"A person's tendency to be a morning or an evening person is called their chronotype. Because of differences in chronotypes, we see significant differences in theat which people are best at paying attention, learning, solving problems, making complex decisions and more," says Dr. Lynn Hasher, Senior Scientist at Baycrest's Rotman Research Institute, the study's lead author and a key leader in this field of research.
An individual's chronotype drives physiological and intellectual functioning throughout the day. Morning chronotypes rise and peak early in the day, while evening chronotypes have a later peak. Chronotype varies from person to person and also changes with age, from childhood to adolescence to old age.
They found that a person's chronotype has a strong effect on their ability to pay attention, learn, solve problems, make complex decisions and even behave in an ethical manner. This means that a morning person may have more difficulty learning new information later in the day, while an evening person may struggle to make decisions before noon.
Chronotype appears to have the strongest impact for adolescents and older adults. Adolescents are generally strong evening chronotypes, but they tend to start school early in the morning, which may have a negative effect on their. In contrast, because the majority of older adults show a strong biological preference for the morning, they tend to perform much worse on cognitive tests later in the day, which could in turn lead to unnecessary stress.
Overall, these results indicate the importance of recognizing and accounting for chronotype in a wide variety of settings, from academic and medical situations to"By better understanding and acknowledging chronotypes, we can help individuals optimize their mental performance and live their best possible lives, no matter their age," says Dr. Hasher.Cynthia P.