Cited by 101Neuroscience of respiration and sleepHeart Rate Variability and Autonomic ControlNeural and Behavioral Psychology Studies

The influence of the respiratory cycle on reaction times in sensory-cognitive paradigms

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Johannknecht, Michelle, Kayser, Christoph·2022·Scientific Reports

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Abstract

Behavioural and electrophysiological studies point to an apparent influence of the state of respiration, i.e., whether we inhale or exhale, on brain activity and cognitive performance. Still, the prevalence and relevance of such respiratory-behavioural relations in typical sensory-cognitive tasks remain unclear. We here used a battery of six tasks probing sensory detection, discrimination and short-term memory to address the questions of whether and by how much behaviour covaries with the respiratory cycle. Our results show that participants tend to align their respiratory cycle to the experimental paradigm, in that they tend to inhale around stimulus presentation and exhale when submitting their responses. Furthermore, their reaction times, but not so much their response accuracy, consistently and significantly covary with the respiratory cycle, differing between inhalation and exhalation. This effect is strongest when analysed contingent on the respiratory state around participants’ responses. The respective effect sizes of these respiration-behaviour relations are comparable to those seen in other typical experimental manipulations in sensory-cognitive tasks, highlighting the relevance of these effects. Overall, our results support a prominent relation between respiration and sensory-cognitive function and show that sensation is intricately linked to rhythmic bodily or interoceptive functions.

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  • Reaction times in various auditory and visual tasks vary along the respiratory cycle.

    “Reaction times in various auditory and visual tasks vary along the respiratory cycle 145 .”

    From Interoceptive rhythms in the brain (2023) · cites this paper as [145]

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Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. [52]Mumford, D., 1992. On the computational architecture of the neocortex. Biol. Cybern., June, 241–251. 1540675
  2. [61]Grabot L Kayser C Alpha activity reflects the magnitude of an individual bias J. Neurosci. 2020 40 3443 3454 32179571 PMC7178915

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Authors
Johannknecht, M., & Kayser, C.
Affiliations
  • Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (DE)
  • Bielefeld University (DE)
Corresponding author
Kayser, Christoph
Venue
Scientific Reports
Published
2022-02-16
Volume
12
Issue
1
Pages
2586-2586
ISSN
2045-2322 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W4220780205
Cited by
101
References
76
Citations by year
2026: 26 · 2025: 33 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 2
FWCI
9.63
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Scientific Reports (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Publikationen an der Universität Bielefeld (Universität Bielefeld) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
Universität Bielefeld
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroscience of respiration and sleep
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Heart Rate Variability and Autonomic Control
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
Keywords
respiratory cycle, respiration, reaction time, inhalation and exhalation, sensory detection, sensory discrimination, short-term memory, interoception
MeSH terms
Adult, Inhalation, Brain, Cognition, Female, Humans, Male, Memory, Short-Term, Reaction Time, Respiratory Physiological Phenomena, Sensation, Exhalation, Young Adult, Respiratory Rate

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