What Shapes Sleep: Biology, Culture, or Both?

How much of our sleep is hardwired and how much is shaped by the world around us?

Join internationally recognized pediatric sleep expert Jodi Mindell for a fascinating talk that explores this question through a global lens. Drawing on research from countries including Japan, Vietnam, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and the United States, Mindell will reveal striking cross-cultural similarities and differences in how young children—and their parents—sleep.

Discover what sleep looks like across the globe in early childhood and consider the age-old question: when it comes to sleep, does nature or nurture have the upper hand?

Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets are not required for this event.

About the Speaker

Jodi Mindell is a professor of psychology at Saint Joseph’s University and the associate director of the Sleep Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She is also an adjunct professor of pediatrics (psychology) at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. 

Mindell has written extensively on pediatric sleep, with over 150 publications and over 500 presentations at national and international conferences. She is the author of Sleeping Through the Night: How Infants, Toddlers, and Their Parents Can Get a Good Night’s Sleep and co-author of A Clinical Guide to Pediatric Sleep: Diagnosis and Management of Sleep Problems. She is the chair of the Pediatric Sleep Council, an international group of experts whose mission is to provide comprehensive, publicly available information on baby and toddler sleep to parents and care providers.

About the Series

Science on Tap is a monthly speaker series that features brief, informal presentations by Philadelphia-based scientists and other experts followed by lively conversation and a Q&A. The goal is to promote enthusiasm for science in a fun, spirited, and accessible way, while also meeting new people. Come join the conversation!

Featured photo courtesy of Jodi Mindell.