How the world sleeps - Module 4

C1 Advanced · Multiple Matching · Advanced Expert Coursebook, Pearson Education

You are going to read an article about sleep. For questions 1–10, choose from the sections (A-E). The sections may be chosen more than once.

It's a familiar ritual in many parts of the world. You climb into bed, stifling a yawn. Maybe a little reading or television to loosen you up for slumber. After a while, you nod off and sleep until an alarm clock starts ringing. The truth, however, is that this ritual doesn't apply to people currently living outside the modern Western world or even to inhabitants of Western Europe 200 years ago. Yet, as anthropologist Carol Worthman discovered, sleep scarcely figures in the literature of either cross-cultural differences or human evolution. It is generally relegated to the sidelines, treated as a biological given with little potential for variation from one part of the world to another.

Worthman contacted researchers who had intimate knowledge of one or more traditional societies, and uncovered a wide variety of customs, none of which bore any resemblance to what many modern Western people take for granted. She says that this finding raises profound questions for the research that is being done into our biological clock. Over the past 50 years, scientists have identified periods of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, during which intense dreams often occur. Current efforts are examining genes involved in wakefulness and sleeping and have taken strides towards treating sleep disturbances. Although investigators assume that people sleep alone or with a partner for a solid chunk of the night, most studies take place in laboratories where individuals have naps while being hooked up to brain and body monitors. However, the distinctive sleep styles of non-Western, more traditional groups may shape the biology of sleep in ways undreamed of in sleep labs, which is why Worthman was keen to initiate relevant research.

Worthman assembled a preliminary picture of sleep practices in 10 non-Western populations. Having observed how sleepers in traditional societies recline on skins, mats, wooden platforms, the ground, or just about anything except a springy mattress, she says it brought it home to her just how odd the Western concept is of layers of bedding piled on a 'giant sleep machine'. Furthermore, unlike most Western bedrooms, sleep typically takes place in spaces that feature constant background noise emanating from other sleepers and various domestic animals. Communal space equates to safe space, invaluable in the event of a threat or emergency.

Virtually no-one in traditional societies, including children, keeps a regular bedtime. In these worlds without artificial light, activity is limited and affects the time allotted to sleep; individuals tend to slip in and out of slumber several times during the night, rather than sleeping in a solid block of time. In traditional settings, variable sleep cycles among individuals and age groups are useful so that someone can be awake or easily roused at all times. Whereas, as Worthman points out, the natural tendency of teenagers in the Western world to go to sleep late and wake up late is seen as a nuisance or as a sign of rebellion. Equally, extreme early birds get diagnosed as sleep disordered.

Some cultures, such as the Gebusi rainforest dwellers, are of the opinion that a person's spirit may wander off too far and fail to return if they sleep too heavily; dreaming makes this more likely. Whether or not one believes this, a quick nap may be preferable and has crucial effects on the body and mind. As an example, Balinese infants are carried about and held continuously by caregivers so that they learn to fall asleep even in hectic and noisy situations. This trains them to exhibit what the Balinese call 'fear sleep' later in life. Adults and children enter fear sleep by suddenly slumping over in a deep slumber when they or family members confront intense anxiety or an unexpected fright. They are literally scared into sleep. Conversely, it is possible that infants who sleep alone in the Western world may find it difficult to relax, fall asleep, wake up or concentrate because of the contrast between the sensory overload of the waking world and the dark quiet bedroom. Only cross-cultural studies of children's sleep and behaviour may be able to clarify such issues.

How the world sleeps

Is there something we can learn from how people in different cultures sleep?

a pragmatic advantage of having shared sleeping arrangements

beliefs about the potential risks of too deep a sleep

a widespread assumption that sleeping routines are universal

an awareness that scientific research methods may be biased

a re-evaluation of ideas about what represents typical sleeping environments

the ability to fall asleep as a method of self-protection

investigations currently being carried out into the science of sleep

the link between darkness and periods of sleep

a lack of research into sleeping customs across cultures

different cultural attitudes to irregular sleep patterns

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