Chewing gum moderates the vigilance decrement.

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Human Performance

Background:

• Vigilance tasks are crucial for monitoring sustained attention.
• Short-term order memory is vital for complex cognitive processes.
• The impact of chewing gum on cognitive performance, particularly memory, remains debated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effect of chewing gum on a Bakan-type vigilance task.
• To assess chewing gum's influence on short-term order memory.
• To examine the impact on performance decrements and subjective alertness.

Main Methods:

• Forty participants performed a 30-minute auditory Bakan-task, with or without chewing gum.
• Performance was measured by target detections and reaction times (RTs).
• Self-rated mood and alertness were recorded pre- and post-task.

Main Results:

• Vigilance task led to performance decline (fewer detections, slower RTs) and reduced alertness.
• Chewing gum attenuated these declines, especially in later task stages.
• Correct RTs were significantly shorter, and gradients of performance decline/incline were less steep with gum chewing.

Conclusions:

• Chewing gum can mitigate performance decrements in vigilance tasks involving short-term order memory.
• Findings support beneficial effects of gum chewing on attention and memory.
• Results contradict claims that chewing gum negatively impacts short-term memory.