Physical activity for the brain, but for whom? An individual difference investigation of the FITKids clinical trial on cognitive control and ERPs in children

The present dissertation examined the interaction of cardiorespiratory fitness, socioeconomic status (SES), and sex to cognitive control outcomes associated with a 9-month physical activity intervention (FITKids clinical trial) in preadolescent children. This was accomplished by randomizing three hundred eighty-four children into an afterschool physical activity intervention or a wait-list control group. All participants at pre- and post-test completed a cardiorespiratory fitness assessment as well as a modified flanker task while event-related potentials (ERP) were collected. Pre-test cardiorespiratory fitness results revealed insufficient sample size for higher-fit children. Thus, fitness was utilized as a matching variable with one hundred seventy-two participants (n = 86 treatment; n = 86 wait-list) successfully matched across treatment, SES, and sex. Results demonstrated that a 9-month physical activity intervention significantly improved flanker accuracy and post-error accuracy for all children in the intervention compared to the wait-list group, regardless of SES or sex. Additionally, ERP findings revealed sexual dimorphic facilitation in error processing networks and conflict adaptation such that only females in the treatment group demonstrated decreased N2 amplitude while only females in the wait-list group demonstrated increase ERN amplitude from pre- to post-test. Together, these results have considerable implications for promoting organized physical activity interventions for improving cognitive health, regardless of SES or sex, with further implications for sexual selective benefits to performance monitoring brain patterns in preadolescent females.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Kinesiology

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2016

Author dc:creator

• Drollette, Eric Scott

Contributors dc:contributor

• Hillman, Charles H.
• Kramer, Arthur F.
• Woods, Amelia M.
• Petruzzello, Steven

• Physical activity
• Cognition
• Event related potentials

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2016 Eric S. Drollette

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/90742

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/90742