Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial in healthy males
| dc.contributor.author | Human, Robyn | |
| dc.contributor.author | Thomas, Kevin G F | |
| dc.contributor.author | Dreyer, Anna | |
| dc.contributor.author | Amod, Alysaa R | |
| dc.contributor.author | Wolf, Pedro S A | |
| dc.contributor.author | Jacobs, W Jake | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2016-05-05T14:29:22Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2016-05-05T14:29:22Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2013 | |
| dc.date.updated | 2016-05-05T14:24:39Z | |
| dc.description.abstract | Previous research demonstrates that stress can disrupt a number of different cognitive systems, including verbal memory, working memory, and decision-making. Few previous studies have investigated relations between stress and visuospatial information processing, however, and none have examined relations among stress, visuospatial memory performance, and planning/ organisation of visuospatial information simultaneously. In total, 38 undergraduate males completed the copy trial of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test. Those assigned randomly to the Stress group (n = 19) were then exposed to a laboratory-based psychosocial stressor; the others were exposed to an equivalent control condition. All then completed the delayed recall trial of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test. Physiological and self-report measures of stress indicated that the induction manipulation was effective. Our predictions that control participants, relative to stressor-exposed participants, (a) take less time to complete the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test recall trial, (b) reproduce the figure more accurately on that trial, and (c) show better planning and more gestalt-based organisational strategies in creating that reproduction were disconfirmed. At recall, those with higher circulating cortisol levels (measured post-stress-induction) completed the drawing more accurately than those with lower circulating cortisol levels. Otherwise stated, the present data indicated that exposure to an acute psychosocial stressor enhanced visuospatial memory performance in healthy males. This data pattern is consistent with a previously proposed inverted U-shaped relationship between cortisol and cognition: Under this proposal, moderate levels of the hormone (as induced by the current manipulation) support optimal performance, whereas extremely high and extremely low levels impair performance. | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier | http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0081246313496913 | |
| dc.identifier.apacitation | Human, R., Thomas, K. G. F., Dreyer, A., Amod, A. R., Wolf, P. S. A., & Jacobs, W. J. (2013). Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial in healthy males. <i>Southern African Journal of Psychology</i>, http://hdl.handle.net/11427/19464 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.chicagocitation | Human, Robyn, Kevin G F Thomas, Anna Dreyer, Alysaa R Amod, Pedro S A Wolf, and W Jake Jacobs "Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial in healthy males." <i>Southern African Journal of Psychology</i> (2013) http://hdl.handle.net/11427/19464 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.citation | Human, R., Thomas, K. G., Dreyer, A., Amod, A. R., Wolf, P. S., & Jacobs, W. J. (2013). Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial memory in healthy males. South African Journal of Psychology, 43(3), 300-313. | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.issn | 0081-2463 | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.ris | TY - Journal Article AU - Human, Robyn AU - Thomas, Kevin G F AU - Dreyer, Anna AU - Amod, Alysaa R AU - Wolf, Pedro S A AU - Jacobs, W Jake AB - Previous research demonstrates that stress can disrupt a number of different cognitive systems, including verbal memory, working memory, and decision-making. Few previous studies have investigated relations between stress and visuospatial information processing, however, and none have examined relations among stress, visuospatial memory performance, and planning/ organisation of visuospatial information simultaneously. In total, 38 undergraduate males completed the copy trial of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test. Those assigned randomly to the Stress group (n = 19) were then exposed to a laboratory-based psychosocial stressor; the others were exposed to an equivalent control condition. All then completed the delayed recall trial of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test. Physiological and self-report measures of stress indicated that the induction manipulation was effective. Our predictions that control participants, relative to stressor-exposed participants, (a) take less time to complete the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test recall trial, (b) reproduce the figure more accurately on that trial, and (c) show better planning and more gestalt-based organisational strategies in creating that reproduction were disconfirmed. At recall, those with higher circulating cortisol levels (measured post-stress-induction) completed the drawing more accurately than those with lower circulating cortisol levels. Otherwise stated, the present data indicated that exposure to an acute psychosocial stressor enhanced visuospatial memory performance in healthy males. This data pattern is consistent with a previously proposed inverted U-shaped relationship between cortisol and cognition: Under this proposal, moderate levels of the hormone (as induced by the current manipulation) support optimal performance, whereas extremely high and extremely low levels impair performance. DA - 2013 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town J1 - Southern African Journal of Psychology LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2013 SM - 0081-2463 T1 - Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial in healthy males TI - Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial in healthy males UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/19464 ER - | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/19464 | |
| dc.identifier.vancouvercitation | Human R, Thomas KGF, Dreyer A, Amod AR, Wolf PSA, Jacobs WJ. Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial in healthy males. Southern African Journal of Psychology. 2013; http://hdl.handle.net/11427/19464. | en_ZA |
| dc.language | eng | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | SAGE Publications | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher.department | Centre for Social Science Research(CSSR) | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher.faculty | Faculty of Humanities | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher.institution | University of Cape Town | |
| dc.source | Southern African Journal of Psychology | en_ZA |
| dc.source.uri | http://sap.sagepub.com/ | |
| dc.subject.other | Cortisol | |
| dc.subject.other | Hippocampus | |
| dc.subject.other | Memory | |
| dc.subject.other | Planning | |
| dc.subject.other | Prefrontal cortex | |
| dc.subject.other | Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test | |
| dc.title | Acute psychosocial stress enhances visuospatial in healthy males | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Journal Article | en_ZA |
| uct.type.filetype | Text | |
| uct.type.filetype | Image | |
| uct.type.publication | Research | en_ZA |
| uct.type.resource | Article | en_ZA |