Right Time to Focus? Time of Day and Cognitive Performance
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Anita Staneva
,
Qing Zhang
Abstract
Using nationally representative data from Australia, the paper examines the relationship between time of day and cognitive performance among working-age individuals. We show that performance on cognitive tests involving fluid intelligence peaks in the afternoon, with poorer performance in the morning and evening. This time-of-day effect is most pronounced in the early afternoon and stronger for women than for men. However, there is no such evidence on an empirical link between time of day and crystallized intelligence. Overall, we show that the U-shaped profile of cognitive performance over the course of the day found in Gaggero, A., and D. Tommasi. (2023. “Time of Day and High-Stake Cognitive Assessments.” Economic Journal 133: 1407–29) for university students can be generalized to people of working age.
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- Fair Choices During COVID-19: Firms’ Altruism and Inequality Aversion in Managing a Large Short-Time Work Scheme
- Inequality in Health Status During the COVID-19 in the UK: Does the Impact of the Second Lockdown Policy Matter?
- The Political Timing of Tax Policy: Evidence from U.S. States
- Is it a Matter of Skills? High School Choices and the Gender Gap in STEM
- Patent Licensing and Litigation
- Class Size, Student Disruption, and Academic Achievement
- Political Orientation and Policy Compliance: Evidence from COVID-19 Mobility Patterns in Korea
- Social Efficiency of Free Entry in a Vertically Related Industry with Cost and Technology Asymmetry
- Carbon Tax with Individuals’ Heterogeneous Environmental Concerns
- Equitable Redistribution and Inefficiency under Credit Rationing
- Letters
- Psychological Well-Being of Only Children: Evidence from the One-Child Policy
- Peer Effects in Child Work Decisions: Evidence from PROGRESA Cash Transfer Program
- Right Time to Focus? Time of Day and Cognitive Performance
- Employee Dissatisfaction and Intentions to Quit: New Evidence and Policy Recommendations
- On the Stability of Common Ownership Arrangements
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- Fair Choices During COVID-19: Firms’ Altruism and Inequality Aversion in Managing a Large Short-Time Work Scheme
- Inequality in Health Status During the COVID-19 in the UK: Does the Impact of the Second Lockdown Policy Matter?
- The Political Timing of Tax Policy: Evidence from U.S. States
- Is it a Matter of Skills? High School Choices and the Gender Gap in STEM
- Patent Licensing and Litigation
- Class Size, Student Disruption, and Academic Achievement
- Political Orientation and Policy Compliance: Evidence from COVID-19 Mobility Patterns in Korea
- Social Efficiency of Free Entry in a Vertically Related Industry with Cost and Technology Asymmetry
- Carbon Tax with Individuals’ Heterogeneous Environmental Concerns
- Equitable Redistribution and Inefficiency under Credit Rationing
- Letters
- Psychological Well-Being of Only Children: Evidence from the One-Child Policy
- Peer Effects in Child Work Decisions: Evidence from PROGRESA Cash Transfer Program
- Right Time to Focus? Time of Day and Cognitive Performance
- Employee Dissatisfaction and Intentions to Quit: New Evidence and Policy Recommendations
- On the Stability of Common Ownership Arrangements
