What question did this study set out to answer?

To investigate how cold exposure, mild hypothermia, sleep deprivation, and nutritional status impair cognitive functions essential for self-rescue during polar maritime emergencies.

January 20, 2026Polar ResearchOpen Access

The impact of stressors on cognition during a survival exercise in polar waters—results of an experiment in northern Norway

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Authors

VHVivian D. HaugenUiT The Arctic University of Norway LHLine HusjordUiT The Arctic University of Norway

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Implication

Field experiment reveals weakened cognitive skills and mild hypothermia in simulated polar survival conditions, highlighting the need to incorporate human factors into maritime emergency planning.

Key Points

To investigate how cold exposure, mild hypothermia, sleep deprivation, and nutritional status impair cognitive functions essential for self-rescue during polar maritime emergencies.
Conducted a 36-hour cold-climate survival simulation in October 2022 in Beisfjord, northern Norway.
Evaluated participants through cognitive pre- and post-testing, medical examinations, blood glucose tracking, observational recordings, and post-exercise focus group interviews.
Post-exercise testing demonstrated a weakening of cognitive skills alongside widespread reports of inadequate sleep, cold, wetness, restlessness, and boredom.
Mild hypothermia developed in several participants despite wearing protective wool clothing and survival suits, whereas blood glucose levels remained within normal ranges.

Cite This Study

Haugen et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6ab72eec17230339138596c8 https://doi.org/10.33265/polar.v44.10735

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Implication

Field experiment reveals weakened cognitive skills and mild hypothermia in simulated polar survival conditions, highlighting the need to incorporate human factors into maritime emergency planning.

The impact of stressors on cognition during a survival exercise in polar waters—results of an experiment in northern Norway

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

The impact of stressors on cognition during a survival exercise in polar waters—results of an experiment in northern Norway

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

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