Effects of physical activity breaks on cognitive function in undergraduate students: a pilot study

Physical activity is known to have several cognitive benefits. As a result, many teachers introduce short bouts of physical activity (active breaks) during their lessons. However, active breaks are less common in the university context, where students tend to remain passive during lessons. Therefore...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cogent social sciences 2024-12, Vol.10 (1)
Main Authors: Pastor-Vicedo, Juan Carlos, León, María Pilar, González-Fernández, Francisco Tomás, Prieto-Ayuso, Alejandro
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acute physical activity
Cognitive functioning
College students
Exercise
exercise breaks
Higher Education
Physical activity
physical education
Pier Luigi Sacco, Humanities, IULM University, Milano, Italy
Pilot projects
sustained attention
Teachers
Teachers & Teacher Education
Undergraduate students
undergraduates
Vigilance
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Summary:Physical activity is known to have several cognitive benefits. As a result, many teachers introduce short bouts of physical activity (active breaks) during their lessons. However, active breaks are less common in the university context, where students tend to remain passive during lessons. Therefore, there is a paucity of literature on active breaks and their benefits for undergraduate students. This study aimed to investigate the effects of a 10-min active break at moderate intensity on vigilance in undergraduate students by using a psychomotor vigilance task. Twenty-six undergraduate students (M age  = 23.36, SD = 1.98; 53.8% females) participated in this study and performed two conditions: control condition (passive condition) and experimental condition (active break). Results revealed that after receiving 10 min of moderate-intensity physical activity, the students improved their attention, as they responded faster to the psychomotor vigilance task than in the control condition. Considering these results, it seems that students can benefit from physical activity breaks by improving their vigilance. However, as this conclusion is based on a pilot study, we should be cautious in interpreting these results. Further research into this finding is needed.
ISSN:2331-1886
2331-1886
DOI:10.1080/23311886.2024.2326692