Variable heart rate and a flexible mind: Higher resting-state heart rate variability predicts better task-switching

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychology
• Autonomic Nervous System Research

Background:

• The neurovisceral integration model posits a connection between the heart and brain via the vagus nerve.
• Heart rate variability (HRV), a measure of cardiac vagal tone, correlates with prefrontal cortex function and cognitive control.
• The relationship between HRV and cognitive flexibility, specifically task-shifting, remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the link between vagally mediated resting-state HRV and cognitive flexibility.
• To test the neurovisceral integration model by examining task-switching performance in relation to HRV.
• To determine if higher HRV is associated with enhanced ability to shift between tasks and mental sets.

Main Methods:

• Ninety participants underwent assessment of vagally mediated resting-state HRV using time and frequency domain measures.
• Participants completed a task-switching paradigm designed to provide a process-pure measure of cognitive flexibility.
• Switch costs, indicative of cognitive flexibility, were analyzed in relation to HRV levels.

Main Results:

• Participants with higher resting-state HRV exhibited significantly smaller switch costs.
• This finding suggests that greater cognitive flexibility is associated with higher levels of vagally mediated resting-state HRV.
• The results align with predictions derived from the neurovisceral integration model.

Conclusions:

• The study supports the neurovisceral integration model by demonstrating a positive association between HRV and cognitive flexibility.
• Higher vagally mediated resting-state HRV appears to facilitate the cognitive control function of shifting.
• These findings highlight the role of autonomic regulation in higher-order cognitive processes like flexibility.