Affect Reaction Time Research Articles

Color-induced cognitive conflicts affect muscle activity prior to gait initiation in the Go/No-go task.

In traffic rule, green/blue means go, and red means stop. It has been shown that this prior knowledge about traffic signal colors can affect reaction times (RTs). For example, RTs are longer when responding to a red "Go" signal and withholding the response to a blue "No-go" signal (Red Go/Blue No-go task) than when responding to a blue "Go" signal and withholding the response to a red "No-go" signal (Blue Go/Red No-go task), when responses are provided by button press. However, it remains unknown whether this holds in different actions. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of prior knowledge of color on gait initiation in a Go/No-go task. Seventeen participants performed Green Go/Red No-go and Red Go/Green No-go tasks, in which they stepped forward from a force plate in response to a green or red signal and withhold the response to red or green signal, respectively. We recorded the center of pressure (COP) and electromyogram (EMG) from the bilateral tibialis anterior muscles during gait initiation. The onset of COP movement and toe-off time as well as COP displacements did not differ between the Go/No-go tasks. The EMG onset for the stance leg was delayed in the Red Go/Green No-go than Green Go/Red No-go task. These findings suggest that the conflict between prior knowledge of color related to traffic rule and the meaning of the stimulus color affects muscle activity but not COP characteristics during gait initiation, highlighting two distinct motor control mechanisms, where the initial phase is influenced by cognitive load while the subsequent phase remains unaffected. This dissociation suggests that the later phase of gait initiation relies on robust spinal loops and central pattern generators, which are less influenced by cognitive factors such as prior knowledge.

Impact of olfactory priming on mental representations of food concepts and subsequent food choice

Previous research suggests that food odors act as a prime and influence food choice outside of awareness. Little is known about how odors prime (healthy) food choices. We hypothesized that odors could activate mental representations of food concepts, interacting with cognitive processes underlying food decision-making. We tested this by examining which concepts (healthy, sensory, or product-specific) are activated by odors and how this impacts subsequent food choices. In a between-subjects design, 112 participants were divided into three conditions: healthy odor (apple or banana), unhealthy odor (chocolate or caramel), and non-odor (control). Participants were exposed to one condition for 5 min and then completed a lexical decision task and a screen-based food choice task. The lexical decision task included four word categories: healthy-related, sensory-related, neutral words, and non-words. Reaction times were recorded and computed for each category. Participants were asked to choose one food they wanted to eat from four (in-)congruent food word options and repeated it four times (one for each odor). Results showed participants responded slower to non-words than other words, and slower to healthy and sensory words than neutral words. However, odor exposure did not influence reaction times, nor did the interaction between odor condition and word category affect reaction times. Participants were more likely to choose unhealthy foods regardless of odor exposure. Thus, ambient sweet odors did not prime food-related information or choice. We recommend additional testing using a broader range of odors and word categories to fully validate the association of an odor with a concept.

Smartphone use and social media addiction in undergraduate students

Background Children’s use of social media has increased significantly over the past decade. As a result, they are susceptible to smartphone addiction. In particular, parents' and children's well-being and behaviors are negatively affected by smartphone addiction. Such addiction likely affects both physical performance and lifestyle. Adolescents utilize their smartphones while performing other tasks. The secondary task might divert attention away from the primary task. Reaction time is the combination of brain processing and muscular movement. Texting or communicating on a smartphone while performing another task may affect reaction time. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore the influence of smartphone use on reaction time in undergraduate students who were addicted to smartphones. Methods The Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version (SAS-SV) was used to assign 64 undergraduate students to the smartphone addiction group (n = 32) and the control group (n = 32). The reaction time (RT) of an organism is used to determine how rapidly it responds to stimuli. All participants were examined on the RT test under three conditions: no smartphone use (control), texting, and chatting on a smartphone. Participants were questioned by smartphone through text message or chat with the support of a researcher during the texting and conversation conditions. While responding to the questions, the participant was administered an RT test. Results The results showed that smartphone addiction tends to have a reduced influence on reaction time when compared to the control group. Also, texting or conversing on a smartphone while doing other work had a substantial impact on reaction time in the undergraduates. Conclusions Combining smartphone use with other activities tends to reduce undergraduate students' reaction time.

