Temperature and Low-stakes Cognitive Performance

Xin Zhang, Xi Chen and Xiaobo Zhang

No 1278, GLO Discussion Paper Series from Global Labor Organization (GLO)

Abstract: This paper offers one of the first evidence in a developing country context that transitory exposure to high temperatures may disrupt low-stakes cognitive activities across a range of age cohorts. By matching eight years of repeated cognitive tests among all the participants in a nationally representative longitudinal survey in China with weather data according to the exact time and geographic location of their assessment, we show that exposure to a temperature above 32 °C on the test date, relative to a moderate day within 22-24 °C, leads to a sizable decline in their math scores by 0.066 standard deviations (equivalent to 0.23 years of education). Further, the effect on the math test scores is more salient for individuals who are older or less educated.

Keywords: cognitive performance; high temperatures; adaptation; age gradients (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I24 Q51 Q54 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cna, nep-env and nep-neu
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https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/270937/1/GLO-DP-1278.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Temperature and Low-Stakes Cognitive Performance (2024)
Working Paper: Temperature and Low-Stakes Cognitive Performance (2023)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:glodps:1278

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