Stress May Not Impair Higher Cognitive Functions Via Depleted Cognitive Resources

Abstract Whether stress impairs available cognitive resources and affects multiple cognitive functions is under debate. The current study used a relatively direct measure of available cognitive resources (i.e., the cognitive control capacity) to test the effect of acute stress and found that cognitive control capacity did not differ between conditions (stress and control) by using both the p-value and Bayes factor as indicators. We argue that stress might not impair higher cognitive functions through depleted cognitive resources after checking the effectiveness of the manipulations. The results potentially contribute to understanding the psychological consequence of stress-related disorders.