Stress disrupts distractor-based retrieval of SR episodes

The binding of stimulus and response features into SR episodes or "event files" is a basic process for the efficient control of behavior. However, relevant information is usually accompanied by information that is irrelevant for the selection of action and recent studies showed that this irrelevant information is also bound into event files. In this study, we investigated the possible modulation of distractor-response binding due to stress. To this end, participants were treated with a variant of the cold pressure stress test and worked through a binding experiment before and directly after the stress treatment. Physiological and subjective stress measures were surveyed and did predict the change in binding effects: binding in stressed participants ceased as compared to a non-stressed control group. Increases in cortisol and blood pressure are discussed as main reasons for decreased SR retrieval.