Longitudinal examination of the impact of maternal insomnia on offspring social-emotional outcomes

The National Institute of Mental Health awarded $819,721 to the Regents of the University of California, San Francisco on August 1, 2026, under the Mental Health Research Grants program (CFDA 93.242) to conduct a longitudinal investigation of whether a perinatal insomnia intervention improves offspring social-emotional development.

The award funds the Growing Offspring Wellness Study (GROW Study), which will follow mother-offspring dyads from the existing NIMH-funded PRISM Study as they age from 2 to 4 years. The PRISM Study randomized pregnant people with insomnia disorder (target N=498) to either cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia or sleep hygiene education, with follow-up through one year postpartum. The GROW Study will examine the causal impact of the perinatal insomnia intervention on offspring social-emotional outcomes through both maternal report and objectively coded behavioral observation, and will investigate postpartum depression as a potential mechanism.

The recipient, operating through its Controller's Office in San Francisco, California, is a major academic medical center and research institution. The period of performance extends through May 31, 2031. The assistance type is a Project Grant.

Abstract

Poor social-emotional development in early childhood is associated with negative short- and long-term outcomes, such as childhood psychopathology, poor school achievement, and economic consequences for families and society. Therefore, improving social-emotional development during early life may prevent adverse outcomes for children and families. Insomnia experienced by mothers during pregnancy or the postpartum period (i.e., perinatal insomnia) is a common, modifiable, and promising risk factor for poor social-emotional development in offspring, but extant observational data preclude causal inference. The current proposal capitalizes on the unique, cost-effective opportunity to follow an established cohort of mother-offspring dyads in order to provide causal evidence of whether and how an insomnia intervention delivered during pregnancy promotes offspring social-emotional development in humans. Specifically, the current proposal leverages the ongoing nimh-funded prism study. Participants are pregnant people with insomnia disorder (target n=498), randomized to a digital intervention proven effective for improving perinatal insomnia (cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia) or to a clinically relevant but inert control condition (sleep hygiene education) and followed through one year postpartum. The proposed growing offspring wellness study (grow study) will follow the prism study mother-offspring dyads longitudinally from ages 2-4 years to investigate a distinct, non-overlapping set of aims. Specifically, the prism study provides the experimental manipulation required to achieve the following grow study aims: 1) examine the impact of an efficacious perinatal insomnia intervention on offspring social-emotional outcomes measured via maternal report and objectively coded behavioral observation; and 2) investigate postpartum depression and observed parenting behavior as potential mediators. If successful, the proposed project will show that a scalable, effective insomnia intervention delivered to mothers during pregnancy improves the social-emotional outcomes of their offspring. Findings regarding mediators may assist with intervention refinement to further amplify the impact on offspring social-emotional outcomes. Improving social-emotional outcomes in early life has high public health significance considering the high individual, familial, and societal costs of poor social-emotional outcomes and their sequelae.