2008 Volume 35 Issue 1 Pages 47-52
The first purpose of the present investigation was to examine the effect of mirror drawing task (MDT) on the partial pressure of end-tidal carbon dioxide (PetCO_2) and respiration rate (RR). The second was to examine effects of increased task difficulty on PetCO_2 and RR during MDT. 10 healthy undergraduates volunteered for this study. After the 4 minute rest period, they completed two conditions (the easy condition and the difficult condition) followed by the post-task period. The difficulty was manipulated by narrowing the width of the track. MDT in the easy condition induced a significant increase in RR and did not affect PetCO_2. There were no significant differences in PetCO_2 and RR between two conditions. These results implied that MDT may itself induce a significant elevation in RR but not affect PetCO_2. The results also suggested that these effects were independent of task difficulty.
