Date of Award
4-1998
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Human Performance and Health Education
Department
Health, Physical Education & Recreation
First Advisor
Dr. Mary L. Dawson
Second Advisor
Dr. Roger Zabik
Third Advisor
Dr. Patricia Frye
Access Setting
Masters Thesis-Open Access
Abstract
The problem of this study was to analyze the effect of caffeine on heart rate, blood pressure, reaction time, and hand steadiness. Subjects (N = 20) were classified as high-caffeine users or low-caffeine users. Heart rate, blood pressure, reaction time, and hand steadiness were measured. Subjects then consumed 24 oz of coffee containing 345 mg of caffeine in a 5-min period. Dependent variables were measured again at 30, 60, and 90 min after caffeine administration. Significant differences were found among test time means for every dependent variable except hand steadiness. No difference was found between the high-caffeine-use group and the low-caffeine-use group for heart rate, blood pressure, or hand steadiness. The researcher concluded that caffeine (a) did not increase heart rate, (b) increased systolic blood pressure 60 min after caffeine intake, (c) increased diastolic blood pressure at 30 and 60 min after caffeine intake, (d) decreased reaction time for the high-caffeine-use group, and (e) had no effect on hand steadiness. Recommendations for further study include designing the study to measure baseline heart rate and blood pressure prior to caffeine administration and using a balanced placebo design to see if regular caffeine users respond due to caffeine or to expectancy.
Recommended Citation
Ryan, Amy K., "The Effect of Caffeine on Reaction Time, Hand Steadiness, and Certain Physiological Variables" (1998). Masters Theses. 4626.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/4626