Psychology Biological rhythms

Restoration theories suggest that the function of sleep is to repair and restore the brain and body. If this did not happen, then the functioning of the brain and body would gradually break down.

During periods when the brain is growing or undergoing reorganisation, there will be an increase in the amount of REM sleep a person has

Sleep will increase when the body is growing or undergoing repair
If a person is deprived of sleep for a significant period, they will attempts to catch up on the sleep they have lost.

Sleep deprivation will cause deficits in psychological functioning and have a negative effect on bodily processes

NREM- Body Repair
REM- Brain Repair

What is the Restoration Theory?

Ecological/ Evolutionary:

Ecological theories of sleep agree with restoration theories in that they suggest that since sleep is common to so many animals it must serve a useful purpose. However, the ecological view looks at sleep from an evolutionary perspective. In other words, sleep is analyses in terms of the survival advantage it confers on animals that do it. There are several strands to the ecological approach.

-Small animals, which lose heat faster than large ones, will sleep more.

-Dietary factors will be related to sleep habits. Animals with an energy-rich diet will be able to sleep more because they need to spend less time looking for food.
-Predators will sleep more than prey species.
-Animals will show adaptation to specific environmental challenges they face.

What is the Ecological theory?