Executive functions & metabolic control in phenylketonuria (PKU) and mild hyperphenylalaninemia (mHPA)

BackgroundDue to newborn screening and early treatment, patients with phenylketonuria (PKU) and mild hyperphenylalaninemia (mHPA) develop largely normal, in terms of IQ testing and academic attainment. However, the impact of metabolic control in various stages of development on more complex cognitive abilities, i.e. executive functions (EF), is still unclear. MethodsEFs were tested in 28 patients with PKU/mHPA, aged 8–17 years, identified by newborn screening and continuously treated. The relation to current (testing day & past 10 phenylalanine (Phe) values) and long-term metabolic control (age periods: childhood <6, 6–10, adolescence >10 years, lifetime Phe) was analyzed. ResultsEFs were in the lower normative range (IQR of T-values: 47.35–51.00). Patients reaction time was significantly slower than the population mean (divided attention/TAP: median 40, p < 0.01). Both, long-term and current metabolic control correlated with performance in EF tests: Higher current Phe impaired reaction times (Go/No-Go, r = −0.387; working memory, r = −0.425; p < 0.05) and performance in planning ability (ToL r = −0.465, p < 0.01). Higher long-term Phe values both in childhood and adolescence mainly affected attention (omissions/TAP r = −0.357 and − 0.490, respectively, both p < 0.05) as well as planning ability (ToL r = −0.422 and − 0.387, adolescence and lifetime, p < 0.05). ConclusionCurrent and long-term metabolic control in PKU/mHPA, including the adolescent period, influence EFs, especially affecting reaction time and planning abilities. This should be taken into account in patient counselling.

Executive functioning in posttraumatic stress disorder: Understanding how inhibition, switching, and test modality affect reaction times.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been linked to deficits in executive functioning, but the literature suggests these associations are inconsistent. Results vary depending on the task used, test modality, and the specific subdomain being measured, such as inhibitory control (interference resolution, response inhibition) or set shifting (task switching, rule switching). Notably, deficits are more consistently observed in computerized tasks that measure precise reaction times (RTs) than in classic paper-and-pencil measures, but few studies have parsed specific executive functioning deficits in PTSD using detailed analyses of RT data. The present study used a cued-switching Stroop Task to examine both interference resolution and task switching in 28 veterans with PTSD and 28 age-matched controls. Each trial required attending to a randomly presented cue and responding to the specified target while ignoring irrelevant or opposing information. Analyses of RT distributions estimated both Gaussian (normal) and ex-Gaussian (exponential) parameters. Veterans with PTSD had slower and more variable RTs than the controls on trials that required ignoring conflicting information (interference resolution, d' = .68). These effects were confined to the normal distribution, not to excessively slow responses (as estimated by ex-Gaussian parameters). Veterans with PTSD also showed modestly slower RTs on trials that required switching between cues, but Bayesian evidence for this was weak, and measures by ex-Gaussian parameters were not significant. These results highlight the importance of examining executive functioning in PTSD with a more nuanced approach, as clarity around these deficits may have important implications for future intervention and rehabilitation strategies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Influences of Vehicle Communication on Human Driving Reactions: A Simulator Study on Reaction Times and Behavior for Forensic Accident Analysis.

Cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITSs) are mass-produced and sold in Europe, promising enhanced safety and comfort. Direct vehicle communication, known as vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, is crucial in this context. Drivers receive warnings about potential hazards by exchanging vehicle status and environmental data with other communication-enabled vehicles. However, the impact of these warnings on drivers and their inclusion in accident reconstruction remains uncertain. Unlike sensor-based warnings, V2X warnings may not provide a visible reason for the alert, potentially affecting reaction times and behavior. In this work, a simulator study on V2X warnings was conducted with 32 participants to generate findings on reaction times and behavior for accident reconstruction in connection with these systems. Two scenarios from the Car-2-Car Communication Consortium were implemented: "Stationary Vehicle Warning-Broken-Down Vehicle" and "Dangerous Situation-Electronic Emergency Brake Lights". Volkswagen's warning concept was utilized, as they are the sole provider of cooperative vehicles in Europe. Results show that V2X warnings without visible reasons did not negatively impact reaction times or behavior, with average reaction times between 0.58 s (steering) and 0.69 s (braking). No significant distraction or search for warning reasons was observed. However, additional information in the warnings caused confusion and was seldom noticed by subjects. In this study, participants responded correctly and appropriately to the shown false-positive warnings. A wrong reaction triggering an accident is possible but unlikely. Overall, V2X warnings showed no negative impacts compared with sensor-based systems. This means that there are no differences in accident reconstruction regarding the source of the warning (sensors or communication). However, it is important that it is known that there was a warning, which is why the occurrence of V2X warnings should also be saved in the EDR in the future.

