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Exogenous cortisol causes a shift from deliberative to intuitive thinking.

Zsofia Margittai1, Gideon Nave2, Tina Strombach3

  • 1Comparative Psychology, Heinrich Heine University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Cortisol impairs cognitive reasoning by favoring intuition over deliberation, while noradrenaline has no effect. This suggests cortisol shifts thinking from reflective to automatic processing.

Keywords:
CRTCognitive reflectionCortisolDecision biasesDeliberateIntuitiveStress

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroendocrinology
  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Psychopharmacology

Background:

  • Understanding the factors influencing intuitive versus deliberate reasoning is crucial.
  • The roles of stress mediators like cortisol and noradrenaline in cognitive processes require further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of cortisol and noradrenaline on cognitive reasoning using a psychopharmacological approach.
  • To determine how these endocrine stress mediators affect the balance between intuition and deliberation.

Main Methods:

  • Healthy participants were administered placebo, cortisol (hydrocortisone), and/or yohimbine (noradrenergic stimulant).
  • Cognitive performance was assessed using the Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT).

Main Results:

  • Cortisol administration significantly impaired performance on the CRT, increasing reliance on intuitive, incorrect answers.
  • Increased noradrenergic stimulation via yohimbine did not affect CRT performance.

Conclusions:

  • Cortisol biases cognitive reasoning towards intuitive judgments, hindering deliberate thought.
  • These findings support the dual systems theory, proposing cortisol promotes a shift towards automatic processing over reflective cognition.