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On Cognition, Need, and Action: How Working Memory and Need for Cognition Influence Leisure Activities
Author(s) -
Therriault David J.,
Redifer Jenni L.,
Lee Christine S.,
Wang Ye
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
applied cognitive psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.719
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1099-0720
pISSN - 0888-4080
DOI - 10.1002/acp.3078
Subject(s) - psychology , cognition , leisure activity , action (physics) , working memory , task (project management) , cognitive psychology , disposition , cognitive load , need for cognition , developmental psychology , social psychology , physics , management , quantum mechanics , neuroscience , economics
Summary The present study examined the relationships among college students' need for cognition (NFC), their working memory capacity, and their preferred leisure activities. Results indicated that scoring higher on the NFC scale was related to participants engaging in cognitively higher load leisure activities (e.g., writing) than lower load leisure activities (e.g., watching TV). We did not find a relationship between participants' cognitive ability (as measured by an attentional capacity task) and their choice of leisure activities. In sum, personal dispositions contributed to the choice and complexity of people's leisure activities, whereas cognitive ability did not. These findings provide a theoretical framework for further exploring the relationships between disposition, cognition, and action. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.