Abstract
Despite significant public concern that wearing face masks can adversely affect the brain, and self-report evidence in healthcare workers that it is associated with impaired cognition, few studies to date have measured the impact of wearing the types of face masks commonly worn during the COVID-19 pandemic (surgical or cloth face masks) on cognition. In the present study, we investigated the effects of wearing a surgical face mask for prolonged periods (at least 8 hours) on neuropsychological functioning, including objectively measured cognition (basic visuomotor performance, inhibitory control, mental flexibility, selective attention, short-term and working memory and self-reported current mood states).