Effects of moderate thermal environments on cognitive performance: A multidisciplinary review

What the study found

The review supports nonlinear relationships between thermal conditions and cognitive performance rather than a simple monotonic effect.

Limitations

Heterogeneous tasks and thermal metrics; mechanistic pathways remain partly inferential.

Neurodesign interpretation

The brain does not respond to temperature like a binary comfort switch. The useful design model is a moving envelope shaped by task, exposure, clothing and the person.

Possible design implications

Create adaptable environments that can accommodate different tasks and metabolic states.

Why it stays in the corpus

Retain for the nonlinear or extended-U framing.

Study design

Multidisciplinary review

Population

Humans

Setting

Laboratory and field studies

Field

Thermal environment

Mechanism

Arousal, thermoregulation, cognition

Spatial variable

Moderate thermal conditions

Keywords

thermal, cognition, arousal, nonlinear