React to act: Negative mood, response inhibition, and the moderating role of emotional reactivity

Abstract

Although there are different theoretical accounts regarding the interplay of affect and cognition, including cognitive load theory and mood-as-information theory, research findings have been inconsistent and do not clearly align with any one perspective. Here, we present data that replicate and extend a prior study in which we examined emotional reactivity as a moderator of mood-EF associations. In the current investigation, participants were randomized to a negative or positive mood induction condition before completing the Stop Signal task – a well-validated and psychometrically sound measure of response inhibition. Exploration of means showed no influence of reactivity on inhibitory performance in the positive condition, whereas inhibitory performance worsened with lower levels of reactivity in the negative condition. Inspection of individual differences in negative mood in the entire sample further demonstrated that highly reactive individuals performed better on the Stop Signal task as negative mood increased. Results are consistent with the view that negative mood states may engender a more analytic processing style that facilitates performance on some kinds of EF tasks, whilst also posing differing cognitive demands that interfere with goal-directed behaviour pending what is affectively normal at the level of the individual. That emotional reactivity has emerged as an important moderator of mood-EF associations highlights the need to integrate different theoretical perspectives regarding the influence of mood on EF.