scholarly journals No effects of a long-term physical activity intervention on executive functioning among adolescents

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 205031211988073 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas Sjöwall ◽  
Lisa B Thorell ◽  
Mirko Mandic ◽  
Maria Westerståhl
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Executive Functioning ◽  
Cognitive Flexibility ◽  
Physical Activity Intervention ◽  
Control School ◽  
Aerobic Activity ◽  
School Year ◽  
Memory Inhibition

Objectives: We investigated whether a school-based physical activity intervention would lead to improvements in working memory, inhibition and cognitive flexibility in adolescents aged 13–15 years. Methods: The adolescents at the active school ( n = 108) participated in an intervention that included increased physical activity for 20 min/day, focused on aerobic activity with low cognitive demands for an entire school year. The adolescents at the control school ( n = 59) received no extra physical activity. At the beginning (baseline) and end (follow-up) of the school year, the participants performed tests of executive function (working memory, inhibition and cognitive flexibility) and performed tests of physical fitness and health. Results: There was no change in executive functioning at follow-up when comparing the schools. However, only 46% complied with the intervention. When non-compliers were excluded from the analyses, the results remained the same, except for a small but significant increase in working memory for the active school as compared to the control school. Conclusion: These results indicate that compliance with the intervention was low and that aerobic exercise with low cognitive load does not produce improvements in executive functioning.

Longitudinal Associations Between Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Development of Executive Functioning Across the Transition to First Grade

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 895-902 ◽  
Author(s):  
Loren Vandenbroucke ◽  
Jan Seghers ◽  
Karine Verschueren ◽  
Anne I. Wijtzes ◽  
Dieter Baeyens
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Executive Functioning ◽  
Executive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Flexibility ◽  
First Grade ◽  
Central Executive ◽  
Daily Physical Activity ◽  
Physically Active ◽  
Visuospatial Sketchpad

Background:The current study investigates how children’s amount of daily physical activity relates to subcomponents of executive functions, the cognitive processes needed for goal-directed behavior. Previous studies rarely determined this association at the subcomponent level and did not explicitly examine the period when children make the transition to first grade, despite its importance for the development of executive functions.Methods:In a sample of 54 children, working memory, inhibition, and cognitive flexibility were thoroughly measured at the subcomponent level at the end of kindergarten and first grade. In the middle of first grade, children wore a pedometer for 7 consecutive days.Results:Regression analyses showed that performance on a measure of the visuospatial sketchpad, the central executive, and fluency was predicted by children’s amount of daily physical activity after controlling for initial task performance.Conclusions:The development of the visuospatial sketchpad (working memory), the central executive (working memory), and fluency (cognitive flexibility) might be improved by increasing the amount of time being physically active. However, as other subcomponents of executive functioning were not affected, the role of other aspects of physical activity, such as intensity and content, in the development of executive functions should be further investigated.

scholarly journals Children’s Weight Gain and Cardiovascular Fitness Loss over the Summer

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 2770 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Brusseau ◽  
Ryan Burns
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Physical Activity Intervention ◽  
Cardiovascular Fitness ◽  
The Body ◽  
School Year ◽  
School Based ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Physical Activity Programming ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health Related Fitness

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of summer breaks on the body composition and cardiovascular fitness of elementary school children who participated in a multi-year school-based physical activity intervention. Participants were 404 children who had their height and weight measured and completed the Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER) during physical education classes at the beginning and end of the school year for three consecutive years. To examine the effects of time on health-related fitness data, general linear mixed effects models were employed. The results indicate that there was a trend toward an increase in body mass index (BMI) after the summer of 2015 (p = 0.958), and a significant increase in BMI after the summer of 2016 compared to time point 1 (p < 0.001). For PACER laps, there were trends toward decreases in PACER laps after the summers of 2015 (p = 0.515) and 2016 (p = 0.073). Summer breaks tended to attenuate the BMI and PACER lap improvements that were observed during the intervention. While school-based physical activity programming has had some successes in improving health-related fitness markers, the loss of these improvements over the summer is of concern to both practitioners and researchers. It is clear that additional efforts are needed to limit obesogenic behaviors during the summer months.

scholarly journals Executive functioning as a predictive measure of offending behaviour

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karin A. Spenser ◽  
Ray Bull ◽  
Lucy Betts ◽  
Belinda Winder
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Executive Functioning ◽  
Moral Reasoning ◽  
Inhibitory Control ◽  
Cognitive Flexibility ◽  
Screening Tests ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Empathic Understanding ◽  
The Impact

PurposeProsociality is considered important in the study of offenders and associated cognitive skills: theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning, are said to enable self-control and reduce the risk of offending behaviours. Previous research has made associations between these skills and executive functioning; however, research into a link between them, in an offending population, is limited. The paper aims to discuss this issue.Design/methodology/approachTo further understand the practicalities of this, the present study considered the predictive abilities of the constructs believed to underpin executive functioning: working memory, cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control, in relation to theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning. In total, 200 male and female offenders completed measures in all six constructs.FindingsUsing path analysis working memory was demonstrated to be predictive of theory of mind and empathic understanding, cognitive flexibility was found to be predictive of theory of mind, and inhibitory control was found to be predictive of theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focussed on offenders serving a custodial sentence of six months or less and did not differentiate between crime categories or take into consideration the socio-environmental backgrounds or ethnicity. Therefore, considering these things could further establish the generalisability of the current findings. It is noted that the more focussed the intervention is to the specific needs of an offender, the greater the impact will be. Therefore, pre-screening tests for the constructs discussed may be able to more accurately assess an offenders’ suitability for a programme, or indeed tailor it to meet the specific needs of that person.Practical implicationsThese findings may enable practitioners to more accurately assess offenders’ suitability for interventions aimed at reducing offending behaviours by improving levels of prosociality and develop more focussed programmes to meet the specific needs of individual offenders to reduce re-offending.Social implicationsAs recommended in the study, a more tailored approach to offender rehabilitation may be a potential aid to reducing levels of recidivism.Originality/valueThe present study adds to the literature as it is the first to consider whether the constructs of executive functioning can predict levels of theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning and so provide a more accurate method in assessing the cognitive abilities of offenders prior to participation in rehabilitative interventions.

