Association between tennis training experience and executive function in children aged 8-12

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Sports Science

Background:

• Cognitively engaging activities can improve children's executive functions.
• Limited research exists on the dose-response relationship between physical activity and executive functions in children.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between tennis training duration and executive functions in children.
• To explore how different durations of tennis experience impact inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility, and working memory.

Main Methods:

• Sixty children (8-12 years) were divided into short-term (<12 months) and long-term (>12 months) tennis training groups.
• Executive functions were assessed using the Stop-signal, Switching, and N-back tasks.
• Performance metrics included accuracy and reaction time for each task.

Main Results:

• No significant differences were found in inhibitory control (Stop-signal task) between groups.
• The long-term group showed faster reaction times in the Switching task (cognitive flexibility) compared to the short-term group.
• The short-term group exhibited longer reaction times in the N-back task (working memory) compared to the long-term group.

Conclusions:

• Children with over one year of tennis training demonstrate enhanced cognitive flexibility and working memory.
• Tennis experience is positively associated with improved executive functions, particularly cognitive flexibility and working memory.