Unfinished tasks at work impair sleep quality through the negative emotions they induce (Valencia, January 2026)

A diary study in which Idocal member and Professor at the WOP-P master’s at the University of Valencia, Prof. González-Romá participated showed that those work tasks that we do not finish on a given day impair sleep quality on the following days because they induce negative emotions.

This study uncovers a mechanism that helps understand why unfinished tasks are related to sleep quality. It also suggests strategies to mitigate this dysfunctional mediated relationship, such as time management skills training, adequate role expectations, and cognitive reappraisal.

The study was recently published online in the journal Anxiety, Stress, & Coping (Kovalchuk, L. S., González-Romá, V., Balducci, C., Molinaro, D., & Spagnoli, P. (2025). The influence of unfinished tasks on subjective ease of falling asleep via negative emotions at work: a diary study. Anxiety, Stress, & Coping. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615806.2025.2601226)