A Comparative Study On The Recovery Effect Of Physical Exercise And Closed Eyes Rest On Mental Fatigue

Background:Fast-paced and busy life and work in modern society require people to take part in many tasks related to work and demanding a high level of sustained attention,such as long-term review for exams,long-distance driving,etc.These tasks are prone to mental fatigue,resulting in lack of vitality,weakened self-control,burnout,increased psychological pressure to task performance decline and so on.The decline of concentration ability is a manifestation of mental fatigue,which is related to the decline of efficiency and unwillingness to work.In the aspect of behavior,it reflects the slower reaction time and the lower accuracy of work tasks.Rest is usually used as a way to alleviate mental fatigue,but recent studies have shown that short-term physical exercise can help people think more clearly and improve cognitive function and mood.Rest can be used as an active and positive behavior for the recovery of mental fatigue,and may even achieve better results than passive closed-eye rest.However,there are not enough experimental studies to compare the effects of physical exercise and closed-eye rest on the recovery of mental fatigue.Especially in terms of the recovery effect of sustained attentional decline,there is still insufficient empirical evidence to discuss whether there are differences between physical exercise and closed-eye rest in the recovery effect of sustained attention.Purposes:This study selected college students who are prone to mental fatigue as the research object,focusing on the recovery of sustained attention,and comparing the effects of physical exercise and closed-eye rest on the recovery of mental fatigue.To find a positive and effective way to alleviate mental fatigue and improve the efficiency of work and learning provide empirical evidence.Methods:This study used psychomotor alertness test(PVT)task to induce and evaluate mental fatigue.Firstly,the standardized response time task of PVT is used to induce mental fatigue,and the experimental paradigm of mental induced fatigue is established.Then,in the follow-up intervention experiment,the level of mental fatigue is evaluated by the behavioral index(response time)of PVT task combined with subjective fatigue questionnaire.Using the two-factor experiment design of time*intervention mode,22 healthy college students were recruited to carry out three experiments under different conditions,namely,moderate intensity exercise intervention condition,closed-eye rest intervention condition and continuous PVT task control condition.The hypothesis of this study is:(1)15-minute psychomotor alertness test(PVT)task can effectively induce mental fatigue and establish an experimental research paradigm of mental fatigue;(2)exercise and rest can effectively restore mental fatigue,but the effects of the two intervention methods are different in response time,subjective fatigue feeling and sustained effect of task performance.Results:(1)During the first 15 minutes of PVT task induced by fatigue,the subjects'response time showed a continuous downward trend,and the main effect of time was obvious(F=16.595,p=.000,?~2=0.683).Meanwhile,the subjective fatigue score of self-report increased gradually(F=132.00,p=.000,?~2=.767);the other three experimental conditions(control,exercise intervention and rest and dryness)In the first 15 minutes(before intervention),there was no interaction between group time and time in PVT test scores.It showed that the 15 minutes before intervention effectively induced mental fatigue,and there was no difference in the induction effect(F=0.596,p=.864,?~2=.141).(2)This study compared the evaluation of mental fatigue before and after the intervention of exercise and closed-eye rest,so as to compare the immediate effect of the two intervention methods on the recovery of mental fatigue.In terms of objective behavioral indicators,repeated variance analysis showed that PVT task response time decreased significantly before and after moderate intensity exercise and closed-eye rest,and the main effect of mental fatigue recovery time was significant(F=27.672,p=.000,?~2=.409),but there was no difference between groups(?~2=.007).There was no significant difference between the two intervention methods in the immediate recovery effect of mental fatigue.However,the effect of exercise intervention on mental fatigue recovery(?~2=.603)was slightly higher than that of closed-eye rest intervention(?~2=288).The repeated variance analysis of sleep indicators as covariates found that there was no interaction between sleep and time and intervention conditions,and sleep did not affect the immediate recovery of mental fatigue.From the subjective psychological perception index,the two intervention methods had no significant immediate effect on subjective fatigue score(F=1.236,p=.273,?~2=0.030).(3)This study compared the 15-minute mental fatigue assessment after exercise and closed-eye rest intervention,and then analyzed the lasting effect of the two intervention methods on mental fatigue relief.Under the conditions of exercise and rest,the respondents showed an overall upward trend in the PVT test reaction time in the last 15 minutes,and the main effect of time was obvious(F=3.239,p=.010,?~2=.400).There was no significant difference between the two intervention modes(exercise and rest)(F=.494,p=.832,?~2=.092).At the same time,there was no interaction between PVT response time and sleep indicators(total sleep duration,deep sleep duration,shallow sleep duration)and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Questionnaire scores(F=1.068,p=405,?~2=.185).However,the effect of exercise intervention on mental fatigue recovery was ?~2=.360,and that of closed-eye rest intervention was n 2=.800.(4)There was no significant correlation between subjective fatigue difference before and after intervention and objective PVT response time difference(r=0.73,p>.05).Research conclusions:(1)15-minute PVT task can effectively induce mental fatigue,and the effect of fatigue induction is consistent under different experimental conditions.A reliable experimental paradigm of mental fatigue induction is established for this study.(2)As for the sustained attention of mental fatigue,both moderate intensity physical exercise and closed-eye rest have significant positive effects.Both intervention methods can restore mental fatigue immediately.The immediate recovery effect of mental fatigue of physical exercise is slightly higher than that of closed-eye rest.But in the follow-up continuous attention task,the mental fatigue delayed by physical exercise intervention is not better than closed-eye rest.(3)Sleep had no significant effect on the change of sustained attention under different conditions,but had an effect on subjective perception of fatigue.(4)There is inconsistency between objective evaluation index(PVT reaction time)and subjective evaluation index(subjective fatigue score).Generally speaking,physical exercise can effectively promote the alleviation of mental fatigue symptoms,and has certain advantages in the immediate alleviation effect of mental fatigue.Considering that physical exercise can also reduce people's unhealthy habits such as sedentary,improve cardiopulmonary function and enhance people's physical fitness,physical exercise can be carried out in the case of short-term mental fatigue and needs rapid alleviation.For effective mental fatigue(especially sustained attention)is recommended,the combination of fatigue recovery and physical health promotion is of positive significance to students,white collar workers and drivers.However,if the follow-up needs to continue to engage in related tasks which easily lead to mental fatigue,the effect of physical exercise fatigue persistent confrontation does not have advantages.The neuropsychological mechanism of the different effects of active physical exercise and passive closed-eye rest on mental fatigue needs to be further explored.