Open skills sports, especially team ball games, are associated with cognitive functions in adolescents: A time use diary study

In the past few decades, there has been ongoing debate regarding whether and how physical activity is related to cognitive development. The current study attempted to advance our understanding of this topic by exploring how various facets of physical activity—both quantitative and qualitative—are linked to specific cognitive functions in adolescents. The sample was 3527 adolescents from the United Kingdom Millennium Cohort Study. At age 14, adolescents’ daily activity content, duration, and intensity on weekdays and weekends were assessed using both an activity monitor and a time-use diary. Cognitive skills, including executive function and academic achievement, were measured at ages 14 and 17, respectively. Multiple hierarchical regressions revealed that a greater amount of time spent in moderate-to-vigorous activity (MVPA) was predictive of better executive function at age 14 but unrelated to academic outcome at age 17. In analysing adolescents’ activity content, it was found that open-skills sports were more closely associated with executive function, with team ball games exhibiting the strongest effect. In contrast, regular engagement in individual ball games and swimming was related to better academic outcomes. Our findings confirm the link between MVPA and cognitive functions in the adolescent population and highlight the beneficial effect of open-skill sports on adolescents’ cognitive development.