Aerobic Fitness and Response Variability in Preadolescent Children Performing a Cognitive Control Task

Overview

Journal Neuropsychology

Publisher American Psychological Association

Specialty Neurology

Date 2011 Mar 30

PMID 21443340

Citations 38

Authors

Chien-Ting Wu

Matthew B Pontifex

Lauren B Raine

Laura Chaddock

Michelle W Voss

Arthur F Kramer

Charles H Hillman

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the relationship between aerobic fitness and cognitive variability in preadolescent children.

Method: Forty-eight preadolescent children (25 males, 23 females, mean age = 10.1 years) were grouped into higher- and lower-fit groups according to their performance on a test of aerobic capacity (VO2max). Cognitive function was measured via behavioral responses to a modified flanker task. The distribution in reaction time was calculated within each participant to assess intraindividual variability of performance. Specifically, the standard deviation and coefficient variation of reaction time were used to represent cognitive variability.

Results: Preadolescent children, regardless of fitness, exhibited longer reaction time, increased response variability, and decreased response accuracy to incongruent compared to congruent trials. Further, higher-fit children were less variable in their response time and more accurate in their responses across conditions of the flanker task, while no group differences were observed for response speed.

Conclusion: These findings suggest that fitness is associated with better cognitive performance during a task that varies cognitive control demands, and extends this area of research to suggest that intraindividual variability may be a useful measure to examine the relationship between fitness and cognition during preadolescence.

Citing Articles

Cognitive benefits of higher cardiorespiratory fitness in preadolescent children are associated with increased connectivity within the cingulo-opercular network.

Ligeza T, Raine L, Pontifex M, Wyczesany M, Kramer A, Hillman C Sci Rep. 2024; 14(1):21193.

PMID: 39261550 PMC: 11390878. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-72074-y.

Executive function and spatial abilities in physically active children: an explorative study.

Passarello N, Turriziani P, Lucidi F, Mandolesi L BMC Psychol. 2024; 12(1):325.

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Siersbaek G, Have M, Wedderkopp N Children (Basel). 2022; 9(10).

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Effects of the Type of Sports Practice on the Executive Functions of Schoolchildren.

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Anthropometric Parameters, Physical Activity, Physical Fitness, and Executive Functions among Primary School Children.

Contreras-Osorio F, Guzman-Guzman I, Cerda-Vega E, Chirosa-Rios L, Ramirez-Campillo R, Campos-Jara C Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022; 19(5).

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