Acute stress and working memory: the role of sex and cognitive stress appraisal
Abstract
Sex is considered a moderating factor in the relationship between stress and cognitive performance. However, sex differences and the impact of cognitive stress appraisal on working memory performance have not received much attention. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of physiological responses (heart rate and salivary cortisol) and cognitive stress appraisal in Working Memory (WM) performance in males and females. For this purpose, we subjected a comparable number of healthy young adult males (N=37) and females (N=45) to a modified version of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), and we evaluated WM performance before and after the stress task. Females performed better on attention and maintenance after the TSST, but males did not. Moreover, we found that attention and maintenance performance presented a negative relationship with cortisol reactivity in females, but not in males. Nevertheless, we observed that only the females who showed a cortisol decrease after the TSST performed better after the stress task, whereas females and males who showed an increase or no change in cortisol levels, and males who showed a cortisol decrease, did not change their performance over time. In females, we also found that the global indexes of cognitive stress appraisal and cognitive threat appraisal were negatively related to attention and maintenance performance, whereas the Self-concept of Own Competence was positively related to it. However, these relationships were not found in males.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
A more negative anticipatory cognitive stress appraisal is associated with higher cortisol response to stress.
“Previous studies have shown that a more negative anticipatory cognitive stress appraisal is associated with higher cortisol response to stress (Gaab et al., 2005;Juster et al., 2012; although this result has not always been observed Zandara et al., 2016).”
From Cortisol Response to Stress: The Role of Expectancy and Anticipatory Stress Regulation (2020) · cites this paper as Zandara et al., 2016
Cites
Heart Rate Variability: Standards of Measurement, Physiological Interpretation, and Clinical Use
Electrophysiology, T. F. O. T. E. S. O. C. T. N. A. (1996) · Circulation · doi:10.1161/01.cir.93.5.1043 · Cited by 17,159 · see citing works
Heart rate variability: Standards of measurement, physiological interpretation, and clinical use
Malik, M., Bigger, J. T., Camm, A. J., Kleiger, R. E., Malliani, A., Moss, A. J., & Schwartz, P. J. (1996) · European Heart Journal · doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.eurheartj.a014868 · Cited by 15,289 · see citing works
Sapolsky, R. M., Romero, L. M., & Munck, A. U. (2000) · Endocrine Reviews · doi:10.1210/edrv.21.1.0389 · Cited by 7,541 · see citing works
Kirschbaum, C., Pirke, K.-M., & Hellhammer, D. H. (2008) · Neuropsychobiology · doi:10.1159/000119004 · Cited by 6,093 · see citing works
Dickerson, S. S., & Kemeny, M. E. (2004) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.130.3.355 · Cited by 5,881 · see citing works
Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping, and encounter outcomes.
Folkman, S., Lazarus, R. S., Dunkel‐Schetter, C., DeLongis, A., & Gruen, R. J. (1986) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037//0022-3514.50.5.992 · Cited by 4,893 · see citing works
The Neuropsychological Assessment
Ogden, J. A. (2005) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780195171358.003.0002 · Cited by 4,382 · see citing works
Adler, N. E., Epel, E. S., Castellazzo, G., & Ickovics, J. R. (2000) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/0278-6133.19.6.586 · Cited by 3,979 · see citing works
Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping, and encounter outcomes.
Folkman, S., Lazarus, R. S., Dunkel‐Schetter, C., et al. (1986) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.50.5.992 · Cited by 3,552 · see citing works
Biobehavioral responses to stress in females: Tend-and-befriend, not fight-or-flight.
