Simple reaction time: how it relates to body mass index (BMI), gender and handedness in Ghanaian students.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between gender, handedness and body mass index (BMI) with simple reaction time. The study was conducted amongst 501 (232 females and 269 males) untrained University of Cape Coast students, Ghana whose ages ranged from 17-29 years. In this study it was found that males had faster reaction times than females, likewise the mean reaction time of the left hand was also faster than that of the right hand. There was however no significant difference in the mean reaction time across BMI classes In conclusion, simple reaction time is influenced by gender and handedness but appears not to be influence by BMI ABSTRAK Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji hubungan antara jenis kelamin, penggunaan tangan dan indeks masa tubuh (IMT) dengan waktu reaksi sederhana. Penelitian dilakukan terhadap 501 (232 wanita dan 269 pria) pelajar Universitas Cape Coast, Ghana yang tidak terlatih yang berumur antara 17-29 tahun. Hasil penelitian ini meunjukkan bahwa pria waktu reaksi lebih cepat daripada wanita. Selain itu rerata waktu reaksi tangan kiri juga lebih cepat daripada tangan kanan. Namun demikian tidak ada perbedaan nyata rerata waktu reaksi antar kelompok IMT. Dapat disimpulkan, waktu reaksi sederhana dipengaruhi oleh jeniis kelamin dan penggunaan tangan tetapi tidak dipengaruhi IMT.