Effects of Acute Stress and Single-Session Physiological Biofeedback on Attention Network Components in Healthy Young Women: A Within-Subject Experimental Study

Objective: Attentional control is a fundamental cognitive function, comprising alerting, orienting, and executive control networks as described by Posner’s model. Acute stress induced by experimental paradigms, such as the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), can affect attentional performance. Physiological biofeedback techniques, including respiratory and heart rate variability (HRV) training, have been proposed as interventions to alleviate stress-related cognitive impairments.Method: This within-subject experimental study involved ۲۵ healthy female volunteers screened for mental health using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS). Participants completed the Attention Network Test (ANT) under three sequential conditions: baseline (no intervention), acute stress induction (TSST), and physiological biofeedback training. Cognitive performance across each attentional network was compared using repeated measures ANOVA, the Friedman test, and appropriate post-hoc analyses (Bonferroni, LSD, Wilcoxon).Results: Significant differences were observed in several ANT network scores across conditions (p < .۰۵). However, post-hoc analyses indicated that most improvements occurred only from baseline to subsequent phases, with no consistent enhancement following biofeedback compared to the stress condition.Discussions: Acute stress induction produced limited and selective effects on attentional network performance. The short-term physiological biofeedback intervention did not yield substantial recovery. Overall, neither intervention resulted in consistent improvements across all attentional indices, underscoring the need for extended intervention protocols and more diverse cognitive outcome measures in future research.

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Keywords: Attention Network Test ، Acute Stress ، cognitive performance ، Physiological Biofeedback ، Trier Social Stress Test