RELATIONSHIP OF LIGHTWAVE FREQUENCY TO SLEEPWAKEFULNESS FREQUENCY IN WELL, FULL-TERM, HISPANIC NEONATES.
Contributors: Wayne State University.
Published: 1990
Number of pages: 184
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Psychology, Physiological.; Psychology, Experimental.
Description: The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesized relationship that neonates experiencing lower frequency (LF) lighting would have less sleepwakefulness frequency than neonates experiencing higher frequency (HF) lighting. Also described was sleepwakefulness frequency in neonates across three sleep periods when lighting was changed from standard nursery lighting to LF or HF and then back to standard lighting.

Sleepwakefulness data were collected from 100 male and female, Hispanic neonates from 6.1 hours to 5.4 days of age in a well-baby nursery of a County Hospital. A two factor repeated measures experimental design was used, having LF or HF as the two levels of the grouping factor. Three sleep periods of approximately 2 1/2 hours each were the levels of the repeated measures factor. The dependent variable, sleepwakefulness frequency was based on observations from Thoman's (1985) Sleepwakefulness Instrument for clinical research. Comparable groups of 50 each, resulted from random assignment.

The hypothesis was supported as evidenced by a significant group by sleep period linear interaction, $t$(1) = $-$2.169, $\rho <$.05 and a significant simple main effect in the HF group, $F$(2, 196) = 9.06, $\rho <$.001.

The results support the theory from which the hypothesis was deduced, Martha Rogers' (1986) Science of Unitary Human Beings, the basis for the theory and three of Rogers' postulated correlates of human patterning. Major research contributions are the description of: (a) the extended duration of low intensity of lighting used in sleeping, swaddled neonates, (b) the extended duration of observations required to detect pattern change, (c) the variables of sleepwakefulness frequency, percentage of sleep and waking, number of wakings in proximity to feeding and sleep latency, and (d) the problem of repeating different lighting experiences within subjects.

Contributions to practice are the: (a) additional support for criteria for the sleepy and wakeful neonate, (b) question of whether standard nursery lighting may facilitate a higher sleepwakefulness frequency, (c) question of whether different lighting frequencies may facilitate day-waking and night-sleeping, and (d) support for shielding nontreated neonates from bililite emissions.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-02, Section: B, page: 0748.

Thesis (PH.D.)--WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY, 1990.

School code: 0254.