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bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.10.19.760160

Daytime Napping and Associative-Memory Retrieval Speed: An Exploratory Behavioral and EEG Study

Yang, M.·Wang, R.·Guan, Y.·Zhao, H.·Wang, W.·Ji, L.·Liu, Y.·Yan, L.·Qu, C.
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Abstract

Purpose: To test whether a daytime nap was associated with improved associative-recognition performance relative to monitored wakefulness and to determine where any response-time (RT) difference occurred in the RT distribution. Methods: Fifteen healthy students completed nap and wake sessions in a within-participant design. Each session included word-pair learning, immediate recognition, a 60-min interval, and delayed recognition without additional study. Trial-level log RT was the focal outcome; accuracy and electroencephalography (EEG) were complementary outcomes. Results: The RT Condition-by-Time interaction was significant (b = -0.063, 95% CI [-0.117, -0.009], p = .027). Responses were 6.7% faster after the nap (p = .010) but did not change after wakefulness (p = .704), with the difference concentrated among slower responses. Accuracy showed no condition-specific change (p = .401). Nap EEG showed aperiodic spectral slowing and stronger periodic sigma activity, but no EEG measure explained the RT effect. Conclusions: Daytime napping was associated with faster delayed associative recognition, primarily through attenuation of the slowest responses. The exploratory findings warrant larger confirmatory studies.

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Yang, M., Wang, R., Guan, Y., Zhao, H., Wang, W., Ji, L., Liu, Y., Yan, L., Qu, C.. 2026-10-21. Daytime Napping and Associative-Memory Retrieval Speed: An Exploratory Behavioral and EEG Study. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.10.19.760160

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