http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0028390812003449
Abstract
Background
Modafinil,
a putative cognitive enhancing drug, has previously been shown to
improve performance of healthy volunteers as well as patients with
attention deficit disorder and schizophrenia, mainly in tests of
executive functions. The aim of this study was to investigate the
effects of modafinil on non-verbal cognitive functions in healthy
volunteers, with a particular focus on variations of cognitive load,
measures of motivational factors and the effects on creative
problem-solving.
Methods
A double-blind placebo-controlled parallel design study evaluated the effect of 200 mg of modafinil (N = 32) or placebo (N = 32)
in non-sleep deprived healthy volunteers. Non-verbal tests of divergent
and convergent thinking were used to measure creativity. A new measure
of task motivation was used, together with more levels of difficulty on
neuropsychological tests from the CANTAB battery.
Results
Improvements
under modafinil were seen on spatial working memory, planning and
decision making at the most difficult levels, as well as visual pattern
recognition memory following delay. Subjective ratings of enjoyment of
task performance were significantly greater under modafinil compared
with placebo, but mood ratings overall were not affected. The effects of
modafinil on creativity were inconsistent and did not reach statistical
significance.
Conclusions
Modafinil
reliably enhanced task enjoyment and performance on several cognitive
tests of planning and working memory, but did not improve paired
associates learning. The findings confirm that modafinil can enhance
aspects of highly demanding cognitive performance in non-sleep deprived
individuals.
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