Sleep disturbances, particularly insomnia, are highly prevalent among university women and are associated with impairments in executive functioning and academic performance. Women present higher rates of insomnia due to biological and psychosocial factors. This study aims to design and evaluate a psychological intervention program to improve sleep quality and reduce insomnia symptoms in female university students aged 18-25, with the purpose of strengthening cold executive functions and analyzing its impact on academic performance.
Sex: Female
Age: 18-25
Chronic insomnia diagnosed by assessment tool.
Must be university students of any major.
Sex: Women in transition or men.
Psychiatric or neurological diagnosis other than insomnia.
Use of psychoactive substances.
Under pharmacological treatment for any medical, psychiatric, or neurological condition, including insomnia.
Parallel
Psychological Program to Improve Sleep Quality
BehavioralThe intervention consists of a structured psychological program designed to improve sleep quality and reduce insomnia symptoms in female university students. Sleep hygiene: Minimally invasive behavioral recommendations are implemented to establish healthy habits and routines that promote sleep onset and continuity. Relaxation techniques: Strategies are used to decrease physiological and cognitive activation prior to sleep. Stimulus control: This technique aims to reduce the negative association between the bedroom and difficulty sleeping. The intervention is delivered in a structured and supervised format, with the goal of promoting sustainable behavioral and cognitive changes that improve sleep quality. The intervention will be conducted weekly in group sessions lasting approximately one hour. The researcher will administer the intervention.
Sleep Quality
Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI; Buysse et al., 1989) is a self-report instrument designed to assess sleep quality and sleep disturbances over the past month. It evaluates seven components: subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, habitual sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances, use of sleep medication, and daytime dysfunction. These components generate an overall score that allows differentiation between people who sleep well and people who sleep poorly. Its psychometric properties have demonstrated adequate levels of reliability and validity. Furthermore, it exhibits good sensitivity and specificity for identifying clinically significant sleep problems and is therefore considered a valid and reliable instrument for assessing sleep quality. It evaluates sleep over the past month using 19 self administered questions, with a total score ranging from 0 to 21 points. An overall score \> 5 indicates poor sleep quality while a score ≤ 5 suggests adequate sleep quality
Executive functions in higher education
The Executive Functions in Higher Education Scale (EFEES) (Zamora-Lugo et al., 2025) is a self-report instrument designed to assess perceived executive functioning in university students within the academic context. The scale evaluates four domains: organization, self-control, attentional and inhibitory control, and planning and time management. It consists of 70 items rated on a six-point Likert scale ranging from 0 ("I do not remember") to 5 ("It describes me perfectly"). Higher scores indicate greater perceived executive functioning in academic activities. Responses are interpreted based on academic work completed during the previous six months. According to the authors, the scale shows adequate internal consistency and evidence of structural validity, supporting its reliability and usefulness for assessing executive functioning in Mexican university populations.
Insomnia
The Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS; Soldatos et al., 2000) is a self-report instrument designed to assess the presence and severity of insomnia based on international diagnostic criteria (ICD-10). It consists of eight items that explore difficulties related to sleep onset, nighttime awakenings, early morning awakening, total sleep duration, sleep quality, daytime well-being, physical and mental functioning, and daytime sleepiness. The scale is designed for adults and has been used in both clinical and research settings. It demonstrates adequate internal consistency and good convergent validity with other sleep measures, as well as appropriate sensitivity and specificity for detecting clinical cases of insomnia. Therefore, it is considered a valid and reliable instrument. A total score of 6 or more points (out of 24) usually indicates suspected insomnia. It is classified as: absence (0-5), mild insomnia (6-9), moderate insomnia (10-15), and severe insomnia (16-24).
The Card Sorting Test
The neuropsychological assessment to measure changes in the functioning of cognitive processes of interest, such as executive functions, will use the following instrument: Neuropsychological Battery of Executive Functions and Frontal Lobes, 3rd edition (BANFE-3) (Flores-Lázaro, et al. 2021). The card sorting test will be assessed using the standardized BANFE executive functions test, taking into account response accuracy, perseverations, time, and errors. The total score will be converted to a standardized score of 0 to 19 (with a mean of 10 ± 3 SD, 4-6 low performance, 14-19 high performance).
Working Memory
Neuropsychological assessment to measure changes in the functioning of cognitive processes of interest, such as executive functions, will use the following assessment instrument: Neuropsychological Battery of Executive Functions and Frontal Lobes, 3rd Edition (BANFE-3) (Flores-Lázaro, et al. 2021). Working Memory Working memory will be measured using the standardized BANFE executive function test, with response accuracy as the scoring criterion. The total score is converted to a normalized score of 0 to 19 (with a mean of 10 ± 3 SD, 4-6 low performance, 14-19 high performance).
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