Table 1.
Demographic data of the sample (N = 21) and behavioral performance during distraction trials
| Demographic Data | |
|---|---|
| Sex (N female/male) | 14/7 |
| Age in years (mean ± SD; range) | 20.5 ± 1.7; 19–27 |
| Handedness (mean ± SD; range) | 77.3 ± 19.3; 29–100 |
| Task performancea | |
| Neutral images | |
| Accuracy (%) | 85.23 (11.33) |
| Reaction times (ms) | 3159.57 (360.10) |
| Negative images | |
| Accuracy (%) | 80.83 (10.91) |
| Reaction times (ms) | 3275.84 (347.45) |
| Positive images | |
| Accuracy (%) | 82.10 (11.51) |
| Reaction times (ms) | 3286.83 (355.13) |
aWe performed a repeated measures ANOVA on task performance (accuracy and reaction time data) with a 3-level within-subjects factor ‘emotion’ (neutral, negative and positive) that revealed no significant effects for accuracy, F(2,40) = 2.538, P = 0.092, but a significant effect for reaction times, F(2,40) = 8.177, P = 0.001, indicating that participants were faster to solve the mathematical equation with a neutral background image compared with a positive (P = 0.002) and negative (P = 0.010) background image.