Data Interpretation in Sleep Deprivation Study

Researchers conducted a study examining the effects of sleep deprivation on cognitive performance among college students. They utilized two groups: one group consisting of students who had slept for a full 8 hours and another group who had been awake for 24 hours. Participants were then given a standardized cognitive test that measured attention, memory, and problem-solving skills.

The researchers reported that students who had been sleep-deprived performed significantly worse on the memory and problem-solving sections of the test compared to those who had a full night’s sleep, with a p-value of 0.01 indicating strong statistical significance.

Using this information, analyze the data interpretation of the study. Discuss potential implications of the findings and any limitations in the study design that might affect the conclusions drawn by the researchers.