Students apply research methods to consumer decisions about cognitive enhancing drinks.

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Cognitive-enhancing supplements are widely marketed, but scientific evidence for their efficacy is often limited.
• Students in a behavioral neuroscience class undertook a project to empirically test such claims.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide students with hands-on research experience.
• To evaluate the cognitive-enhancing claims of a commercial beverage.
• To assess the impact of the drink on various cognitive tasks.

Main Methods:

• Six students designed and conducted experiments using cognitive tasks like reaction time, Stroop, Raven's Matrices, memory span, and EEG.
• Participants were randomly assigned to consume either the experimental drink or a placebo.
• The study controlled for taste and appearance to ensure blinding.

Main Results:

• The experimental drink showed no significant improvement in cognitive performance across the tested tasks.
• A notable decrease in short-term memory performance was observed in the group consuming the experimental drink.
• No positive effects were detected, contrary to the manufacturer's claims.

Conclusions:

• The tested beverage does not enhance cognitive function and may impair short-term memory.
• Findings highlight the need for critical evaluation of supplement claims and further research.
• The project successfully provided students with comprehensive research experience from design to presentation.