Case A: Does How You Sleep Matter?

With extracurricular, academics and a social life to maintain, goal-oriented students have to squeeze time from their hectic schedules to get homework done. The result? Lots of studying, writing and reading happens while lying or lounging in bed. Though many parents insist children study only at a desk, they may be surprised to hear what experts think about where and when it's best to review and learn. We gathered informed opinions from experts in education psychology, sleep medicine and ergonomics.

As a debate about homework escalates nationwide, a perhaps less-discussed issue is where this home-studying takes place. Among those who recognize that much of it happens in bed are industrial engineers and furniture designers. Over the years they have come up with across-the-bed tables that angle laptops for proper typing, reading pillows that cradle the neck, back and arms, even hard-sided lap pillows for resting a laptop on.

These can all help bed-studiers be more comfortable. However, Atul Malhotra, a physician and professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego, with a focus on sleep medicine, notes: "Lying down or sitting upright doesn't impact your brain functionyour posture doesn't matter."

Social psychologist Harris Cooper believes that it is important for students to figure out their most effective study environment, and suggests that tracking progress over time can help determine if bed-studying is producing good work as a desk.

Dr. Atul Malhotra advises against reading and retaining something important just before sleeping, but suggests that studying in bed in the morning can be effective due to lack of distractions. Ergonomics specialist Janice Fletcher recommends achieving a neutral posture while studying, whether at a desk or in bed, to minimize discomfort and distractions.

The only widely known research specifically on students doing homework in bed versus at a desk was published in May 1968. Of the 100 or so college students they surveyedadmittedly at a time when studying was quite different from the screen-based work nowthe researchers at the University of California, Davis, found no difference in grade-point average between those who worked at their desk and those who studied in bed.

Similarly, we conducted the same type of research, with 100 students from the University of California, all in their third year of study, with gender being proportionally represented (49% male). During this research, participants were randomly assigned to a bed-studying or desk-studying group, and were in separate rooms with each having its own observer, and having material after four equal study sessions to test out the various postures in bed compared to those who did not study in bed. Both groups studied for 4 hours per evening and per morning, and the only topics were Calculus, Chemistry and English Literature. We generated the same, if not similar, results.

1- What is the main claim?

2- What is the dependent, independent, mediating and moderating variables?

3- What type of research design is it? And Why?

4- Is there any selection effect? Experimental effect? Subject effect? Reverse causation? Spurious relationship? History, maturation, mortality or attrition effect?