In the heat of the moment: the effects of extreme temperatures on the cognitive functioning of firefighters

Thompson, Catherine and Ferrie, Lucy and Pearson, Stephen and Highlands, Brian and Matthews, Martyn (2024) In the heat of the moment: the effects of extreme temperatures on the cognitive functioning of firefighters. Ergonomics, 68 (2). ISSN 0014-0139

Text 2024 Ergonomics.pdf - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (4MB)

Abstract

Exposure to high temperatures can have detrimental effects on cognitive processing and this is concerning for firefighters who routinely work in extreme temperatures. Whilst past research has studied the effects of heat on firefighter cognition, findings are mixed, and no work has measured the time course of cognitive recovery. This study compared working memory, vigilance, and cognitive flexibility of 37 firefighters before and after they engaged in a live-fire training exercise with temperatures exceeding 115°C. To assess recovery, cognition was measured on exiting the fire, then 20- and 40-minutes post-fire. Results showed impaired vigilance and cognitive flexibility (increased errors, slower responses) immediately after the fire, but recovery at 20-minutes. These findings indicate that a live indoor fire negatively impacts cognitive processing, but this effect is relatively short-lived and return to baseline functioning is seen 20-minutes after exiting the fire. The findings could be used to inform re-entry and cooling decisions.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information and Comments:	© 2024 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.
Keywords:	heat stress, firefighters, cognitive flexibility, vigilance
Faculty / Department:	Faculty of Human and Digital Sciences > School of Psychology
Depositing User:	Dr Catherine Thompson
Date Deposited:	23 Apr 2025 13:52
Last Modified:	23 Apr 2025 13:52
URI:	https://hira.hope.ac.uk/id/eprint/4645

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