RESULTS Modafinil appears to improve reaction time ( P ≤ 0.04 ) , logical reasoning ( P ≤ 0.05 ) and problem-solving .
Across all three types of prescription stimulants , research shows improved attention with lack of consensus on whether these improvements are limited to simple versus complex tasks in varying youth population s. CONCLUSIONS The heterogeneity of the non-attention deficit hyperactivity disorder youth population , the variation in cognitive task characteristics and lack of replication of studies makes assessing the potential global neurocognitive benefits of stimulants among non-attention deficit hyperactivity disorder youth difficult ; however , some youth may derive benefit in specific cognitive domains
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Increasing prescription stimulant abuse among youth without diagnoses of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) is of concern .
The most frequently cited motive for abuse is improved academic achievement via neurocognitive enhancement .
Our aim in review ing the literature was to identify neurocognitive effects of prescription stimulants in non-ADHD youth .
The effect of methylphenidate on information processing
Models of information processing currently popular in cognitive psychology divide the reaction process into a series of discrete separable stages . The distinction between one stage and another is verified by the additive factors method ( AFM ) as defined by Sternberg ( 1969 ) . Task factors that do not interact with each other are inferred to affect different stages . The distinction between stimulus evaluation stages and response selection stages has been supported by brain event related potential ( ERP ) studies . The latency of the P300 component of the ERP is sensitive to changes in stimulus complexity but not to to changes in response complexity . The focus of this research is to determine the effects of stimulant drugs on stages of information processing using both reaction time ( RT ) and P300 latency within an AFM framework . four doses of methylpheni date ( MP ) were used in a within-subjects design to examine the effects of MP on stimulus and response processing . We found that MP speeds RT , and that this effect does not interact with the effect of stimulus complexity on RT . MP dose interacts with response complexity , the dose for optimal speeding varying with the level of complexity . The latency of P300 is increased by stimulus complexity , and not by response complexity , nor is it affected by MP . These results show that the stimulant drug acts on processes involved in response selection , rather than in stimulus evaluation . Individual differences in drug response are dose dependent , but also point to an effect on response processing
RESULTS Modafinil appears to improve reaction time ( P ≤ 0.04 ) , logical reasoning ( P ≤ 0.05 ) and problem-solving .
Across all three types of prescription stimulants , research shows improved attention with lack of consensus on whether these improvements are limited to simple versus complex tasks in varying youth population s. CONCLUSIONS The heterogeneity of the non-attention deficit hyperactivity disorder youth population , the variation in cognitive task characteristics and lack of replication of studies makes assessing the potential global neurocognitive benefits of stimulants among non-attention deficit hyperactivity disorder youth difficult ; however , some youth may derive benefit in specific cognitive domains
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Increasing prescription stimulant abuse among youth without diagnoses of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) is of concern .
The most frequently cited motive for abuse is improved academic achievement via neurocognitive enhancement .
Our aim in review ing the literature was to identify neurocognitive effects of prescription stimulants in non-ADHD youth .