The DOI matches its Crossref record; 58 of the 58 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Effects of caffeine on performance and mood: withdrawal reversal is the most plausible explanation
Abstract
Rationale Although it is widely believed that caffeine can enhance human performance and mood, the validity of this belief has been questioned, giving rise to debate. The central question is whether superior performance and mood after caffeine represent net benefits, or whether differences between caffeine and control conditions are due to reversal of adverse withdrawal effects.Objectives To provide a focussed review of relevant experimental studies with the aim of clarifying current understanding regarding the effects of caffeine on human performance and mood.Methods To avoid the shortcomings of standard placebo-controlled studies, which are ambiguous due to failure to control for the confounding influence of withdrawal reversal, three main experimental approaches have been employed: studies that compare consumers and low/non-consumers, pre-treatment and ad lib consumption studies, and long-term withdrawal studies.Results Of the three approaches, only long-term withdrawal studies are capable of unambiguously revealing the net effects of caffeine. Overall, there is little evidence of caffeine having beneficial effects on performance or mood under conditions of long-term caffeine use vs abstinence. Although modest acute effects may occur following initial use, tolerance to these effects appears to develop in the context of habitual use of the drug.Conclusions Appropriately controlled studies show that the effects of caffeine on performance and mood, widely perceived to be net beneficial psychostimulant effects, are almost wholly attributable to reversal of adverse withdrawal effects associated with short periods of abstinence from the drug.
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“In fact, studies that have employed long-term caffeine withdrawal methodology have consistently failed to find cognitive enhancing effects of acute caffeine (78–82).”
From The Safety of Ingested Caffeine: A Comprehensive Review (2017) · cites this paper as [79]
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Metadata
- Authors
- James, J. E., & Rogers, P. J.
- Affiliations
- Ollscoil na Gaillimhe – University of Galway (IE)
- University of Bristol (GB)
- Corresponding author
- James, Jack E.
- Venue
- Psychopharmacology
- Published
- 2005-07-02
- Volume
- 182
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 1-8
- ISSN
- 0033-3158 (ISSN-L)
- 1432-2072
- OpenAlex
- W2106760663
- Cited by
- 231
- References
- 58
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 24
- FWCI
- 1.35
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Psychopharmacology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Bristol Research (University of Bristol) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology (medical) › Coffee research and impacts
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Keywords
- caffeine, caffeine withdrawal, cognitive performance, mood, psychostimulants, tolerance (pharmacology and immunology), caffeine abstinence, placebo-controlled study
- MeSH terms
- Affect, Central Nervous System Stimulants, Arousal, Attention, Caffeine, Drug Tolerance, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Sleep Deprivation, Substance Withdrawal Syndrome
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