There has been considerable speculation in the military as to the ability of physical fitness to moderate cognitive degradation resulting from sleep deprivation during continuous combat operations. The purpose of this investigation was to test the hypothesis that the level of physical fitness would moderate cognitive degradation such that individuals in a high fitness group would show less cognitive degradation during sleep deprivation than individuals in a low fitness group. To test the hypothesis, 16 male ROTC students participated in a 48 hours field training exercise without sleep. Cognitive performance measures made at regular intervals throughout the exercise revealed significant cognitive performance degradation beginning at 24 hours. Degradation continued throughout the exercise. Performance decrements appeared to have recovered to pre-deprivation levels after 24 hours of rest. Analysis did not reveal a significant main effect of physical fitness level. Although there were several interesting findings, the physical fitness hypothesis was not supported.

ADA 131962 Approved for public release; Distribution is unlimited. The opinions and conclusions expressed herein are those of the student-authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency. (References to these studies should include the foregoing statement.)