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Effects of the moderate stress exposure on the short-term memory capacity: An experimental study in fire cadets

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 August 2021

E. Bityutskaya ,
N. Lebedeva  and
Y. Tsalikova
E. Bityutskaya
Affiliation:
Faculty Of Psychology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russian Federation
N. Lebedeva*
Affiliation:
Diagnostics Department, Moscow Metropolitan Governance University, Moscow, Russian Federation
Y. Tsalikova
Affiliation:
Faculty Of Psychology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russian Federation
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

Future firefighters are selected and trained to perform well under pressure and stress.

Objectives

The research is focused on the experimental study of fire cadets’ memory capacity under stress.

Methods

The study follows Solomon Four Group Design with two variables: stress stimuli (exposure/non-exposure), fire cadets (n=50)/civilian students (n=40). Two series of The Digit Span Test measurements (DST) were performed. Heart rate, EMG, systolic wave amplitude, pulse transit time were measured during the experiment to determine the respondents’ stress levels.

Results

Memory capacity in fire cadets under stress (n=30) significantly increased (Wilcoxon match-pairs rank test, р = 0.001; 1st DST series, neutral stimuli: M=6.53, SE=0.17, SD=0.96; 2st DST series, stressful stimuli: M=7.3, SE=0.21, SD=1.16), the obtained effect size was medium (Cohen’s d = 0.7232). There was no significant change in memory capacity in civilian students under stress (n=20, Wilcoxon test, р=0.452; 1st DST series, neutral stimuli: M=6.78, SE=0.23, SD=1.02; 2st DST series, stressful stimuli: M=6.7, SE=0.23, SD=1.04). Moreover, there was no significant change in memory capacity in fire cadets that were not under stress (n=20, Wilcoxon test, р = 0.628; 1st DST series, neutral stimuli: M=6.88, SE=0.16, SD=0.70; 2st DST series, neutral stimuli: M=6.78, SE=0.16, SD=0.73). Systolic wave amplitude in the stress-exposed groups changed more pronouncedly in students (Mann–Whitney test, z=-2.131; p = 0.033) compared to cadets.

Conclusions

In most of the fire cadets, moderate stress exposure resulted in a memory capacity increase.

Disclosure

No significant relationships.

Keywords

memory capacityshort-term memorysystolic wave amplitudestress
Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 64 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 29th European Congress of Psychiatry , April 2021 , pp. S780
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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