Lack of sleep can turn you into Facebook addict

If you find yourself checking your Facebook account many times during the day, then it is a sign of compulsive behavior, which, according to a recent study, is a result of lack of sleep.

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine demonstrated that lack of sleep, in addition to affecting busy college students' moods and productivity, leads to more frequent online activities such as browsing Facebook.

"When you get less sleep, you're more prone to distraction," said lead researcher Gloria Mark, adding "If you're being distracted, what do you do? You go to Facebook. It's lightweight, it's easy, and you're tired."

Sleep deprivation can lead to loss of productivity throughout the economy. It can cause workplace mishaps and make drivers fall asleep at the wheel. Experts in the field of human-computer interaction want to know how sleep loss impacts people so they can design better technologies and products.

Central to this study was a concept known as "sleep debt," the accumulated difference between the amount of sleep needed and the amount experienced.

Mark said the study's findings show a direct connection among chronic lack of sleep, worsening mood and greater reliance on Facebook browsing. She also found that the less sleep people have, the more frequently their attention shifts among different computer screens, suggesting heightened distractibility.

The study has been presented at the ChiMag2016 Symposium meeting.