Acute aerobic exercise: an intervention for the selective visual attention and reading comprehension of low-income adolescents

Abstract

There is a need for feasible and research-based interventions that target the cognitive performance and academic achievement of low-income adolescents. In response, this study utilized a randomized experimental design and assessed the selective visual attention (SVA) and reading comprehension abilities of low-income adolescents and, for comparison purposes, high-income adolescents after they engaged in 12-min of aerobic exercise. The results suggest that 12-min of aerobic exercise improved the SVA of low- and high-income adolescents and that the benefit lasted for 45-min for both groups. The SVA improvement among the low-income adolescents was particularly large. In fact, the SVA improvement among the low-income adolescents was substantial enough to eliminate a pre-existing income gap in SVA. The mean reading comprehension score of low-income adolescents who engaged in 12-min of aerobic exercise was higher than the mean reading comprehension score of low-income adolescents in the control group. However, there was no difference between the mean reading comprehension scores of the high-income adolescents who did and did not engage in 12-min of aerobic exercise. Based on the results, schools serving low-income adolescents should consider implementing brief sessions of aerobic exercise during the school day.

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

“…On the one hand, teenagers who engaged in more physical exercise per week had better scores on selective attention, concentration and processing speed. These data are in line with those obtained in other studies, and also suggest that it is necessary to significantly increase physical exercise to improve results [14][15][16]18,19,22]. In fact, a greater difference has been observed between the group with the greatest and least physical exercise, than with the group with the moderate practice.…”

“…Specifically, selective attention and concentration, as well as the speed of cognitive processing, are some of the capacities that have been studied in this age group, observing relations between these abilities and the practice of physical exercise, as well as the level of physical fitness [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22]. In these and other studies that have analyzed this phenomenon, it has been emphasized that it is necessary to carry out exercise of intensity and frequency from moderate to high to increase the degree of physical fitness [23,24].…”

A systematic review of cognitive functioning among young people who have experienced homelessness, foster care, or poverty

“…Poverty is consistently associated with performance across a wide range of cognitive domains, while the findings for foster care are mixed. Only two studies found potential strengths: selective attention among young people who have experienced poverty (Lupien et al, 2001; though see Tine, 2014), and creativity among young people living on the street (Dahlman et al, 2013). It could be the case that creativity, or divergent thinking, is more adaptive than convergent thinking (e.g., as assessed by set shifting) in deprived and risky environments such as the street (Cohen, 2012).…”

“…No differences are found in memory or language performance (Lupien, King, Meaney, & McEwen, 2001). One low SES group demonstrated superior performance compared to the high SES group on a selective attention task (Lupien et al, 2001), though Tine (2014) found the opposite result. Young people who have experienced homelessness demonstrate poorer performance on selective attention and memory tasks compared to age-matched controls (Borges-Murphy et al, 2012).…”

Translating the impact of exercise on cognition: Methodological issues in animal research

“…They found that the effect of exercise was much larger in adolescents from low socio-economic statusbackground[119].…”