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In cognitive science, there has recently been increasing attention to the relationship between sports expertise and working memory. However, to date, no meta-analysis has compared the working memory performance of athletes and non-athletes. The Active Mind group at the Department of Psychology, University of Jyväskylä, conducted a study to broadly compare the working memory performance of the two groups. They also investigated the role of factors such as the type of sport and performance level on the results.
The working memory advantage for athletes over non-athletes was found across different types of sports and performance levels. Interestingly, this advantage was more pronounced when athletes were contrasted with a sedentary population, compared to the analysis where the sedentary population was excluded from the non-athlete reference group. Doctoral researcher Chenxiao Wu states that most of the studies included in this meta-analysis were well-conducted, with a low risk of bias, and no signs of publication bias.
These findings show that there is a consistent association between sports and better working memory performance, while a sedentary lifestyle appears to be associated with poorer working memory. Piia Astikainen, associate professor and leader of the research team, says their group has previously studied the effects of aging on cognitive function and brain function and found that a physically active lifestyle can partly mitigate the negative effects of aging on these. The current results in athletes add to the evidence supporting the benefits of sports on human cognition and highlight the importance of physical activity in promoting brain health.
The study is part of the SportsFace project and the PhD research of Chenxiao Wu supervised by associate professor Piia Astikainen. The SportsFace project aims to explore the effects of sports on cognitive function and face perception using electrophysiological and behavioral performance measures. The findings will further our understanding of the relationship between sports, working memory and social cognition.