The Effects of an 8-Week School-Based Basketball Intervention on Executive Function in Adolescents with Depression

Comparative efficacy of different interventions on executive function in adolescents with internet use disorder

This study was to investigate the developmental characteristics of executive function (EF) in obese adolescents and the time-course effects of a 14-week exercise intervention combining aerobic exercise and resistance training on EF in this population. The experimental group of 28 obese junior high school students participated in the exercise intervention combining aerobic exercise and resistance training, while the control group of 24 healthy weight junior high school students engaged in the regular recess exercise. EF, including inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility, was assessed 1 week prior to the exercise intervention and at 12 and 14 weeks post-intervention. Changes in EF sub-functions in both groups at different time points during the exercise intervention were analyzed. The findings revealed that obese junior high school students exhibited lower levels of inhibition (p = 0.003, Cohen's d = 0.848) and cognitive flexibility (p = 0.013, Cohen's d = 0.706) compared to their healthy weight peers. The exercise intervention combining aerobic exercise and resistance training led to significant improvements in EF among obese junior high school students, with inhibition (p < 0.01, Cohen's d = 0.713; p = 0.003, Cohen's d = 0.683) and cognitive flexibility (p = 0.001, Cohen's d = 0.797; p < 0.01, Cohen's d = 0.890) showing significant improvement at 12 and 14 weeks post-intervention, and working memory demonstrating significant improvement at 14 weeks (p = 0.004, Cohen's d = 0.710). No significant differences were observed in EF over time in healthy weight junior high school students. Obese adolescents had impaired EF, as evidenced by low levels of the inhibition and cognitive flexibility compared to healthy weight adolescents. The exercise intervention combining aerobic exercise and resistance training had a positive effect on EF of obese adolescents. The time-course effects of the intervention on improvements in inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility varied with intervention duration in obese adolescents, with significant changes in inhibition and cognitive flexibility observed at 12 weeks and significant changes in working memory at 14 weeks.

Institutional rearing negatively impacts the development of children's social skills and executive functions (EF). However, little is known about whether childhood social skills mediate the effects of the foster care intervention (FCG) and foster caregiving quality following early institutional rearing on EF and social skills in adolescence. We examined (a) whether children's social skills at 8 years mediate the impact of the FCG on the development of EF at ages 12 and 16 years, and (b) whether social skills and EF at ages 8 and 12 mediate the relation between caregiving quality in foster care at 42 months and subsequent social skills and EF at age 16. Participants included abandoned children from Romanian institutions, who were randomly assigned to a FCG (n=68) or care as usual (n=68), and a never-institutionalized group (n=135). At ages 8, 12, and 16, social skills were assessed via caregiver and teacher reports and EF were assessed via the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery. Caregiving quality of foster caregivers was observed at 42 months. FCG predicted better social skills at 8 years, which in turn predicted better EF in adolescence. Higher caregiver quality in foster care at 42 months predicted better social skills at 8 and 12 years, and better EF at 12 years, which in turn predicted 16-year EF and social skills. These findings suggest that interventions targeting caregiving quality within foster care home environments may have long-lasting positive effects on children's social skills and EF.

Previous studies have shown that aerobic exercise has beneficial effects on executive function in adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The underlying mechanisms could be partially due to aerobic exercise-induced cortical excitability modulation. The aim of this study was to explore the effects of acute aerobic exercise on executive functions and cortical excitability and the association between these phenomena in adolescents with ADHD. The study was conducted using a complete crossover design. Executive functions (inhibitory control, working memory, and planning) and cortical excitability were assessed in twenty-four drug-naïve adolescents with ADHD before and after acute aerobic exercise or a control intervention. Inhibitory control, working memory, and planning improved after acute aerobic exercise in adolescents with ADHD. Moreover, cortical excitability monitored by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) decreased after intervention in this population. Additionally, improvements in inhibitory control and working memory performance were associated with enhanced cortical inhibition. The findings provide indirect preliminary evidence for the assumption that changes in cortical excitability induced by aerobic exercise partially contribute to improvements in executive function in adolescents with ADHD.