Examining the effects of attention and concentration levels on reaction time in fencing

Background and Study Aim. Attention and concentration, fundamental psychological skills, are crucial in situations where the opponent moves rapidly and incessantly. Reaction time is also of paramount importance in winning a game in fencing, which requires both offensive and defensive actions. Understanding the factors that affect reaction time is essential for improving performance. This study aimed to investigate the impact of disruptions in attention and concentration on reaction time in fencing. Material and Methods. Thirty-four healthy male and female fencers participated in two testing sessions. In the initial session, participants filled out a personal information form and took the d2 Attention Test to determine their attention levels. They also completed items representing the concentration disruption subscale of the Sport Anxiety Scale-2 (SAS-2) to measure concentration levels. In the second session, participants underwent the Favero Electronic Fencing Target (EFT-1) test to measure their reaction times. To analyze the obtained data, SPSS 20 was used. The Pearson correlation coefficient between attention, concentration disruption, and participants' reaction times was calculated. Then, linear regression analysis was employed to test whether attention and concentration scores could predict the reaction times. Results. The findings indicated that there is a significant positive relationship between E (r = .603, p &lt; .01), E% (r = .628, p &lt; .01), E1 (r = .584, p &lt; .01), E2 (r = .533, p &lt; .01), and reaction time. Additionally, a significant negative relationship was revealed between concentration performance and reaction times (r = -.456, p &lt; .01). A significant positive correlation was observed between fencers' concentration disruption and reaction times (r = .416, p &lt; .05). Conclusions. Our study results emphasize the importance of attention and concentration in disciplines that require quick reactions. These cognitive factors need to be considered in the development of sports performance.

Visual Branding of Sikapak Timur Village Pariaman as Media Promotion Based on Visual Complexity Effect on Social Media

Visual Complexity Effect is a term used in psychology to describe how people react to complex visual information. Typically, the more complicated or complex the visual information, the more difficult it is for people to process and understand it. The effects of visual complexity can also affect reaction times, cognitive abilities, and decision making. In everyday life, data visualization and complex graphs can be a challenge for many people, especially if they are not used to that type of information. Therefore, graphic designers and application developers try to minimize visual complexity so that it can be understood and used easily by users.

Smartphone use and social media addiction in undergraduate students

Background Children’s use of social media has increased significantly over the past decade. As a result, they are susceptible to smartphone addiction. In particular, parents' and children's well-being and behaviors are negatively affected by smartphone addiction. Such addiction likely affects both physical performance and lifestyle. Adolescents utilize their smartphones while performing other tasks. The secondary task might divert attention away from the primary task. Reaction time is the combination of brain processing and muscular movement. Texting or communicating on a smartphone while performing another task may affect reaction time. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore the influence of smartphone use on reaction time in undergraduate students who were addicted to smartphones. Methods The Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version (SAS-SV) was used to assign 64 undergraduate students to the smartphone addiction group (n = 32) and the control group (n = 32). The reaction time (RT) of an organism is used to determine how rapidly it responds to stimuli. All participants were examined on the RT test under three conditions: no smartphone use (control), texting, and chatting on a smartphone. Participants were questioned by smartphone through text message or chat with the support of a researcher during the texting and conversation conditions. While responding to the questions, the participant was administered an RT test. Results The results showed that smartphone addiction tends to have a reduced influence on reaction time when compared to the control group. Also, texting or conversing on a smartphone while doing other work had a substantial impact on reaction time in the undergraduates. Conclusions Combining smartphone use with other activities tends to reduce undergraduate students' reaction time.

