Tad T. Brunyé */**, Jessica L. Howe *, Leila A. Walker *** and Caroline R. Mahoney */**
(*) U.S. Army Natick Soldier RDEC, Cognitive Science Team, Natick, MA, USA
(**) Tufts University, Department of Psychology, Medford, MA, USA
(***) U.S. Army Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, Natick, MA, USA
Citation
T. Brunyé, T., L. Howe, J., A. Walker, L., R. Mahoney, C. (2013). Acute bouts of endurance exercise increase distractibility to emotional stimuli. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 44(5), 471-492. doi:10.7352/IJSP.2013.44.471
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Some current neurocognitive models suggest that physical exertion selectively impairs performance of cognitive tasks demanding engagement of the prefrontal cortex. The present study tested this hypothesis by examining the effects of an acute bout of physical exertion on a prefrontal-dependent task demanding the effortful control of attention and emotion. Design: In a repeated-measures design, participants pedaled a recumbent bicycle ergometer at either a low or high work rate corresponding to percentages (25-35% or 75-85%) of maximum heart rate achieved during a peak exercise test. METHOD: To challenge cognitive processes dependent on regions of the brain’s prefrontal cortex, participants performed a cognitive interference task that presented either neutral or emotionally distracting images embedded within a spatial working memory task. RESULTS:Working memory decrements on trials with embedded negative versus neutral images; importantly, this effect was exacerbated in the high versus low work rate. This exercise-induced decrement did not maintain during cool-down or rest, and was predicted by participant fitness levels. By comparison, a relatively lowlevel perceptuo-motor reaction time task showed faster performance during the high versus low work rate. CONCLUSIONS: Acute bouts of submaximal exercise induce transient states of reduced effortful control of attention, resulting in heightened distractability to emotional stimuli. Results are discussed with regard to theories detailing dynamic interactions between brain networks mediating physical exertion and higher-level cognitive function.
Keywords: Arousal, Emotion Exercise, Executive functions, Physical fitness, Prefrontal cortex