The Effects of Exercise on Reaction Time
Date
2014Author
Roach, Abigail
Lash, Darin
Loomis, Elisabeth
Sinnen, Taylor
DeYoung, Meghan
Publisher
Journal of Advanced Student Sciences (JASS)
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Past research has shown that an individual’s reaction time can be a valid indicator of the
central nervous system’s ability to receive and synchronize movement expressed through the
peripheral nervous system. This cognitive-motor connection is a key player in many aspects of
daily living including, but not limited to: making quick decisions in dangerous situations, athletic
abilities, prevention from injury, and sustained autonomy with aging. Because exercise is known
to increase blood flow and oxygen to the skeletal muscles and the brain, it was inferred that
exercise would also affect an individual’s reaction time, since both skeletal muscle and the brain
are separately associated with reaction time. To determine this, thirty subjects gave baseline
blood pressure, heart rate, and simple reaction time measurements. They then participated in an
acute-intense exercise, defined as a doubled heart rate maintained for five minutes. Post-exercise
blood pressure, heart rate, and simple reaction time measurements were taken and the data was
analyzed using a Wilcox’s paired T-Test. The results concluded that acute-intense exercise
decreased reaction time, meaning there was significant improvement in reaction time abilities.
This data suggests that exercise is beneficial to people in their daily lives because it influences
reaction time abilities.
Subject
acute-intense exercise
auditory
blood pressure
focused
heart rate
reaction time
stimulus
Permanent Link
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1793/80032Description
An article that appeared in JASS, issue 2014