Does overloading cognitive resources mimic the impact of anxiety on cognition?

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ioannis Sarigiannidis ◽  
Jonathan Paul Roiser ◽  
Oliver Joe Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Time Perception ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Perception Task ◽  
Impact Performance ◽  
Attentional Resources ◽  
The World ◽  
The Impact

Anxiety alters how we perceive the world and can alter aspects of cognitive performance. Prominent theories of anxiety suggest that the effect of anxiety on cognition is due to anxious thoughts ‘overloading’ limited cognitive resources, competing with other processes. If this is so, then a cognitive load manipulation would impact performance of a task in the same way as induced anxiety. Thus, we examined the impact of a load manipulation on a time perception task that we have previously shown to be reliably impacted by anxiety. In contrast with our prediction, across two studies we found that time perception was insensitive to our load manipulation. Our results do not support the idea that anxiety impacts cognition by overloading limited cognitive resources. Thus, anxiety might affect cognition in a unique way, via an evolutionary-preserved defence survival system, as suggested by animal-inspired theories of anxiety, rather than competing for limited attentional resources.

The Impact of Cognitive Load on Volitional Running

2016 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 1179-1183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan J. Blakely ◽  
Kyle Wilson ◽  
Paul N. Russell ◽  
William S. Helton
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Cognitive Task ◽  
High Load ◽  
Interactive Effects ◽  
Cognitive Tasks ◽  
Running Speed ◽  
Original Experiment ◽  
The Impact

The effects of physical activity on cognition and the effects of cognitive load on physical activity are complex. Both the nature of the physical activity and cognitive task may influence the interactive effects of performing a physical task while also performing a cognitive task. In a previous study examining the impact of increasing cognitive load on outdoor running speed and the impact of outdoor running on cognitive performance, Blakely et al. (2015) found running speed decreased as cognitive load increased. They also found that the impact of running itself on cognitive performance occurred when the cognitive task was itself demanding (high cognitive load). In the current study we expanded on this previous research by improving the experimental task to rule out peripheral sensory, not central or executive, interference and by incorporating heart rate measures and VO2 max estimates. Twelve runners completed five conditions, two seated cognitive tasks (one low load and one high load), two dual running cognitive tasks and one run only. Results were similar to the original experiment, as the cognitive task became more difficult, voluntary running speed decreased. Also the effects of running on cognitive performance (counting) were found only when the cognitive task was high load.

Dividing Attention and Metacognition

2022 ◽  
pp. 62-90
Author(s):  
Yaoping Peng ◽  
Jonathan G. Tullis
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Secondary Tasks ◽  
Attentional Resources ◽  
University Instructors ◽  
The Impact

Students increasingly control their learning as university instructors shift away from lecture formats, courses are offered online, and the internet offers near infinite resources for student-controlled informal learning. Students typically make effective choices about learning, including what to learn, when to learn, and how to learn, but sometimes make less-than-optimal study choices, including trying to study while multi-tasking. Dividing attention among various tasks impairs both learning and learners' control over their learning because secondary tasks divert cognitive resources away from learning and metacognition. This chapter reviews recent studies explaining how dividing attention affects students' metacognition, including their assessments of their own learning and the study choices that they make. This chapter reviews the fundamentals of metacognition, describes the impact of dividing attention on the effectiveness of learners' metacognition, and provides suggestions about how to enhance the efficacy of metacognition when students' attentional resources are limited.

The Perception of Available Resources Influences the After-Effect of Cognitive Control on Cognitive Performance and Pain

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 332-344 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Silvestrini ◽  
Elodie Vuignier ◽  
Alain Matthey ◽  
Valérie Piguet
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Cognitive Task ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Sequential Task ◽  
After Effect ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Available Resources

Abstract. In two experiments, we investigated the impact of perceived available cognitive resources using a sequential-task paradigm. First, participants worked on an easy or difficult cognitive task. Then, they received a cue suggesting that their cognitive resources were still optimal or they did not receive any information on their resources. Subsequently, they worked on a second difficult cognitive task (Experiment 1) or received painful electrical stimulations (Experiment 2). We predicted that the cue on optimal resources would neutralize the effect of the first difficult task on subsequent cognitive performance and pain. Overall, results supported our predictions. We interpret these findings as showing an important role of perceived available resources in the after-effect induced by the sequential-task paradigm.

scholarly journals The Influence of Cognitive Load on Balance Control During Steady-State Walking

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriella H Small ◽  
Lydia G Brough ◽  
Richard Neptune
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Dual Task ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Balance Control ◽  
Dynamic Balance ◽  
Whole Body ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Task Conditions ◽  
And Control