scholarly journals Physical activity intervention for rural middle-aged and older Australian adults: A pilot implementation study of the ecofit program delivered in a real-world setting

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Wilczynska ◽  
Anna K Jansson ◽  
David R Lubans ◽  
Jordan J Smith ◽  
Sara L Robards ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Physical Activity Intervention ◽  
Functional Mobility ◽  
Lower Body ◽  
Muscular Fitness ◽  
Municipal Council ◽  
Real World Setting ◽  
Time Point

Abstract Background: ecofit is an evidence-based multi-component physical activity intervention that integrates smartphone technology, the outdoor environment and social support. In a previous efficacy trial, significant improvements were found across several clinical, fitness, and mental health outcomes among adults at risk of (or with) type 2 diabetes. Methods: The aim of the present pilot study was to evaluate a number of health-related and feasibility outcomes of the ecofit intervention in a ‘real-world’ setting, using a scalable implementation model. ecofit was adapted and implemented by a rural municipal council in the Upper Hunter Shire, New South Wales, Australia and evaluated using a single-group pre-post design. Inactive middle-aged and older adults (N=59) were recruited and assessed at 6- (primary time-point) and 20-weeks (follow-up). Results: Improvements were found in this predominantly overweight and obese sample for aerobic fitness, functional mobility, upper and lower body muscular fitness, systolic blood pressure and waist circumference at 6-weeks. At 20-weeks, effects were found for aerobic fitness, functional mobility, upper and lower body muscular fitness, and systolic blood pressure. Overall, participants were satisfied with the ecofit program. Participants attended the 6-week primary time-point (66.1%) and follow-up at 20-weeks (41.6%). Conclusions: Our findings support the preliminary effectiveness and feasibility of the ecofit intervention delivered by municipal council staff following a brief training from the research team. This study provides valuable preliminary evidence to support of a larger implementation trial.

scholarly journals User Engagement and Attrition in an App-Based Physical Activity Intervention: Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Edney ◽  
Jillian C Ryan ◽  
Tim Olds ◽  
Courtney Monroe ◽  
François Fraysse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Mixed Models ◽  
Physical Activity Intervention ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
User Engagement ◽  
User Characteristics ◽  
Objectively Measured ◽  
Objectively Measured Physical Activity ◽  
Super Users

BACKGROUND The success of a mobile phone app in changing health behavior is thought to be contingent on engagement, commonly operationalized as frequency of use. OBJECTIVE This subgroup analysis of the 2 intervention arms from a 3-group randomized controlled trial aimed to examine user engagement with a 100-day physical activity intervention delivered via an app. Rates of engagement, associations between user characteristics and engagement, and whether engagement was related to intervention efficacy were examined. METHODS Engagement was captured in a real-time log of interactions by users randomized to either a gamified (n=141) or nongamified version of the same app (n=160). Physical activity was assessed via accelerometry and self-report at baseline and 3-month follow-up. Survival analysis was used to assess time to nonuse attrition. Mixed models examined associations between user characteristics and engagement (total app use). Characteristics of super users (top quartile of users) and regular users (lowest 3 quartiles) were compared using <italic>t</italic> tests and a chi-square analysis. Linear mixed models were used to assess whether being a super user was related to change in physical activity over time. RESULTS Engagement was high. Attrition (30 days of nonuse) occurred in 32% and 39% of the gamified and basic groups, respectively, with no significant between-group differences in time to attrition (<italic>P</italic>=.17). Users with a body mass index (BMI) in the healthy range had higher total app use (mean 230.5, 95% CI 190.6-270.5; <italic>F</italic><sub>2</sub>=8.67; <italic>P</italic>&lt;.001), compared with users whose BMI was overweight or obese (mean 170.6, 95% CI 139.5-201.6; mean 132.9, 95% CI 104.8-161.0). Older users had higher total app use (mean 200.4, 95% CI 171.9-228.9; <italic>F</italic><sub>1</sub>=6.385; <italic>P</italic>=.01) than younger users (mean 155.6, 95% CI 128.5-182.6). Super users were 4.6 years older (t<sub>297</sub>=3.6; <italic>P</italic>&lt;.001) and less likely to have a BMI in the obese range (χ<sup>2</sup><sub>2</sub>=15.1; <italic>P</italic>&lt;.001). At the 3-month follow-up, super users were completing 28.2 (95% CI 9.4-46.9) more minutes of objectively measured physical activity than regular users (<italic>F</italic><sub>1,272</sub>=4.76; <italic>P</italic>=.03). CONCLUSIONS Total app use was high across the 100-day intervention period, and the inclusion of gamified features enhanced engagement. Participants who engaged the most saw significantly greater increases to their objectively measured physical activity over time, supporting the theory that intervention exposure is linked to efficacy. Further research is needed to determine whether these findings are replicated in other app-based interventions, including those experimentally evaluating engagement and those conducted in real-world settings.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document