Taylor, S. E., Klein, L. C., Lewis, B. P., Gruenewald, T. L., Gurung, R. A. R., & Updegraff, J. A. (2000) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.107.3.411 · Cited by 3,308 · see citing works
Gender differences in stress and coping styles
Aznar, M. P. M. (2004) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2004.01.010 · Cited by 1,954 · see citing works
McEwen, B. S., & Sapolsky, R. M. (1995) · Current Opinion in Neurobiology · doi:10.1016/0959-4388(95)80028-x · Cited by 1,889 · see citing works
Lupien, S. J., Maheu, F., Tu, M., Fiocco, A., & Schramek, T. E. (2007) · Brain and Cognition · doi:10.1016/j.bandc.2007.02.007 · Cited by 1,474 · see citing works
Stress and cognition: are corticosteroids good or bad guys?
de Kloet, E. R., Oitzl, M. S., & Joëls, M. (1999) · Trends in Neurosciences · doi:10.1016/s0166-2236(99)01438-1 · Cited by 1,258 · see citing works
From cognitive to neural models of working memory
D’Esposito, M. (2007) · Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rstb.2007.2086 · Cited by 792 · see citing works
Impaired Memory Retrieval after Psychosocial Stress in Healthy Young Men
Kuhlmann, S., Piel, M., & Wolf, O. T. (2005) · Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.5139-04.2005 · Cited by 680 · see citing works
Gaab, J., Rohleder, N., Nater, U. M., & Ehlert, U. (2005) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2005.02.001 · Cited by 525 · see citing works
Relation between body mass index and cognitive function in healthy middle-aged men and women
Cournot, M., Marquié, J. C., Ansiau, D., Martinaud, C., Fonds, H., Ferrières, J., & Ruidavets, J. B. (2006) · Neurology · doi:10.1212/01.wnl.0000238082.13860.50 · Cited by 517 · see citing works
Neuronal basis of age-related working memory decline
Wang, M., Gamo, N. J., Yang, Y., Jin, L. E., Wang, X.-J., Laubach, M., Mazer, J. A., Lee, D., & Arnsten, A. F. T. (2011) · Nature · doi:10.1038/nature10243 · Cited by 485 · see citing works
Psychosocial stress induces working memory impairments in an n-back paradigm.
Schoofs, D., Preuß, D., & Wolf, O. T. (2008) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2008.02.004 · Cited by 483 · see citing works
The coming out of the brain mineralocorticoid receptor
Joëls, M., Karst, H., DeRijk, R., & de Kloet, E. R. (2008) · Trends in Neurosciences · doi:10.1016/j.tins.2007.10.005 · Cited by 481 · see citing works
Stress and memory in humans: twelve years of progress?
Wolf, O. T. (2009) · Brain Research · doi:10.1016/j.brainres.2009.04.013 · Cited by 456 · see citing works
Social "facilitation" as challenge and threat.
Blascovich, J., Mendes, W. B., Hunter, S. B., & Salomon, K. (1999) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.77.1.68 · Cited by 379 · see citing works
Miller, R., Plessow, F., Kirschbaum, C., & Stalder, T. (2013) · Psychosomatic Medicine · doi:10.1097/psy.0000000000000002 · Cited by 376 · see citing works
Oei, N. Y. L., Everaerd, W. T. A. M., Elzinga, B. M., van Well, S., & Bermond, B. (2006) · Stress · doi:10.1080/10253890600965773 · Cited by 373 · see citing works
Blair, C., Granger, D., & Peters Razza, R. (2005) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2005.00863.x · Cited by 367 · see citing works
Gender differences in the cognitive control of emotion: an fMRI study.
Koch, K., Pauly, K., Kellermann, T., Seiferth, N. Y., Reske, M., Backes, V., Stöcker, T., Shah, N. J., Amunts, K., Kircher, T., et al. (2007) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2007.04.012 · Cited by 293 · see citing works
Cortisol-Induced Impairments of Working Memory Require Acute Sympathetic Activation.
