severely reduce the risk of SIDS.

Activism: Become more involved in local school board decisions about school start times that more closely align with the developmental needs of children and youth and various cultural practices.

Future Directions and the 2017 Annual Conference

At the 2017 NCFR Annual Conference, the IDC will continue its annual series of special sessions, which invite all NCFR members to reflect on who we are, what we do, and how we can support all families and communities as family scholars, educators, and practitioners. These sessions are designed to share ideas, concerns, and suggestions in an effort to become more inclusive family professionals and ultimately to support NCFR in building a more inclusive, diverse, and socially just environment for all members. The 2017 special session will again focus on contemporary issues of race and racism and will feature a series of roundtables, each focused on a different topic and led by NCFR members with expertise in that particular area. The IDC’s goal is to continue engaging in discussions of inclusion and diversity by increasing awareness of some of the many individuals and families who are underrepresented and marginalized.

Resources for Family Scholars

• Various publications of the NICHD, available at www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/Pages/pubs_details.aspx?pubs_id=5809

• The National Sleep Foundation’s 2000 report Adolescent Sleep Needs and Patterns, available at sleepfoundation.org/sites/default/files/sleep_and_teens_report1.pdf and Backgrounder: Later School Start Times, at sleepfoundation.org/sleep-news/backgrounder-later-school-start-times

• Catie Beck’s March 6, 2017, article for NBC News, “Students Allowed to Nap at School With Sleep Pods,” available at www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-health/students-allowed-nap-school-sleep-pods-n729881

• Ciara Byrne’s March 26, 2015, Fast Company article, “How Sleep Became a Social Justice Issue.” available at https://www.fastcompany.com/3043128/sleep-inequality

References

Byrne, C. (2015, March 26). How sleep became a social justice issue. Fast Company. Retrieved from https://www.fastcompany.com/3043128/sleep-inequality

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. (2012). Safe sleep for your baby: Reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and other sleep-related causes of infant death (African American outreach) (12-5355). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Huffington, A. The sleep revolution: Transforming your life, one night at a time. New York, NY: Harmony Books.

McCubbin, H. I., & Patterson, J. M. (1983). The family stress process: The double ABCX model of adjustment and adaptation. Marriage & Family Review, 6(1–2), 7–37.

Stamatakis, K. A., Kaplan, G. A., & Roberts, R. E. (2007). Short sleep duration across income, education, and race/ethnic groups: population prevalence and growing disparities during 34 years of follow-up. Annals of Epidemiology, 17(12), 948–955.

*Other members of the IDC include Sandy Bailey, Miriam Mulsow, Vanja Lazarevic, Shan Hwa (Abraham) Hwang, and Jennifer Kerpelman.