The divergent impact of catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) Val158Met genetic polymorphisms on executive function in adolescents with discrete patterns of childhood adversity

Background: Executive function (EF) is an important component of cognitive function, referring to a higher-level cognitive process that coordinates and controls various basic cognitive processes when completing complex cognitive tasks. It includes three sub-functions: inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility. Globally, high rates of overweight and obesity remain a public health issue. Previous studies have shown that, compared to adolescents with healthy weight, adolescents with obesity have poorer inhibitory function in EF. In addition, the effectiveness of the exercise intervention is seen in the normal adolescent population as well as in special adolescents with poor EF. However, there have been few studies on exercise interventions for EF in adolescents with obesity, and the characteristics of time-course changes are unclear. Methods: 28 junior high school students with obesity were screened as the experimental group and 24 junior high school students with normal weight were randomly selected as the control group. The experimental group used a 14-week aerobic combined with resistance training exercise intervention, and the control group carried out the regular classroom exercise content. The three sub-functions of inhibition, refreshing, and switching of the obese and normal junior high school students were measured before the intervention, 12 weeks after the intervention, and 14 weeks after the intervention. Results: The results showed that: 1) Junior high school students with obesity had lower levels of inhibition (t (50) = 3.069, p = 0.003, Cohen's d = 0.848) and cognitive flexibility (t (50) = 2.600, p = 0.013, Cohen's d = 0.292) than healthy weight junior high school students. 2) The aerobic exercise combined with resistance training exercise intervention had positive benefits on EF in junior high school students with obesity. The inhibition (p &lt; 0.01, p = 0.003) and cognitive flexibility (p = 0.001, p &lt; 0.01) at 14 and 12 weeks of intervention were significantly better than the pretest, and the working memory (p = 0.004) at 14 weeks of intervention was significantly better than that at pretest. There were no significant differences between the time points (p &gt; 0.05) of EF in healthy weight junior high school students. Conclusion: The study concluded that adolescents with obesity have lower levels of inhibition and cognitive flexibility than healthy weight adolescents, and the time-course effects of the improvement effects of inhibition, updating of working memory, and cognitive flexibility vary with the intervention time in adolescents with obesity.

The study aimed to elucidate the influence of cognitive engagement comprised in an acute bout of exergame-based physical activity on executive functions (inhibition, cognitive flexibility) in adolescents. Therefore, the level of cognitive engagement and the intensity of physical activity were systematically varied across three experimental conditions. Sixty-five healthy male adolescents (13–16 years) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (a) physical activity with high levels of cognitive engagement during active video gaming, (b) physical activity with low levels of cognitive engagement during active video gaming, (c) sedentary with low levels of cognitive engagement during passive video watching. Manipulation checks, including subjective and objective operationalizations of cognitive engagement, were applied. Executive functions were assessed before and after each condition using the D-KEFS design fluency test. Results showed that cognitive engagement, operationalized by subjects’ ratings and heart rate variability, differed between conditions. The physical activity condition with a high level of cognitive engagement resulted in significantly better performance in cognitive flexibility compared to conditions with low levels of cognitive engagement. Regarding benefits for executive functions in male adolescents, the results indicate that acute physical activity with high cognitive engagement could be more efficient than physical activity of the same intensity with low cognitive engagement. Even though further evidence is needed, these results extend previous research and suggest a methodological approach for measuring cognitive engagement.

A-042 Incongruence Between Self- and Parent- Report Measures of Executive Function on the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) in Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Effects of the special olympics unified sports soccer training program on executive function in adolescents with intellectual disabilities

To propose a new model outlining a hypothesized cyclical relation between executive functioning, emotional regulation, and chronic pain in adolescence and to highlight the likely importance of such a relation for self-management behavior and pain-related disability. A review of the existing literature that critically explores the role of executive functioning in understanding chronic pain experiences and self-management in adolescence in order to develop the Cyclical model Of Pain, Executive function, emotion regulation, and Self-management (COPES). Growing evidence points towards a potential cyclical relation between chronic pain and impaired executive functioning, which forms the basis of COPES. The COPES model proposes that the relative immaturity of executive functioning in adolescence negatively influences their ability to engage with self-management, which in turn increases adolescents' disability due to pain and contributes to the maintenance of chronic pain, which perpetuates the reduced capacity of executive functioning. The moderating influence of flexible parental support is hypothesized to offset some of these influences. However, the available evidence is limited due to methodological shortcomings such as large variety in executive functioning operationalization, reliance on self-report and cross-sectional designs. It is anticipated that the COPES model will stimulate more systematic, theory-driven research to further our understanding of the links between executive functioning, chronic pain, self-management, and wellbeing. Such enhanced understanding has the potential to drive forward intervention development and refinement aimed at improving self-management uptake and adherence amongst adolescents with chronic pain.

