Selected Executive Functions of Adolescents Practising Competitive Swimming

Karolina Dworska

Abstract


Sports is a form of spending free time, chosen by a large group of young people. It turns out that sport activity can be related to the formation of some cognitive functions of humans. Therefore, the aim of the undertaken research was to verify the connection between selected executive functions and sport activity in younger adolescents. The study group consisted of 12-year-olds (N = 38, 63% were girls) practising competitive swimming and their peers not practising sports. The following functions were measured: verbal working memory, information processing and working memory and the ability to inhibit habitual reaction. For this purpose, methods were used: Subtest from the Wechsler Intelligence Scale – Digital Repetition, Quick Name Test and experimental version of the Stroop Test. The research indicated that there is a connection between the sport activity, which is competitive swimming, and the executive functions (information processing and working memory). The results obtained have a direct impact on human functioning in everyday life and indicate the possibility of stimulating cognitive development through sport.


Keywords


executive functions; working memory; sport activity; adolescents

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17951/j.2020.33.2.71-84
Date of publication: 2020-06-29 17:48:44
Date of submission: 2019-01-14 17:17:32


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