Cognitive impairment, retrospective and prospective memory, and visual inattention in chronotype

Aim of the study was to evaluate cognitive impairment, retrospective and prospective memory, and visual inattention in chronotype personality tendencies.

Methods: A total of 676 students of Bu Ali Sina University were selected in 2017. Subsequently, 150 of them were selected for the second stage according to the scores in the morningness-eveningness questionnaire (MEQ): as a morning person, an evening person, or intermediate. Finally, participants were studied in executive functions, memory function, and visual inattention.

Results: The results showed that there is a significant difference between the morningness-eveningness personality groups in executive functions, memory function, and visual inattention (p < 0.05). Participants with eveningness and intermediate personality had higher performance in retrospective memory, prospective memory, general memory, visual/spatial, naming, and attention. This difference was significant (p < 0.05). Also, participants with morningness and intermediate traits had higher performance in right and left visual attention (p < 0.05).

Conclusions: It can be concluded that morningness tendencies have worse cognitive performance in executive functions and eveningness tendencies have deficiencies in visual attention.