Abstract
Breaks filled with different break activities often interrupt cognitive performance in everyday life. Previous studies have reported that both enhancing and deteriorating effects on challenging ongoing tasks such as working memory updating, depend on the type of break activity. However, neural mechanisms of these break-related alterations in working memory performance have not been studied, to date. Therefore, we conducted a brain imaging study to identify the neurobiological correlates of effects on the n-back working memory task related to different break activities. Before performing the n-back task in the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner, young adults were exposed to break activities in the MRI scanner involving (i) eyes-open resting, (ii) listening to music, and (iii) playing the video game “Angry Birds”. Heart rate was measured by a pulse oximeter during the experiment. We found that increased heart rate during gaming as well as decreased relaxation levels after a video gaming break was related to poorer n-back task performance, as compared to listening to music. On the neural level, video gaming reduced supplementary motor area activation during working memory performance. These results may indicate that video gaming during a break may affect working memory performance by interfering with arousal state and frontal cognitive control functions.
Highlights
Breaks filled with different break activities often interweave cognitive performance in daily life
Age Education Time spent on listening to music per week Time spent on gaming per week Fluid Intelligence Cognitive Speed (DSST) [41] Verbal Knowledge (MWT-B) [42] Verbal Memory (Wordlist)
Cognitive Speed was assessed by the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) from the WAIS-R; Verbal Knowledge was assessed by the German Vocabulary Test (Mehrfachwahl-WortschatzIntelligenztest, MWT-B); Verbal memory was assessed by Wordlist from the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer’s Disease (CERAD); Verbal Working Memory was assessed by the Digit Span (DS) Backwards Test; Oneminute Semantic Verbal Fluency (SVF) tested for the category “animals” (Verbale Flussigkeit: Tiere); Executive Functioning was assessed by the Trail Making Test (TMT-A, TMT-B)
Summary
Breaks filled with different break activities often interweave cognitive performance in daily life. Breaks can provide respite from task-induced fatigue [1], and may enhance ongoing task performance [2, 3]. Previous research indicates that different types of breaks, such as playing video games or listening to music, may have deteriorating effects on ongoing tasks. Effects of video gaming on brain response during working memory performance. SL), the Humboldt Postdoctoral Scholarship (grant to SL), the German Research Foundation (grant FOR 1617 to AH and subproject grant RA1047/2-2 to MAR and SCHA 1971/1-2 to DJS; grant SPP 1772, subproject grant RA1047/4-1 and RA1047/ 4-2 to MAR and HE7464/1-1 and HE7464/1-2 to SH), and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (grant 01EE1406A to AH and grant 01EE1406I to MAR). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
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