Elzinga, B. M., & Karin Roelofs, A. (2005) · Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.1037/0735-7044.119.1.98 · Cited by 287 · see citing works
Schoofs, D., Wolf, O. T., & Smeets, T. (2009) · Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.1037/a0016980 · Cited by 269 · see citing works
Challenge versus threat effects on the goal–performance relationship
Drach‐Zahavy, A., & Erez, M. (2002) · Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes · doi:10.1016/s0749-5978(02)00004-3 · Cited by 268 · see citing works
Young, A. H., Sahakian, B. J., Robbins, T. W., & Cowen, P. J. (1999) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s002130051057 · Cited by 244 · see citing works
The influence of stress hormones on emotional memory: Relevance for psychopathology
Wolf, O. T. (2007) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2007.08.002 · Cited by 233 · see citing works
Abraham, S. B., Rubino, D., Sinaii, N., Ramsey, S., & Nieman, L. K. (2013) · Obesity · doi:10.1002/oby.20083 · Cited by 225 · see citing works
I. SLEEP AND DEVELOPMENT: INTRODUCTION TO THE MONOGRAPH
El‐Sheikh, M., & Sadeh, A. (2015) · Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development · doi:10.1111/mono.12141 · Cited by 218 · see citing works
Cortisol differentially affects memory in young and elderly men.
Wolf, O. T., Convit, A. J., McHugh, P. F., Kandil, E., Thorn, E. L., Santi, S. D., McEwen, B. S., & de Leon, M. J. (2001) · Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.1037//0735-7044.115.5.1002 · Cited by 213 · see citing works
Gender Differences in the Relationship between Emotional Regulation and Depressive Symptoms
Thayer, J. F., Rossy, L. A., Ruiz‐Padial, E., & Johnsen, B. H. (2003) · Cognitive Therapy and Research · doi:10.1023/a:1023922618287 · Cited by 193 · see citing works
Fisk, J. E., & Warr, P. (1996) · Psychology and Aging · doi:10.1037/0882-7974.11.2.316 · Cited by 173 · see citing works
Cortisol differentially affects memory in young and elderly men.
Wolf, O. T., Convit, A. J., McHugh, P. F., et al. (2001) · Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.1037/0735-7044.115.5.1002 · Cited by 173 · see citing works
Neuroendocrine response during stress with relation to gender differences
Jezová, D., Juránková, E., Mosnárová, A., Kriška, M., & Škultétyová, I. (1996) · Acta Neurobiologiae Experimentalis · doi:10.55782/ane-1996-1183 · Cited by 159 · see citing works
Estrogen modulation of oxytocin and its relation to behavior.
McCarthy, M. M. (1995) · PubMed · Cited by 157 · see citing works
Banyard, V. L., & Graham‐Bermann, S. A. (1993) · Psychology of Women Quarterly · doi:10.1111/j.1471-6402.1993.tb00489.x · Cited by 150 · see citing works
Working memory performance after acute exposure to the cold pressor stress in healthy volunteers
Dunčko, R., Johnson, L. L., Merikangas, K. R., & Grillon, C. (2009) · Neurobiology of Learning and Memory · doi:10.1016/j.nlm.2009.01.006 · Cited by 137 · see citing works
Cornelisse, S., van Stegeren, A. H., & Joëls, M. (2011) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2010.09.002 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Working memory is differentially affected by stress in men and women
Schoofs, D., Pabst, S., Brand, M., & Wolf, O. T. (2012) · Behavioural Brain Research · doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2012.12.004 · Cited by 123 · see citing works
Effects of acute psychosocial stress on working memory related brain activity in men
Weerda, R., Muehlhan, M., Wolf, O. T., & Thiel, C. M. (2010) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.20945 · Cited by 111 · see citing works
Maheu, F. S., Collicutt, P., Kornik, R., Moszkowski, R., & Lupien, S. J. (2005) · Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2005.08.012 · Cited by 103 · see citing works
Working memory-related frontal theta activity is decreased under acute stress
Gärtner, M., Rohde-Liebenau, L., Grimm, S., & Bajbouj, M. (2014) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2014.02.009 · Cited by 103 · see citing works
Patel, P. D., Katz, M., Karssen, A. M., & Lyons, D. M. (2008) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2007.12.003 · Cited by 102 · see citing works
The effect of acute stress on memory depends on word valence
Smeets, T., Jelícic, M., & Merckelbach, H. L. G. J. (2006) · International Journal of Psychophysiology · doi:10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2005.11.007 · Cited by 101 · see citing works
