The effects of an acute exercise on executive function in Chinese undergraduate students
Zhanshuang Bai1,2, Yuanqi Huang3, Linjun Li1
1School of Tourism and Sports Health, Hezhou University, Hezhou, China.
Introduction:
Previous studies have shown that acute exercise may be associated with short-term changes in executive function. However, executive function is a multidimensional construct, and it remains unclear whether acute exercise influences specific components, including inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility. Therefore, the present study aimed to examine the effects of acute exercise on executive function in undergraduate students.
Methods:
Forty-four undergraduate students were recruited and randomly assigned to a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) group, a moderate-intensity exercise (MIAE) group, or a Control group. Participants in the exercise groups completed an acute exercise, whereas those in the Control group remained in a non-exercise resting condition. Executive function was assessed using cognitive tasks targeting inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility. All participants completed the cognitive tasks before and after the intervention.
Results:
Analysis revealed no significant Time × Group interaction effects for either inhibitory control or working memory. For cognitive flexibility, the Time × Group interaction was significant, and both exercise groups exhibited enhanced performance, whereas the Control group did not show similar improvements.
Discussion:
These findings are generally consistent with previous evidence suggesting that acute exercise may be associated with changes in executive function. The observed patterns in cognitive flexibility may indicate a potential selective association with certain components of executive function. Although some positive trends were observed in specific aspects of executive function among undergraduate students, these changes were not consistently specific to the exercise conditions. In particular, significant Group × Time interactions were observed only for cognitive flexibility, while no significant interaction effects were found for inhibitory control or working memory. Therefore, descriptive results should be interpreted cautiously.
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