An attention-based approach for assessing the effectiveness of emotion-evoking in immersive environment

Visual stimuli within an immersive virtual environment impact human perception and behavior in notably different ways compared to the real world. Previous studies have presented evidence indicating that individuals in various emotional states exhibit an unconscious attentional bias toward either positive or negative stimuli. However, whether these findings can be replicated within an immersive virtual environment remains uncertain. In this study, we devised an attention-based experiment to explore whether the correlation between participants' emotional states and the valence of visual stimuli influences their attentional bias. Participants (n=28) viewed 360-degree videos with varying valence levels (positive and negative) to evoke emotions. Subsequently, we utilized standard emotional human faces as stimuli to assess how the consistency in video valence and emotional faces affects reaction time (RT) in Go tasks and error rates in No-go tasks. We employed the Ex-Gaussian approach to analyze the RT data. The parameters—mu (μ), sigma (σ), and tau (τ)—were computed to denote response speed and attentional lapses, respectively. Our findings revealed a significant increase in tau (τ) when the valence of the video and emotional faces aligned. This suggests that the Go/No-go paradigm is effective in evaluating the impact of emotion-evoking stimuli within an immersive environment.

Rhythm and Response: Examining the Effects of Music on Reaction Time: A Comprehensive Review

Introduction: A reaction time test measures a person’s response time to stimuli. There has been a noticeable increase in exposure to loud music, which is generally believed to result in functional aberrations over time in healthy individuals. Loud music can improve alertness and arousal in certain situations, but it can also slow down cognitive processes and impede reaction time, especially when it serves as a stressor or distraction. Aim: To offer insights into investigating how music affects reaction time in adults. Materials and Methods: A literature search was conducted from PubMed, The Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar database from February 2000 to February 2024. The search utilised terms such as “music”, “high volume”, “adult”, “reaction time” and “noise” employing Boolean operators (AND, OR). Articles in which reaction time was measured included in this review, non-english articles were excluded. Results: A total of 2392 articles found from different database, out of which only seven met the inclusion criteria. These studies suggest that listening to loud music may have a negative impact on reaction time. Conclusion: The varying outcomes observed may suggest that the selection of music could have influenced alertness levels, while the presence of different distraction levels might have contributed to neurocognitive alterations, such as delayed responses and impaired bodily functions.

Visual Branding of Sikapak Timur Village Pariaman as Media Promotion Based on Visual Complexity Effect on Social Media

Visual Complexity Effect is a term used in psychology to describe how people react to complex visual information. Typically, the more complicated or complex the visual information, the more difficult it is for people to process and understand it. The effects of visual complexity can also affect reaction times, cognitive abilities, and decision making. In everyday life, data visualization and complex graphs can be a challenge for many people, especially if they are not used to that type of information. Therefore, graphic designers and application developers try to minimize visual complexity so that it can be understood and used easily by users.

Sprint race distance affects reaction time in male and female sprinters at the 2022 World Indoor Athletics Championships

In sprint disciplines, the start reaction (SR) time affects the final result in the sprint. This research aimed to analyze and examine whether there are significant differences in the SR in the semi-final and final groups in the 60 m and 400 m disciplines at the World Indoor Championships in Athletics, held in Belgrade in 2022 in men's and women's competition. The aim was also to determine if there were statistical differences between men and women in the 400 m event. T-test for independent samples showed statistical differences between the SR in the 60 m and 400 m athletics events in men (t=-4.434, p=0.000) and women (t=-3.210, p=0.004). For the 400 m running events, an independent samples t-test was used to examine differences between men and women in SR. No significant differences were obtained between men and women in the 400 m event (t=0.401, p=0.691). SR is part of all running disciplines and affects the time achieved in the race (result). Although it has been known for a long time that training can influence SR, a few studies still examine training's effects on SR. The question can be about how much it is possible to reduce SR with specific training exercises or to apply certain neurophysiological methods.

The Impact of Cognition-affecting Neurological Diseases on Reaction Time and Driving Speed Deviation