Abstract BackgroundFor an individual to walk, they must maintain control of their dynamic balance. However, situations that present an increased cognitive load may impair an individual’s ability to control their balance. While dual-task studies have analyzed walking-while-talking conditions, few studies have focused specifically on the influence of cognitive load on balance control. The purpose of this study was to assess how individuals prioritize their cognitive resources and control dynamic balance during dual-task conditions of varying difficulty. MethodsYoung healthy adults (n = 15) performed two single-task conditions (spelling while standing and walking with no cognitive load) and three dual-task conditions (walking with increasing cognitive load: attentive listening, spelling short words backwards and spelling long words backwards). Repeated measures analysis of variances were used to assess differences in balance outcome measures and cognitive performance. ResultsCognitive performance did not change between the single- and dual-task conditions as measured by percent error and response rate ( p = 0.3). Balance control, assessed as the range of whole-body angular momentum, did not change between the no load and listening conditions, but decreased during the short and long spelling conditions ( p < 0.001). ConclusionsThese results showed that balance control decreases during dual-task treadmill walking with increased cognitive loads, but that cognitive performance does not change. The decrease in balance control suggests that participants prioritized cognitive performance over balance control during these dual-task walking conditions. This work offers additional insight into the automaticity of walking and task-prioritization in healthy individuals and provides the basis for future studies to determine differences in neurologically impaired populations.

scholarly journals Trait Intellect Predicts Cognitive Engagement: Evidence from a Resource Allocation Perspective

2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 215-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luke D. Smillie ◽  
Valeria Varsavsky ◽  
Rachel E. Avery ◽  
Ryan Perry
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Cognitive Engagement ◽  
Primary Task ◽  
Cognitive Tasks ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Total N ◽  
The Impact

Trait Intellect, one of the two ‘aspects’ of the broader Openness/Intellect ‘domain’, predicts performance on a range of cognitive tasks including tests of intelligence and working memory. This has been explained in terms of the tendency for high–Intellect individuals to explore, or engage more effortfully with, abstract information. This theoretical perspective can be framed in the language of Resource Allocation Theory, in terms of high–Intellect individuals allocating more of their available cognitive resources to abstract cognitive tasks. In two experiments (total N = 160), we examined the relation between Intellect and cognitive engagement during a primary word–search task under conditions of both high and low secondary cognitive load. Both experiments revealed that high–Intellect individuals were more vulnerable to the impact of the secondary cognitive load on primary task performance. This suggests that, under low secondary load, such individuals were indeed allocating more of their available cognitive resources to the primary task. These results held after controlling for trait Openness, trait Industriousness (an aspect of Conscientiousness) and a measure of working memory capacity (N–back task). Our findings provide novel support for the cognitive mechanisms proposed to underlie trait Intellect. Copyright © 2016 European Association of Personality Psychology

scholarly journals The impact of pain on subsequent effort and cognitive performance

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Silvestrini ◽  
Corrado Corradi-Dell'Acqua
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Task Performance ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Cognitive Task ◽  
Cardiac Response ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Impaired Performance ◽  
Pain Ratings ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Impact

Theoretical accounts of pain and empirical evidence indicate that pain and cognitive control share common neurocognitive processes. Numerous studies have examined the interactions between pain and cognitive performance when they occur simultaneously, typically showing analgesic effects of task performance and impaired performance due to pain. However, the sequential impact of pain on cognitive control and effort remains less clear. This study investigated the influence of a first task including painful vs. non-painful thermal stimuli on effort-related cardiac response and performance in a subsequent moderately difficult cognitive task. Drawing on the hypothesis that experiencing pain should recruit cognitive resources and reduce perceived ability, we predicted lower task performance and/or stronger compensatory effort in the subsequent cognitive task after the painful than after the non-painful first task. Results support our predictions regarding the effect of pain on subsequent cognitive performance, which was moderately lower after the painful task. However, such a decrease in task proficiency was not associated with a comparable decrease in perceived capacity or increase in effort-related cardiac reactivity. Nevertheless, further correlational analyses indicated that effort mobilization and perceived capacity were significantly related to pain ratings. Moderate pain was associated with stronger effort during the cognitive task whereas high pain led to disengagement, i.e., a low effort. Moreover, in line with our predictions, higher pain ratings were associated with lower self-reported capacity to perform the cognitive task. We discuss these findings regarding the relationship between effort and performance; the impact of fatigue on motivation; and interindividual variability in these after-effects.

The impact of cognitive load on climbing and climbing on cognitive performance

2021 ◽  
Vol 94 ◽  
pp. 103413
Author(s):  
Megan J. Blakely ◽  
Samantha L. Smith ◽  
Paul N. Russell ◽  
William S. Helton
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
The Impact

Cognitive Load Mediates the Effect of Emotion on Analytical Thinking

2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (6) ◽  
pp. 343-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bastien Trémolière ◽  
Marie-Ève Gagnon ◽  
Isabelle Blanchette
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Secondary Task ◽  
Deleterious Effect ◽  
Detrimental Effect ◽  
Emotional Problems ◽  
Syllogistic Reasoning ◽  
Cognitive Resources ◽  
Potential Explanation ◽  
Cognitive Mechanism ◽  
Analytical Thinking

Abstract. Although the detrimental effect of emotion on reasoning has been evidenced many times, the cognitive mechanism underlying this effect remains unclear. In the present paper, we explore the cognitive load hypothesis as a potential explanation. In an experiment, participants solved syllogistic reasoning problems with either neutral or emotional contents. Participants were also presented with a secondary task, for which the difficult version requires the mobilization of cognitive resources to be correctly solved. Participants performed overall worse and took longer on emotional problems than on neutral problems. Performance on the secondary task, in the difficult version, was poorer when participants were reasoning about emotional, compared to neutral contents, consistent with the idea that processing emotion requires more cognitive resources. Taken together, the findings afford evidence that the deleterious effect of emotion on reasoning is mediated by cognitive load.

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