Effects of physical activity on children’s executive function: Contributions of experimental research on aerobic exercise

Best, John R.

doi:10.1016/j.dr.2010.08.001

Cited by 749 publications

(812 citation statements)

References 107 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

719

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Numerous reviews have demonstrated the positive impact of physical activity on cognitive and mental health outcomes in child and adolescent populations, 6,8,9 and a range of potential mechanisms have been described. [10][11][12] These factors are summarized in the conceptual model in Fig 1. To our knowledge, the current article is the first systematic review of the mechanisms responsible for the effects of physical activity on cognitive and mental health in young people.…”

Section: Summary Of Conceptual Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical Activity for Cognitive and Mental Health in Youth: A Systematic Review of Mechanisms

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

CONTEXT: Physical activity can improve cognitive and mental health, but the underlying mechanisms have not been established. OBJECTIVE:To present a conceptual model explaining the mechanisms for the effect of physical activity on cognitive and mental health in young people and to conduct a systematic review of the evidence.DATA SOURCES: Six electronic databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, SCOPUS, Ovid Medline, SportDiscus, and Embase) were used.STUDY SELECTION: School-, home-, or community-based physical activity intervention or laboratory-based exercise interventions were assessed. Studies were eligible if they reported statistical analyses of changes in the following: (1) cognition or mental health; and (2) neurobiological, psychosocial, and behavioral mechanisms.DATA EXTRACTION: Data relating to methods, assessment period, participant characteristics, intervention type, setting, and facilitator/delivery were extracted. RESULTS:Twenty-five articles reporting results from 22 studies were included. Mechanisms studied were neurobiological (6 studies), psychosocial (18 studies), and behavioral (2 studies). Significant changes in at least 1 potential neurobiological mechanism were reported in 5 studies, and significant effects for at least 1 cognitive outcome were also found in 5 studies. One of 2 studies reported a significant effect for self-regulation, but neither study reported a significant impact on mental health. LIMITATIONS:Small number of studies and high levels of study heterogeneity. CONCLUSIONS:The strongest evidence was found for improvements in physical self-perceptions, which accompanied enhanced self-esteem in the majority of studies measuring these outcomes. Few studies examined neurobiological and behavioral mechanisms, and we were unable to draw conclusions regarding their role in enhancing cognitive and mental health.

show abstract

Section: Summary Of Conceptual Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical Activity for Cognitive and Mental Health in Youth: A Systematic Review of Mechanisms

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, learning outcomes were not measured in this study. In a review, Best (2010) concludes that aerobic exercise can have direct and beneficial effects on executive function, which is crucial for enhancing cognitive development and learning in early childhood.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Integrated Physical Exercises and Gestures on Preschool Children’s Foreign Language Vocabulary Learning

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Research suggests that integrating human movement into a cognitive learning task can be effective for learning due to its cognitive and physiological effects. In this study, the learning effects of enacting words through whole-body movements (i.e., physical exercise) and part-body movements (i.e., gestures) were investigated in a foreign language vocabulary task. Participants were 111 preschool children of 15 childcare centers, who were randomly assigned to one of four conditions. Participants had to learn 14 Italian words in a 4-week teaching program. They were tested on their memory for the words during, directly after, and 6 weeks after the program. In the integrated physical exercise condition, children enacted the actions indicated by the words to be learned in physical exercises. In the non-integrated physical exercise condition children performed physical exercises at the same intensity, but unrelated to the learning task. In the gesturing condition, children enacted the actions indicated by the words to be learned by gesturing while remaining seated. In the conventional condition, children verbally repeated the words while remaining seated. Results confirmed the main hypothesis, indicating that children in the integrated physical exercise condition achieved the highest learning outcomes. Implications of integrated physical exercise programs for preschool children's cognition and health are discussed. AbstractResearch suggests that integrating human movement into a cognitive learning task can

show abstract

“…10, No. 8;2016 reliability coefficients of its subscales by way of retest after five weeks were as reported in the following Table and via factorial analysis, the above eleven factorial loads were obtained. Since there are one independent variable and several dependent variables and because the effects of the pretest have been modified, the statistical test of Multivariate covariance analysis (MANCOVA) was applied.…”

Section: Research Toolsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In fact, via training in the active memory, one can stimulate areas in the brain being related with this memory (Takeuchi et al, 2010). Thus, given the significance of executive functions and the issue of cognitive abilities and the active memory of children, today, numerous ways such as movement based and rhythmic games (Dehghani et al, 2012), self-regulation training (Beiramil, 2012), training of movement-mental skills (Zeid Abadi Nezhad et al, 2013), cognitive rehabilitation (2012), psychological-educational interventions (2010), movement actives (Best, 2010) could be used for empowering children in this area. One of the programs whose effectiveness can be examined on executive functions and cognitive abilities is Sternberg's successful intelligence program.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Examination of the Effectiveness of Sternberg's Successful Intelligence Program on Executive Functions of Sharp-Witted Primary School Level Students

Malekpour¹,

Shooshtari²,

Abedi³

et al. 2016

MAS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The current research aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Sternberg's successful intelligence program on executive functions of sharp-witted primary school level students. The statistical universe of the current research consisted of all male sharp-witted students of the city of Isfahan in the educational year of 2015-2016. For this purpose, the number of 30 male sharp-witted students was selected through multi stage cluster random sampling method and was randomly placed in two experimental and control groups (15 people in the experiment group and another 15 in the control group) and their mothers, too responded to the questions of the executive skills scale. The Sternberg's successful intelligence program was administered on the experimental group. The tool used for this research included a questionnaire (inventory) on rating executive functions for the primary school level students (parent form). To analyze the research data, multivariate covariance analysis (MANCOVA) was applied. Findings revealed that training of the Sternberg's successful intelligence program was effective on executive functions (response inhibition, active memory, emotional control, focus attention, assignment initiation, planning, organizing, time leadership, goal-orientedness, resilience and metacognition) of sharp-witted children. The Sternberg's successful intelligence program could be applied as an intervention method for improving executive functions of children.

show abstract

Effects of physical activity on children’s executive function: Contributions of experimental research on aerobic exercise

Cited by 749 publications

References 107 publications

Physical Activity for Cognitive and Mental Health in Youth: A Systematic Review of Mechanisms

Physical Activity for Cognitive and Mental Health in Youth: A Systematic Review of Mechanisms

Effects of Integrated Physical Exercises and Gestures on Preschool Children’s Foreign Language Vocabulary Learning

Examination of the Effectiveness of Sternberg's Successful Intelligence Program on Executive Functions of Sharp-Witted Primary School Level Students

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About