Effects of Mental Fatigue Duration on Cortical Activity and Jump Performance

NCT07754604 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: INU-2025-8104-MFCMJ2025/8104
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 12
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

"This study investigates whether the length of time spent on a mentally demanding task affects brain activity and jumping performance in physically active young men. Twelve healthy male university students, all regularly engaged in sport, completed four separate testing sessions on different days, each at least 72 hours apart. In one session (the control condition), participants watched a calm nature documentary. In the other three sessions, mental fatigue was induced by having participants perform a demanding attention task (the Stroop color-word test) continuously for 10, 15, or 30 minutes. Before and after each session, brain activity was recorded using electroencephalography (EEG), a painless method that measures electrical activity through sensors placed on the scalp. Immediately afterward, participants performed a countermovement jump test, a standard measure of explosive leg power used in sports science. The study examines whether longer periods of mental fatigue produce progressively larger changes in brain activity and jump performance, and whether changes in brain activity are related to changes in jumping ability. The findings may help athletes, coaches, and students better understand how mentally tiring activities, such as studying or exams, could affect physical performance shortly afterward."

Conditions

Mental Fatigue; Athletic Performance; Cognitive-Motor Interaction

Keywords

Mental Fatigue; Countermovement Jump; Electroencephalography; Cognitive-Motor Interaction; Dose-Response; Stroop Task

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Countermovement Jump (CMJ) Height

  Countermovement jump (CMJ) height was assessed using the My Jump Lab application (version 5.2; C. Balsalobre-Fernández, Madrid, Spain) via video recorded at 240 frames/s on an iPad Air 11-inch (M3), positioned on a tripod approximately 2 m from the participant. Take-off and landing frames were identified manually by the same investigator using the application's frame-by-frame function, and jump height was calculated from flight time using the equation h = (g·t²)/8. Two jump attempts were performed in each experimental session, with 60 seconds of rest between trials, and the better performance was retained for analysis.

  Immediately after completion of each experimental protocol (control, and 10-, 15-, and 30-minute Stroop-task mental fatigue conditions); sessions were separated by a minimum 72-hour washout period.

Secondary Outcomes (8)

• Countermovement Jump-Derived Mechanical and Kinematic Parameters

  Immediately after completion of each experimental protocol.

• EEG Absolute Band Power (Delta, Theta, Alpha, Beta)

  Recorded immediately before and immediately after each experimental protocol (control, and 10-, 15-, and 30-minute Stroop-task mental fatigue conditions); each recording lasted 3 minutes with eyes closed.

• EEG Theta/Beta Ratio

  Immediately before and immediately after each experimental protocol.

• EEG Spectral Entropy

  Immediately before and immediately after each experimental protocol.

• EEG Sample Entropy

  Immediately before and immediately after each experimental protocol.

Study Arms (4)

Control

SHAM COMPARATOR

Participants viewed a neutral, cognitively undemanding nature documentary for a duration matched to the mental-fatigue protocols, without performing the Stroop task.

Behavioral: Nature Documentary (Control)

MF10 (10-min Mental Fatigue)

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants performed the Stroop color-word task continuously for 10 minutes to induce mental fatigue.

Behavioral: 10-Minute Stroop Task

MF15 (15-min Mental Fatigue)

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants performed the Stroop color-word task continuously for 15 minutes to induce mental fatigue.

Behavioral: 15-Minute Stroop Task

MF30 (30-min Mental Fatigue)

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants performed the Stroop color-word task continuously for 30 minutes to induce mental fatigue.

Behavioral: 30-Minute Stroop Task

Interventions

Nature Documentary (Control) BEHAVIORAL

Viewing of a neutral, cognitively undemanding nature documentary matched in duration to the mental-fatigue protocols, serving as a non-fatiguing control condition.

Control

10-Minute Stroop Task BEHAVIORAL

Continuous performance of the Stroop color-word interference task for 10 minutes to induce mental fatigue.

MF10 (10-min Mental Fatigue)

15-Minute Stroop Task BEHAVIORAL

Continuous performance of the Stroop color-word interference task for 15 minutes to induce mental fatigue.

MF15 (15-min Mental Fatigue)

30-Minute Stroop Task BEHAVIORAL

Continuous performance of the Stroop color-word interference task for 30 minutes to induce mental fatigue.

MF30 (30-min Mental Fatigue)

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 30 Years
• Sex: male
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Healthy male volunteers aged 18-30 years
• Enrolled in the Faculty of Sport Sciences at İnönü University
• Engaged in structured exercise at least three days per week
• Free of any neurological, psychiatric, cardiovascular, or musculoskeletal disorder
• Normal or corrected-to-normal vision
• Physically capable of completing the experimental protocol safely

You may not qualify if:

• Diagnosed neurological, psychiatric, cardiovascular, or musculoskeletal disorder
• Lower-limb injury within the preceding 6 months
• Use of medication known to affect central nervous system function
• Prior diagnosis of a sleep disorder
• Uncorrectable visual impairment or any disturbance of color perception
• Cognitive or sensory limitation likely to interfere with performance of the Stroop task
• Failure to complete a session in full, non-compliance with investigator instructions during testing, inability to produce an EEG recording of analyzable quality for technical reasons, or discontinuation of the experimental procedure for any reason
• Non-compliance with pre-session restrictions (vigorous physical exercise or alcohol consumption within 24 hours before each session; caffeine, energy drinks, or other stimulant substances within 12 hours before each session)

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Inonu University: lead

Study Sites (1)

İnönü University, Faculty of Sport Sciences

Malatya, 44280, Turkey (Türkiye)

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Mental Fatigue

Interventions

Stroop Test

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Fatigue; Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Neuropsychological Tests; Psychological Tests; Behavioral Disciplines and Activities

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Masking Details: Statistical analyses were performed by biomedical-engineering collaborators who were not involved in data collection, providing a degree of blinding at the analysis stage.
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Principal Investigator

Model Details: Single-group, repeated-measures crossover design; all participants completed all four conditions (control, MF10, MF15, MF30) in a randomized, counterbalanced order across session positions, with a minimum 72-hour washout between sessions.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: August 4, 2026
• First Posted: August 10, 2026
• Study Start: May 1, 2026
• Primary Completion: July 1, 2026
• Study Completion: August 1, 2026
• Last Updated: August 10, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-08

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

TU (1)