Putman, P., & Karin Roelofs, A. (2010) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2010.12.001 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Cortisol reactivity, maternal sensitivity, and learning in 3-month-old infants
Thompson, L. A., & Trevathan, W. R. (2007) · Infant Behavior and Development · doi:10.1016/j.infbeh.2007.07.007 · Cited by 87 · see citing works
The effect of acute stress on subsequent neuropsychological test performance (2003)
HOFFMAN, R. (2003) · Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology · doi:10.1016/j.acn.2003.07.005 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Cardoso, C., Linnen, A.-M., Joober, R., & Ellenbogen, M. A. (2012) · Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1037/a0025763 · Cited by 60 · see citing works
The impact of cortisol reactivity to acute stress on memory: Sex differences in middle-aged people
Almela, M., Hidalgo, V., Villada, C., López, L. E., Gómez-Amor, J., & Salvador, A. (2010) · Stress · doi:10.3109/10253890.2010.514671 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Self-citationCognitive impact of social stress and coping strategy throughout development
Snyder, K. P., Barry, M. E., & Valentino, R. J. (2014) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-014-3654-7 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Terfehr, K., Wolf, O. T., Schlosser, N., Fernando, S. C., Otte, C., Muhtz, C., Beblo, T., Drießen, M., Spitzer, C., Löwe, B., et al. (2010) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-010-2117-z · Cited by 47 · see citing works
Oxytocin: Cellular and Molecular Approaches in Medicine and Research
(1994) · General and Comparative Endocrinology · doi:10.1006/gcen.1994.1168 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
Stauble, M. R., Thompson, L. A., & Morgan, G. (2013) · Stress · doi:10.3109/10253890.2013.780236 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
Acute stress does not impair long-term memory retrieval in older people
Pulopulos, M. M., Almela, M., Hidalgo, V., Villada, C., Puig‐Pérez, S., & Salvador, A. (2013) · Neurobiology of Learning and Memory · doi:10.1016/j.nlm.2013.04.010 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Self-citationThompson, L. A., & Trevathan, W. R. (2008) · Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology · doi:10.1080/02646830801918463 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Ell, S. W., Cosley, B. J., & McCoy, S. K. (2010) · Psychonomic Bulletin & Review · doi:10.3758/s13423-010-0018-0 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
A longitudinal study of infant cortisol response during learning events
Thompson, L. A., Morgan, G., Jurado, K. A., et al. (2015) · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Cortisol Response to Stress: The Role of Expectancy and Anticipatory Stress Regulation
Pulopulos, M. M., Baeken, C., & De Raedt, R. (2020) · Hormones and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2019.104587 · Cited by 142 · see citing works
Self-citationBates, M. L. S., Arner, J. R., Curtis, A. L., Valentino, R., & Bhatnagar, S. (2023) · Neuropharmacology · doi:10.1016/j.neuropharm.2022.109317 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
- Authors
- Zandara, M., Garcia-Lluch, M., Pulopulos, M. M., Hidalgo, V., Villada, C., & Salvador, A.
- Affiliations
- Universitat de València (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Zandara, M.
- Venue
- Physiology & Behavior
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2016-10
- Volume
- 164
- Issue
- Pt A
- Pages
- 336-344
- ISSN
- 0031-9384 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2425204986
- Cited by
- 44
- References
- 62
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 2
- FWCI
- 4.05
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Physiology & Behavior (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Generalitat Valenciana (ACOMP2015/227, GRISOLIAP/2011/082, ISIC/2013/01, PROMETEOII2015/020)
- Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (FPU AP2009-4713, FPU AP2010-1830, FPU12/04597, PSI2010/21343, PSI2013/46889)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Abilities and Testing
- Keywords
- acute stress, working memory, sex differences, salivary cortisol, cortisol response, heart rate, Trier Social Stress Test, attention
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Attention, Female, Heart Rate, Humans, Hydrocortisone, Male, Memory, Short-Term, Neuropsychological Tests, Saliva, Sex Characteristics, Social Behavior, Stress, Psychological, Body Mass Index, Young Adult, Executive Function, Self Report
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
