Co-Sleeping: Gender Differences in College Students' Retrospective Reports of Sleeping with Parents during Childhood

Abstract

161 women and 111 men, Caucasian college students, provided retrospective information about their patterns of sleeping during childhood. The practice of co-sleeping was common, with 33.7% reporting that they co-slept in their parents' room during their first week after birth, 29.4% during the first month after birth, and 27.5% during their second month after birth. In addition, 6.3% of women and 11.9% of men reported that they co-slept during the entire first year after birth. Finally, a sex-specific pattern of co-sleeping was found with more women reporting that they co-slept with their parents during their first week and first month after birth, but a greater percentage of men than women reported that they co-slept with their parents at older ages. It appears that girls are removed from the parents' room at a younger age and more frequently than are boys.