Acute Stress Improves Concentration Performance.

Acute stress can have both detrimental and beneficial effects on cognitive processing, but effects on concentration performance remain unclear. Here, we investigate the effects of acute psychosocial stress on concentration performance and possible underlying physiological and psychological mechanisms. The study sample comprised 47 healthy male participants who were randomly assigned either to a psychosocial stress situation (Trier Social Stress Test) or a neutral control task. Concentration performance was assessed using the d2 Test of Attention before and 30 min after the stress or control task. Salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase were repeatedly measured before and up to 1 hr after stress. We repeatedly assessed state anxiety using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and anticipatory cognitive stress appraisal using the Primary Appraisal Secondary Appraisal questionnaire. The stress group showed a significantly stronger improvement of concentration performance compared to the control group (p = .042). Concentration performance improvement was predicted by increased state anxiety (p = .020) and lower cortisol (stress) changes (p = .043). Neither changes in alpha-amylase nor cognitive stress appraisal did relate to concentration performance. Our results show improved concentration performance after acute psychosocial stress induction that was predicted by higher state anxiety increases and lower cortisol increases. This points to a potential modulating role of specific psycho-emotional and physiological factors with opposite effects.

Stress-induced cortisol secretion impairs detection performance in x-ray baggage screening for hidden weapons by screening novices.

Aviation security strongly depends on screeners' performance in the detection of threat objects in x-ray images of passenger bags. We examined for the first time the effects of stress and stress-induced cortisol increases on detection performance of hidden weapons in an x-ray baggage screening task. We randomly assigned 48 participants either to a stress or a nonstress group. The stress group was exposed to a standardized psychosocial stress test (TSST). Before and after stress/nonstress, participants had to detect threat objects in a computer-based object recognition test (X-ray ORT). We repeatedly measured salivary cortisol and X-ray ORT performance before and after stress/nonstress. Cortisol increases in reaction to psychosocial stress induction but not to nonstress independently impaired x-ray detection performance. Our results suggest that stress-induced cortisol increases at peak reactivity impair x-ray screening performance.

Oculomotor instabilities in zebrafish mutant belladonna: a behavioral model for congenital nystagmus caused by axonal misrouting.

A large fraction of homozygous zebrafish mutant belladonna (bel) larvae display a reversed optokinetic response (OKR) that correlates with failure of the retinal ganglion cells to cross the midline and form the optic chiasm. Some of these achiasmatic mutants display strong spontaneous eye oscillations (SOs) in the absence of motion in the surround. The presentation of a stationary grating was necessary and sufficient to evoke SO. Both OKR reversal and SO depend on vision and are contrast sensitive. We built a quantitative model derived from bel fwd (forward) eye behaviors. To mimic the achiasmatic condition, we reversed the sign of the retinal slip velocity in the model, thereby successfully reproducing both reversed OKR and SO. On the basis of the OKR data, and with the support of the quantitative model, we hypothesize that the reversed OKR and the SO can be completely attributed to RGC misrouting. The strong resemblance between the SO and congenital nystagmus (CN) seen in humans with defective retinotectal projections implies that CN, of so far unknown etiology, may be directly caused by a projection defect.