Background: Globally, more than 322 million people are living with depression, with a considerable percentage driving while under the effects of such impairments. Their impacts on specific parameters of driver behavior and road safety, such as driver speed and reaction time, however, remain understudied. The literature indicates that driving performance deteriorates in patients with depressive symptoms, causing increased crash probability and more aggressive behavior. Objective: The objective of this research was to examine the influence of neurological diseases on driving performance, and particularly, how depression affects reaction time and the standard deviation of driving speed. Methods: Data were obtained from a large-scale simulator study comprising 12 driving urban and rural trials. The sample consisted of 113 impaired participants, suffering from mild cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and depression, and 92 people with no cognitive impairments as the control group. Inclusion criteria comprised having a driving license and driving experience (≥3 years), being active drivers, not having critical psychosis, eye or motor disorders, and not having drug/alcohol addictions. Results: Analysis of cognitive impairments based on GDS questions showed that frequent ‘feelings of boredom’ correlated with a 7% increase in reaction time and a 8% increase in the standard deviation of driving speed. Conversely, ‘feelings of worthlessness’ reduced the standard deviation of driving speed by 4.5%. ‘Feeling full of energy’ contributed marginally significant increases to reaction times of 4%. Drivers with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases showed higher reaction times, while drivers with depression and the control group showed lower reaction times. Drivers with Parkinson’s disease showed statistically fewer deviations of average speed. Conclusion: This research shows that cognitively impaired individuals have larger reaction times and more erratic driving speeds. Present findings can be used to inform both patients and authorities of their driving behavior and can be considered when (re)issuing driving licenses.

The effect and Follow – up results of 8 weeks of operational-skill training on the dynamic balance of firefighters

Introduction: Rescue worker is one of the jobs that is associated with stressful factors. Among the relief occupations, firefighters are faced various physical and chemical hazards, such as high temperatures, chemicals, noise, etc., due to their responsibilities for firefighting and safety services. Therefore, the main goal of this research was the effect and follow–up results of 8 weeks of operational-skill training on the dynamic balance of firefighters. Materials and Methods: The subjects of the research were 34 male firefighters of Tehran who had at least five years of continuous shift experience in the experimental group with an age range of 29.00±2.55 years, height of 178.41±4.62 cm, weight 77.39±4.66 kg, and body mass index 16. 24.31±1 kg per square meter, and in the control group with an age range of 28.71±2.39 years, height 177.47±3.32 cm, weight 76.00±4.12 kg, and body mass index 02/0 were 24.13±1 kg/m2, were selected. Results: The functional balance board of firefighters was used to evaluate dynamic balance. The research base was in the 114th station of the Tehran fire department. The analysis of the data obtained from the research was done by the statistical method of analysis of variance with repeated measures and to compare two groups by Bonferroni's post hoc test at the error level of 0.05 and using SPSS software version 24. According to the results of the research, after the intervention, there was a significant difference in the experimental group (p≥0.05); but no significant difference in the control group (p≤0.05). Conclusion: Operational-skill training can improve and promote the important factors of injury prevention (fatigue, reaction time, and balance) among firefighters. Therefore, fatigue can affect reaction time and imbalance, which will result in musculoskeletal injuries among firefighters, so it is recommended to improve the mentioned factors of injury prevention. And for the lasting effect, operational skill exercises should be used. Finally, it can be said that operational-skill exercises can improve the dynamic balance of firefighters.

I can take my eyes off of you: Effect of alexithymia and perceptual load on processing emotional faces

Alexithymic individuals have difficulties processing emotional stimuli, including faces, and may require more resources to process such stimuli. Alexithymia may interact with task characteristics, like perceptual load, which modulates the processing capacity allocated to task-relevant, versus task-irrelevant stimuli. We examined effects of load and distractor type (face, object) and valence (threatening, neutral), and alexithymia on performing a letter-search task. We assessed reaction time, accuracy, and heart rate to index arousal and cognitive effort. Perceptual load, distractor presence, type and valence showed expected effects. Alexithymia did not meaningfully affect reaction time, but was associated with decreased accuracy when distractors were threatening, under low perceptual load. HR did not suggest changes in resources mobilized depending on alexithymia level. Results suggest that alexithymic individuals perceived emotional stimuli and were able to maintain intact reaction time, though this came with a cost in accuracy. Absence of HR effects suggests that no additional resources were recruited to remedy this difficulty. Overall, results suggest that emotional stimuli are perceived in alexithymia at early stages, but resources are not appropriately allocated to prevent performance impairment.

