Effects of state anxiety on performance using a task-switching paradigm: An investigation of attentional control theory

Abstract

Low-and high-anxious participants performed arithmetical tasks under task-switching or nontask-switching conditions. These tasks were low or high in complexity. The task on each trial was either explicitly cued or not cued. We assumed that demands on attentional control would be greater in the task-switching condition than in the nontask-switching condition, and would be greater with high-complexity tasks than with low-complexity ones. We also assumed that demands on attentional control would be greater when cues were absent rather than present. According to attentional control theory (Eysenck, Derakshan, Santos, & Calvo, 2007), anxiety impairs attentional control processes required to shift attention optimally within and between tasks. We predicted that there would be greater negative effects of high state anxiety in the task-switching condition than in the nontask-switching condition. Our theoretical predictions were supported, suggesting that state anxiety reduces attentional control.

Ecological Assessment of Executive Dysfunction in Anxiety

“…It was found that individuals with AD required a longer response time, with no exception. These findings are in agreement with those by Derakshan et al 11 , who found that individuals with high levels of anxiety state had longer response times in complex tasks. Total BADS score allows for the assessment of general executive performance, whereas BADS subtest scores reveal individual performance in the different dimensions of EF.…”

“…The importance of anxiety in the cognition field lies on its usual association with adverse effects on the performance of cognitive tasks 7 , with both the anxiety state and trait having these effects on complex cognitive tasks 8 . Neuropsychological studies in the literature have demonstrated the presence of deficits in executive functioning (EF) [9][10][11] , which involves a variety of higher-order cognitive processes 12,13 that are probably the most complex aspect of human cognition 14 . Most authors considered that EF does not correspond to a unique cognitive ability, but rather to a set of competencies 15,16 related to production, supervision and behavioral control.…”

“…Given these important evolutionary and neurobiological connections between anxiety and EF, several studies were interested in analyzing the influence of anxiety on the performance of many cognitive tasks, including those specific to executive functioning, such as task switching, inhibition, problem solving, spatial recognition and memory work, motor initiation and execution task [9][10][11] and all of these studies confirmed that anxiety was significantly predictive of worse executive performance. Likewise, a population-based study with individuals from 20 to 64 years was in agreement with the previous studies, pointing out the existence of deficits in EF in general AD 26 .…”

Recollecting positive and negative autobiographical memories disrupts working memory

“…Gray et al, 2002;Mitchell & Phillips, 2007;, Derakshan, Smyth, & Eysenck, 2009;Schaefer et al, 2006).…”

Correlatos cognitivos y neuropsicológicos de los cinco grandes: una revisión en el área de la neurociencia de la personalidad

“…Según se ha establecido mediante técnicas de imágen cerebral (irmf), las personas con altos niveles de ansiedad presentan una disminución en la actividad de la corteza prefrontal dorsolateral (Bishop, 2007;, la cual se supone está encargada de inhibir la información irrelevante. Igualmente, la tca sugiere que los altos niveles de ansiedad interfieren con la adecuada capacidad para modificar la atención flexiblemente (Derakshan, Smyth y Eysenck, 2009). …”