Prefrontal activation and speech performance under evaluative pressure

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24730579
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Clinical psychology
• Research Institution: Nagoya University
• Principal Investigator: Yamauchi Hoshiko 名古屋大学, 学生相談総合センター, 助教 (00608961)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: プレッシャー / パフォーマンス / NIRS / 生理的指標

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The phenomenon in which psychological pressure or stress impairs task performance is well known. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between performance impairment on tasks that have a social nature and prefrontal activation, using a speech task. Prefrontal activation was measured with near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), a hemodynamic-based technique that enables noninvasive measurement of cortical activation.The results suggest that mental pressure induces performance decrements on speech tasks as well as cognitive tasks. In addition, it is found that performance decrements coincided with prefrontal activation measured by NIRS under the pressure condition. This implies that prefrontal overactivation is related to performance impairments on tasks that have a social nature, such as speech.

Free Research Field

臨床心理学