Content-Specific Activational Effects of Estrogen on Working Memory Performance

Bibliographic Data

ID10124293
AuthorsAndrea Vranic (0000-0002-4235-8014, University of Zagreb, corresponding author), Ivana Hromatko (0000-0002-3837-1929, University of Zagreb)
Year2008
Volume135
Issue3
Pages323-336
Publication date2008-07-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of General Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-1309 • E-ISSN: 1940-0888
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.3200/genp.135.3.323-336
PMID18649496
OpenAlexW2084149046
LanguageEN
References cited5

The authors explored the influence of task content and the menstrual cycle phase on working memory (WM) performance. They addressed the content specificity of WM in the framework of evolutionary psychology, proposing a hormone-mediated adaptive design governing face perception. The authors tested 2 groups of healthy young women (n = 66 women with regular menstrual cycle, n = 27 oral contraceptive users) on a WM task with adult male or infant face photographs. Analyses of variance showed significant interaction between task content and estrogen level. Women were more efficient in solving the male faces task during high-estrogen phase of the cycle than during low-estrogen phase. No differences were found in the efficacy of solving the infant faces task between different phases of the cycle. Results suggest content-specific activational effects of estrogen on the WM performance and are consistent with the notion of a hormonal mechanism underlying adaptive shifts in cognition related to mating motivation

Cognition · Cognitive psychology · Developmental psychology · Estrogen · Face (sociological concept · Hormone · Menstrual cycle · Perception · Task (project management · Working memory · Animal Behavior and Reproduction · Endocrinology · Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior · Medicine · Neuroscience · Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies · Psychology

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub