Contribution of underlying processes to improved visuospatial working memory associated with physical activity.

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Exercise Science
• Human Performance

Background:

• Working memory is crucial for cognition, comprising storage and manipulation stages.
• Physical activity (PA) is linked to improved working memory, with males often outperforming females in visuospatial tasks.
• The specific impact of PA on distinct working memory stages remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between physical activity levels and visuospatial working memory.
• To determine if PA affects the storage or manipulation stages of working memory.
• To explore potential sex differences in these effects.

Main Methods:

• 56 undergraduates were categorized into lower or higher PA groups based on the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ).
• Participants completed tasks assessing visuospatial working memory, short-term memory storage, and mental rotation (manipulation).

Main Results:

• Higher PA participants showed faster reaction times in visuospatial working memory and manipulation tasks, with no accuracy differences.
• No significant differences were found between PA groups in the short-term memory storage task.
• No sex-based differences were observed in any task performance.

Conclusions:

• Physical activity positively influences visuospatial working memory, primarily by enhancing cognitive processing speed in the manipulation stage.
• PA's benefits appear concentrated in the manipulation component, with minimal impact on the memory storage stage.
• The study did not find evidence of sex differences in the relationship between PA and visuospatial working memory stages.