The impacts of coordinative exercise on executive function in kindergarten children: An ERP study

Yu Kai Chang, Yu Jung Tsai, Tai Ting Chen, Tsung Min Hung*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

155 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This study examined the behavioral and neuroelectrical impacts of a coordinative exercise intervention with different exercise intensities on executive function in kindergarten children. Participants underwent the Eriksen flanker test before and after an exercise program that involved 35-min sessions twice per week for 8 weeks, with either low or moderate intensity. Our findings revealed that exercise intervention, regardless of intensity, resulted in shorter reaction times and higher response accuracy in both congruent and incongruent trials, with incongruent trials receiving a larger benefit from exercise compared with congruent trials. Additionally, neuroelectrical activation demonstrated greater P3 amplitude and shorter P3 latency following exercise in both trials. These results suggest that coordinative exercise may specifically benefit prefrontal-dependent tasks in the immature brain state of kindergarten children by increasing the allocation of attentional resources and enhancing the efficiency of neurocognitive processing.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)187-196
Number of pages10
JournalExperimental Brain Research
Volume225
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2013 Mar

Keywords

  • Executive control
  • Fitness
  • Inhibition
  • P3
  • Physical activity

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Neuroscience

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