Neurodynamics of Awareness Detection in Tibetan Immigrants: Evidence from Electroencephalography Analysis

The psychological effects of long-term exposure to high-altitude environments have attracted great attention. These effects are usually attributed to the diminished cognitive resources due to high-altitude exposure. This study employed electroencephalography (EEG) to investigate the effects of exposure duration on awareness detection tasks. Neither reaction time nor accuracy showed the direct effects of the exposure duration, so did the model indexes obtained from drift diffusion model analysis. However, event-related potentials (ERP) analysis revealed that exposure duration was associated with changes in the visual awareness negativity (VAN) and the late positivity (LP) components, which in turn affected reaction time. Specifically, longer exposure durations were associated with lower VAN and higher LP, resulting in shorter reaction times and greater drift rate. In contrast to previous studies, the reverse relationship between VAN and LP may reflect a compensatory response to the reduced cognitive resources caused by high-altitude exposure. Additionally, increased LP and shorter reaction times with exposure duration may reflect a resistance to the high-altitude environment. We also conducted time–frequency analysis and found that theta power did not vary with exposure duration, suggesting that the reduction in cognitive resources remains stable in these individuals over time. Overall, our study provides new insights into the dynamic effects of high-altitude environments on awareness detection in the presence of reduced cognitive resources.

Risk of OSA affects reaction time and driving performance more than insomnia in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging

Sleep disorders have been implicated as a cause of motor vehicle crashes in select populations through reduced cognitive function. We investigated the impact of insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) on reaction times and driving performance in the population-based cohort of older adults in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA). Risk of OSA was classified by the positive responses to the STOP-BA(N)G questionnaire. Time-dependent cognitive function was formally evaluated in all participants with choice reaction times (CRT). Of 30,097 participants, 2657 (8.8 %) met criteria for insomnia and 2092 (7.0 %) were classified as high risk of OSA. Insomnia was equally distributed in all risk categories for OSA. Both self-reported lane position errors and driving safety were more often described as worse in moderate and higher risk groups for OSA although there was also a marginal association with improved driving safety. This is in spite of the fact that daily driving frequency was reported more often with higher risk categories of OSA. Choice reaction times were on average longer in both moderate (845.7 ± 245 msec) and higher (860.2 ± 263 msec) risk groups for OSA compared to participants with low risk of OSA (860.2 ± 266 msec). Insomnia was not associated with driving performance, lane position errors and CRT. Subgroups with categories based upon OSA risk groups with and without insomnia showed no distinct relationship beyond the association with OSA risk categories alone. Too few responses were recorded to assess near miss and motor vehicle crashes. We conclude that objective slower reaction times and poorer self-reported driving performance were associated with the risk of OSA but not insomnia.

Does neck flexion improve performance? Effects on reaction time depend on whether responses are expected

This research investigates the limitations of the apparent paradox in which neck flexion, which is associated with poor inhibition and neck pain, seems to facilitate performance in some tasks. We compared the effect of a flexed neck on performance in a reaction time and go-nogo task using a novel method of fixing neck posture. We hypothesize that using a flexed neck posture speeds response time for tasks with high prepotency (when participants are biased toward responding), but not for tasks with low prepotency (when participants are more likely to withhold a response). Previous findings demonstrated the effect of neck flexion on reaction time with a harness. In this study, participants complete both simple reaction time and go-nogo tasks with neck angles fixed in neutral or forward positions with tape. We found that simple reaction times were 10 ms faster in the forward neck position than in neutral; this facilitation was not seen in the go-nogo task. We conclude that using tape to induce a flexed neck posture facilitates reaction time during tasks that always require a response and does not affect reaction time on a task which may require withholding a response.

Midfrontal Theta and Cognitive Control During Interlimb Coordination Across the Adult Lifespan

Interlimb coordination is required for adequate execution of most daily life activities. Yet, aging negatively affects interlimb coordination, impacting the quality of life in older people. Therefore, disentangling the underlying age-related neural mechanisms is of utmost importance. Here, we investigated neurophysiological processes of an interlimb reaction time task, including both simple and complex coordination modes. Midfrontal theta power, measured using electroencephalography (EEG), was analyzed as a marker for cognitive control. In total, 82 healthy adults participated, with 27 younger, 26 middle-aged, and 29 older adults. On a behavioral level, reaction time increased across the adult lifespan, and error rate was higher in older adults. Notably, aging disproportionately affected reaction times in the complex coordination modes, with larger reaction time increases from simple to complex movements than in younger adults, starting already at middle age. On the neurophysiological level, EEG showed that only younger adults had significantly increased levels of midfrontal theta power during complex relative to simple coordination modes, while no significant differences were found between simple and complex movements in middle-aged and older adults. The absence of this theta power upregulation with regard to movement complexity with increasing age might reflect a premature saturation of the available mental resources.