Reversal learning deficits during sleep deprivation: investigating the role of information acquisition failures

ABSTRACT

Besides degrading vigilant attention, total sleep deprivation (TSD) impairs reversal learning performance and blunts affective reactions to feedback. Whether these effects are downstream consequences of information acquisition failures from degraded vigilant attention, or distinct from degraded vigilant attention, is unclear. In well-rested individuals we simulated information acquisition failures by masking a portion of trial information in a go/no-go reversal learning task with four conditions: stimulus masking, feedback masking, alternating stimulus/feedback masking, and no-masking control. No condition reproduced the previously documented pattern of TSD effects, suggesting that information acquisition failures cannot fully account for impaired reversal learning and blunted affective reactions during TSD.

KEYWORDS:

• Decision making
• vigilant attention
• cognitive flexibility
• performance feedback
• feedback blunting
• skin conductance response
• stimulus masking
• feedback masking

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the staff of the Sleep and Performance Research Center at Washington State University for their help conducting the experiment, and Dr. Devon Hansen for her assistance in running the laboratory study. This research was supported by CDMRP grants W81XWH-16-1-0319 and W81XWH-18-1-0100.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs [W81XWH-16-1-0319, W81XWH-18-1-0100].