A comparative study on simple and interference reaction times in women and men.

• Introduction: studies on reaction time (RT) indicate faster reactions for men than women. However, when comparing samples across decades, this difference seems to decrease. The aim of this study was to explore reaction times in a large contemporary sample of adult males and females (age range = 15-82). Methods: Simple reaction time and interference reaction time (a go/no go reaction task) were measured with the Vienna Reaction Apparatus (Wiener Reaktionstest, Schuhfried), RT, version S1 and S2 for simple reaction time and version S3 and S4 for interference reaction time. Results: men responded faster on the interference reaction task, S3 (M=441,57, SD=80,86) than women (M=461,53, SD=91,53). This difference was significant, t(3,7) = p<0,001 and represent a small sized effect, d = .21. There were no significant differences regarding simple reaction time (S1 and S2) or on the other interference task (S4). In regards to intraindividual variability there was a significant difference, t(3.1), p =.002, d =.21, with less variability in males (M =65.99) as compared to females (M=70,45) on S3. Conclusions: when comparing groups, men performed slightly faster on one of the interference tasks. However, there were no significant differences on the other measures. This result is consistent with previous studies indicating a decrease in differences on reaction times, comparing men and women.

Ämnesord

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Klinisk medicin -- Neurologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Clinical Medicine -- Neurology (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Reaction time

gender

neuropsychology

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