Abstract
The objective of this paper was to evaluate the relationship between physical exercise and physical fitness with cognitive and psychosocial functioning in a group of adolescents. 167 teenagers between 14 and 15 years old (M = 14.53; SD = 0.50) from the city of Malaga (Spain) participated in the study. This research used a comparative and predictive type of design. The Tanita® Body Composition Monitor BC-601, some Eurofit battery tests, the D2 Attention Test, the WISC-IV Scale Symbols and Keys tests, the Form 5 Self-Concept Questionnaire (AF5), the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE) and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) were used to evaluate the study variables. The results found in this research pointed to a positive relationship between physical exercise and physical fitness with cognitive and psychosocial functioning in the adolescents analyzed. For example, adolescents who practiced more physical exercise had better scores on variables such as selective attention (p < 0.001; η2 = 0.10), processing speed (p < 0.001; η2 = 0.09) or general self-efficacy (p < 0.001; η2 = 0.15). In addition, cardiorespiratory fitness was the best predictor of test scores to assess cognitive ability and psychosocial variables. These findings suggest the need to promote physical exercise among young people because of its implications for various facets of their health and development
Highlights
Numerous studies have supported the health benefits of regular physical activity and exercise [1,2]
There has been a notable increase in studies that have analyzed the link between physical exercise and cognitive functioning for this age group [6,7]
With the purpose of analyzing the relationship between these variables, and given that few studies have addressed all of them together, the objective of this research was to analyze the relationship between physical exercise and physical fitness with cognitive and psychosocial functioning in an adolescent sample
Summary
Numerous studies have supported the health benefits of regular physical activity (any movement that requires energy expenditure) and exercise (physical activity that is planned, structured and repetitive) [1,2]. Recent research has indicated that children and adolescents should perform physical exercise of intensity and volume from moderate to high, which only occurs in a low percentage of the population [5]. There has been a notable increase in studies that have analyzed the link between physical exercise and cognitive functioning for this age group [6,7]. In the set of studies carried out, those that have highlighted positive relationships of physical exercise with cognitive abilities, such as attention and concentration, processing speed, cognitive functioning or language, stand out [7,8,9,10,11].
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