Physical Activity and Cognitive Functioning of Children: Does Physical Activity Improve the Working Memory of Children?

Existing literature indicates that physical activity positively influences the cognitive abilities of children. This meta-analysis aims to replicate the findings of Vasilopoulos et al. (2023) regarding the impact of physical activity on children's cognitive abilities, focusing specifically on working memory. Eleven studies were included in the analysis, comprising the nine studies from Vasilopoulos et al. (2023) and two additional studies (Zhang et al., 2022; Dring et al., 2022) identified through a Google Scholar search. The inclusion criteria for these additional studies were that they be conducted within the last ten years and examine the relationship between physical activity and working memory among children. Mean and standard deviations of working memory measures were extracted to compute the effect size. Due to the different working memory measures used across studies, a standardized mean difference was applied. The findings provide significant statistical evidence that physical activity positively impacts children's working memory. However, the observed heterogeneity among the included studies suggests that future research should standardize measurement scales for both physical activity and working memory to improve consistency.