Bohnen N, Houx P, Nicolson N, Jolles J
Department of Neuropsychology and Psychobiology, University of Limburg, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Biol Psychol. 1990 Oct;31(2):107-16. doi: 10.1016/0301-0511(90)90011-k.
The after-effects of fatigue or stress on the performance of cognitive tests have been particularly difficult to demonstrate. In this study we examined whether salivary cortisol, used as an index of stress evoked by the continuous performance of mental tasks, reflected individual differences in cognitive performance. In a within-subject experiment in which 24 subjects were exposed to 4 hours of continuous mental activity and to a control session, significantly higher cortisol levels were found during the continuous task session. Cognitive performance was assessed before and after each session. The relevant test parameters involved aspects of verbal memory, concept shifting and divided attention. When subjects were divided into two groups based on the magnitude of individual cortisol responses to the continuous tasks, it was found that the subgroup with higher cortisol responses decreased in attention compared with their attention after the control session. In contrast, the performance of the subgroup with no or lower cortisol responses did not differ between the two sessions. There was no evidence of similar effects on verbal memory or concept shifting.
疲劳或压力对认知测试表现的后续影响一直特别难以证明。在本研究中，我们检验了用作连续执行心理任务所诱发压力指标的唾液皮质醇是否反映了认知表现的个体差异。在一项受试者内实验中，24名受试者连续进行4小时的心理活动并参与一个对照时段，结果发现连续任务时段的皮质醇水平显著更高。在每个时段前后评估认知表现。相关测试参数涉及言语记忆、概念转换和分散注意力等方面。当根据个体对连续任务的皮质醇反应幅度将受试者分为两组时，发现皮质醇反应较高的亚组与对照时段后的注意力相比注意力下降。相比之下，皮质醇反应无或较低的亚组在两个时段的表现没有差异。没有证据表明对言语记忆或概念转换有类似影响。
