Physical Exercise, Fitness, Cognitive Functioning, and Psychosocial Variables in an Adolescent Sample

Rafael E. Reigal, Luna Moral-Campillo, Juan P. Morillo-Baro, Rocío Juárez-Ruiz de Mier, Antonio Hernández-Mendo and Verónica Morales-Sánchez
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Rafael E. Reigal: Faculty of Psychology, University of Malaga, Teatinos Campus, 29071 Malaga, Spain
Luna Moral-Campillo: Faculty of Psychology, University of Malaga, Teatinos Campus, 29071 Malaga, Spain
Juan P. Morillo-Baro: Faculty of Psychology, University of Malaga, Teatinos Campus, 29071 Malaga, Spain
Rocío Juárez-Ruiz de Mier: Faculty of Psychology, University of Malaga, Teatinos Campus, 29071 Malaga, Spain
Antonio Hernández-Mendo: Faculty of Psychology, University of Malaga, Teatinos Campus, 29071 Malaga, Spain
Verónica Morales-Sánchez: Faculty of Psychology, University of Malaga, Teatinos Campus, 29071 Malaga, Spain

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 3, 1-13

Abstract: The objective of this paper was to evaluate the relationship between physical exercise and physical fitness with cognitive and psychosocial functioning in a group of adolescents. 167 teenagers between 14 and 15 years old ( M = 14.53; SD = 0.50) from the city of Malaga (Spain) participated in the study. This research used a comparative and predictive type of design. The Tanita ® Body Composition Monitor BC-601, some Eurofit battery tests, the D2 Attention Test, the WISC-IV Scale Symbols and Keys tests, the Form 5 Self-Concept Questionnaire (AF5), the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE) and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) were used to evaluate the study variables. The results found in this research pointed to a positive relationship between physical exercise and physical fitness with cognitive and psychosocial functioning in the adolescents analyzed. For example, adolescents who practiced more physical exercise had better scores on variables such as selective attention ( p < 0.001; η 2 = 0.10), processing speed ( p < 0.001; η 2 = 0.09) or general self-efficacy ( p < 0.001; η 2 = 0.15). In addition, cardiorespiratory fitness was the best predictor of test scores to assess cognitive ability and psychosocial variables. These findings suggest the need to promote physical exercise among young people because of its implications for various facets of their health and development

Keywords: physical exercise; physical fitness; cognitive functioning; psychosocial well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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