The effects of napping and caffeine on memory processes

Abstract

The aim of this present study is to investigate the efficacy of the combined treatment of caffeine and taking a short 20-minute nap in aiding the memory encoding and retrieval processes. Participants were randomly selected to drink either caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee and then allocated to one of three activity groups – nap, relaxed wakefulness and exercise, where they are also required to complete pen-and-paper MCQ memory tasks. Scores tabulated would reflect declarative (semantic) memory performance. The results showed that participants in the combination group of caffeine and nap scored significantly better in the memory task as compared to the rest, thus confirming the effectiveness of the combination of caffeine and nap in improving memory performance in healthy, non sleep-deprived subjects.