The influence of emotional stimuli and cognitive load on decision making capacity

Abstract

The Cognitive Load Theory states that as cognitive load increases, cognitive resources available to complete a task become limited and hinders the successful completion of that task. It is similar for emotional arousal where the higher the level of emotional arousal, the longer it takes to complete a task. This research study explored the impact of cognitive load and emotional arousal on a decision making task, namely the Stroop task. Decision making was operationalised as the reaction time of responses (in milliseconds) during the Stroop task. Pupil dilation was used to measure varied levels of cognitive load and emotional arousal. The research adopted a quantitative factorial research design. Participants were sampled using convenience sampling, which resulted in a final sample size of 12 participants. To test the impact of cognitive load and emotional arousal on decision making, participants were exposed to a computerised version of the Stroop task. Data was analysed using a repeated measures ANOVA. Results indicated that there was a statistically significant difference between high and low levels of emotional arousal and reaction time. Additionally, the difference in pupil dilation between levels of high cognitive load and low cognitive load was statistically significant. Furthermore, there was a significant interaction effect between cognitive load and the time at which the stimulus was presented.