ObjectiveThis study examined the relationship between intelligence and executive functions (EF) in adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder without intellectual disability (ASD-WID), focusing on the roles of IQ level, sex differences, and comparisons with typically developing (TD) peers matched for age and IQ.MethodsA total of 214 participants (118 ASD, 96 TD; aged 12–18 years) were assessed with the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) and the Color Trails Test (CTT) as measures of planning, cognitive flexibility, and attentional switching. Cognitive ability was assessed using the WISC-R or WAIS-R, yielding full-scale IQ and three cognitive factors: Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Reasoning, and Working Memory/Resistance to Distractors. Four subgroups (ASD/TD × high/low IQ) were created. Because multiple variables deviated from normality, non-parametric statistics were applied, including Mann–Whitney U tests for group comparisons and Spearman’s rho correlations for associations between IQ indices and EF measures.ResultsNo overall EF differences were found between the ASD and TD groups when matched for age and full-scale IQ. Within the ASD group, higher IQ was associated with better planning and cognitive flexibility on the WCST, but not with attentional switching on the CTT; the same pattern appeared in TD adolescents. High-IQ ASD and high-IQ TD adolescents performed comparably on EF measures, suggesting possible compensatory mechanisms in ASD-WID. In contrast, ASD adolescents with lower IQ showed more perseverative errors than TD peers with similar IQ. Across the entire sample (ASD + TD combined), boys scored higher in perceptual reasoning than girls; however, no sex differences were found when analyses were conducted within the ASD group alone, indicating that the observed effect of sex was driven by the TD subgroup rather than by adolescents with ASD. Perceptual reasoning and non-verbal IQ were the strongest correlates of EF performance.ConclusionIntelligence—especially perceptual reasoning—plays a key role in EF outcomes in adolescents with and without ASD. High IQ may buffer EF difficulties in ASD-WID, whereas lower IQ is linked to greater executive control difficulties. These findings highlight the need for assessment and interventions tailored to individual cognitive profiles, rather than diagnostic status alone.

Poor sleep may heighten adolescent risk-taking and impair executive functioning (EF). Circadian misalignment (CM)-the gap between internal circadian timing and 24-h behavioural cycles-might also impact EF and risk-taking. However, the link between circadian factors and EF/risk-taking remains underexplored. This study investigates the relationships between sleep duration, circadian timing, morningness/eveningness preference and CM with adolescent EF and risk-taking behaviour. Participants (N = 52), aged 14-18, provided demographic information and completed the Morningness/Eveningness Questionnaire and Pubertal Development Scale. They wore Actiwatches for 11 days and attended a dim-light melatonin onset (DLMO) appointment, completing the Youth Risk Behavior Survey and Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function. Independent samples t-tests compared EF and risk-taking across four sleep health aspects: circadian timing (DLMO), morningness/eveningness preference, CM, and sleep duration. Evening preference significantly predicted higher risk-taking (g = 0.991), worsened EF (g = 0.75) and reduced metacognition and behavioural regulation (g's > 0.60). Inadequate sleep duration trended towards predicting reduced EF and inhibition (g's > 0.55). DLMO and CM were not associated with EF or risk-taking (Hedge's g < 0.5). Eveningness preference and lower sleep duration may increase risky behaviour and worsen EF in adolescents. Future research should explore whether increasing sleep duration and advancing sleep schedule preferences reduce risky behaviour and improve cognitive function.

EPA-0863 - Progression of changes in brain structure and executive functions in children and adolescents with first-episode psychosis

Low-level arsenic exposure, childhood neighborhood disadvantage, and executive functions in adolescents from Montevideo, Uruguay.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between Cognitive Disengagement Syndrome (CDS) symptoms and executive functioning, cognitive flexibility, and psychological flexibility in adolescents diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). A total of 101 adolescents with ADHD were recruited and divided into two groups based on CDS symptom presence, evaluated using the Barkley Child Attention Scale. Participants completed the Cognitive Flexibility Scale and the Psychological Flexibility Scale, while executive functions were assessed using the Stroop TBAG test. Adolescents with CDS symptoms demonstrated significantly lower psychological flexibility compared to those without CDS (p = .022), although cognitive flexibility levels did not differ significantly between groups. Regression analyses revealed that specific sub-dimensions of psychological flexibility-such as Values and Defusion-significantly predicted cognitive flexibility in both groups, but different components stood out across groups. Additionally, mediation analyses showed that cognitive flexibility did not significantly mediate the relationship between CDS status and Stroop 5 performance indicators (errors, corrections, time). However, in the CDS(+) group, higher psychological flexibility was associated with fewer Stroop 5 errors, suggesting a potential protective role in executive functioning. These findings highlight the differential impact of CDS symptoms on psychological flexibility and executive functioning in adolescents with ADHD. They suggest that tailored interventions aimed at enhancing psychological flexibility may improve cognitive outcomes, particularly in individuals exhibiting CDS traits.