This study is opening recruitment in February 2026
Have you ever wondered why some nights are harder for your child to settle down and fall asleep?
We hypothesize that some of the difficulties related to sleep that neurodivergent children experience is related to how they process sensory information throughout the day. To examine if sensory processing impacts sleep and emotion dysregulation around bedtime, we have put together a two-part study.
Part one:
Participants and their caregiver come to our lab to complete a “sensory responsivity protocol” where we will measure your child’s physiological reaction to three types of sensory stimuli (tactile, auditory, and visual). This involves putting small, sticker-like electrodes on their body. Then, the child and caregiver will receive a watch-like activity monitor to wear for two weeks that will measure their activity and sleep. Questionnaires and daily sleep diaries will be sent electronically.
Part two:
Some of the participants will be offered to continue to try out a new, sensory-based bedtime intervention that targets elevated bedtime arousal levels. For these participants, they will come back into the lab to learn the bedtime intervention, called the Power Down, and then trial the intervention for two weeks while continuing to wear the watch and complete daily sleep diaries and questionnaires.
Interested in the study? Fill out this recruitment survey: https://redcap-std.hs.pitt.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=LJRLMNTEWW8KWTYR
- Am I right for this study?
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- Autistic children between 6-10
- Child has difficulties settling down to fall asleep
- Caregiver is willing to participate in all bedtimes during the study
- No diagnosis of sleep apnea, narcolepsy, or major psychiatric disorder (e.g., major depression, bipolar)
- Able to travel to Oakland, PA for lab visit(s)
- What will I do in the study?
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- Wear a watch (caregiver and child) for 2 weeks and complete three daily diaries about sleep and emotion
- Complete questionnaires and interviews
- Attend 1-2 lab visits in Oakland, PA
- Will I be paid?
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Yes, there is compensation for your time and efforts during this study.
- Why are we doing this study?
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We want to understand if supporting children’s nervous systems through a sensory-based approach would impact their abilities to settle down and fall asleep. To start understanding this, we want to get a multidimensional picture of sleep, emotion dysregulation, and sensory responsivity.
- Why is this research so exciting?
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This research will help us know how to support children and their families to sleep better! We know that sleep is so critical for growth and development for kids, and can impact the way the family functions too.
- Will my information be kept private?
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The data that we collect throughout the study is kept private and secure. We make sure to remove any identifiable information for the questionnaires, diaries, interviews, and data collected through the lab protocol and watch.
- We use identification numbers instead of your name on your data.
- We do not have access or collect data from your medical records.
- We will never publish data in a way that it can be directly linked back to you.
- Your name, address, or other identifiable information is not shared with the government or any funder or collaborator.
- How do I find out more?
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You can complete our contact form You can email us directly at familyempowermentlab@groups.pitt.edu
You can use your phone’s camera to use this QR code:
You can call us at 412-624-3961
Funded by: National Institute of Health Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute for Child Health and Human Development
Principal Investigator: Amy Hartman, PhD, OTR/L