ECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH24
Elite athletes face numerous, pervasive, and ongoing pressures regarding their bodies’ weight, shape, and performance. Due to the body-focused, judgement-based, and highly critical nature of sport cultures, body surveillance and dissatisfaction, disordered eating, and associated negative body emotions (e.g., shame, guilt) are common among elite athletes in a variety of sports. Negative body image, in particular, poses risks to athletes’ abilities to focus on competition and perform to the best of their abilities. When attention is biased towards the body, athlete focus is diverted away from sport performance. Given the prevalence of negative thoughts, perceptions, behaviors, and emotions about the body in sport, it is important to understand the ways in which body image affects athletes’ attention. Eight elite athletes (Mage = 26.25 years, n = 2 cisgender men, n = 6 cisgender women) were interviewed for this qualitative description study to describe the perceived association between body image and attention. Following an inductive qualitative content analysis, three dominant themes were explored. Theme 1, “Who’s the leanest person here?”: the pressures of how athletes feel they ought to appear, reflects the effect of incessant body comparisons among other athlete bodies, the intense vulnerability felt in uniforms which distracts from sport, and the effects on athletes’ attention from being watched, photographed, and recorded. Theme 2, “It’s not only a safety hazard, but you’re not going to perform your best”: athletes focus on sport not their bodies, refers to the participants taking control of their attention through body image and sport where they can, as well as the consequences to attention from pressures related to eating and weight. Theme 3, “I just flung that over my head, that’s incredible!”: the supports of body image and attention, is comprised of the strategies utilized by participants to improve their body image and attention in sport, as well as the value of having positive experiences with coaches on their abilities to focus. The findings of this research provide a detailed description of the perceived association between body image and elite athletes’ control of attention in sport. In addition to discussion of the detrimental effects of negative body image on attention in the context of sport, participants also described strategies undertaken to manage their attention and body image to deter performance detriments. This research contributes to the literature concerned with maximizing sport performance and the attentional repercussions of well-established body image concerns which are pervasive in elite athletics.
Read CV Delaney ThibodeauECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH24
Acute Aerobic and Coordinative Interventions - Effect on Cognitive Performance in Pre- Adolescent Children Pilz-Burstein, R., Malka Salis, N., Moran D.S. The Givat- Washington Academic College of Education Introduction The relation between physical fitness, acute exercise and cognitive performance has drawn significant attention in recent years. The cognitive response to an exercise intervention varies between age groups and is affected, among else, by the intensity, duration and type of exercise. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of a single aerobic workout versus a coordinative intervention on cognitive performance in pre-adolescent children. Method: Eighty-six boys and girls ages 8-9 years participated in the study. The children were randomly divided into two groups: a. The experimental group (group A) performed acute aerobic exercise by skipping rope jumping for 25 minutes continuously: two legs front, two legs back, right and left leg alternately. b. The control group (group B) performed coordinative activity by spinning a dreidel from a sitting position for 25 minutes continuously. Heart rate (HR) was monitored continuously by a POLAR heart rate watch in both groups to evaluate the effect of the exercise vs. the coordinative activity. The Stroop test stages 1-2-3 was applied to assess executive function (EF) as reflecting cognitive function. Tests were performed twice by each child: once prior to the activity intervention and again within 5 minutes of the activity termination. The number of correct responses was recorded in each of the Stroop test stages. Results: Mean HR of group A, the skipping rope group changed from 91±12 prior to the exercise to 193±16 beats/minutes upon termination; mean HR of group B, the coordinative group changed from 88±10 to 113±10 beats/minutes. The skipping group achieved higher scores on the Stroop tests after exercise compared to scores prior to the activity in all three stages (p<0.001). A positive effect was observed also in the coordinative group with higher scoring upon termination compared to that prior to the spinning dreidel activity (p<0.05). However, the post-exercise outcomes of the skipping group were better compared to those of the coordinative activity group. Interaction between measurement time and type of intervention was found significant for Stroop 1 (p<0.02) and Stroop 3 (p=0.00). Discussion: The results of the present study demonstrate a positive effect of acute, moderate-intensive aerobic exercise on some of EF abilities in pre-adolescent children. Yet, coordinative tasks that involve only very light activity as shown by the HR response, also revealed a beneficial effect on the EF performance. Based on these results it may be suggested that for the benefit of cognitive performance of school age children, acute, short activity interventions, whether aerobic or coordinative, should be part of the daily schedule and integrated routinely in between class hours.
Read CV Rutie Pilz-BursteinECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH24
INTRODUCTION: Childhood physical activity is essential for the development of motor skills, cognition, and overall health. Children from low-income backgrounds often face obstacles in accessing structured training programs, which can impact their physical and psychological well-being. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of a structured physical training program on children from low-income neighbourhoods in Pescara, Italy. METHODS: A convenience sample of 28 children from underprivileged neighbourhoods between the ages of 6 and 10 (M = 8.57, SD = 1.26) was recruited through the ONLUS association which provides the intervention and other support services in this area. A cross-sectional analysis was performed to explore the levels of psychomotor performance, psycho-physical wellbeing and sports gratification. Children underwent the Movement Assessment Battery of Children (M-ABC-2) to examine their fine and gross motor skills, agility, coordination, proprioception, balance, and posture. An ad hoc cognitive test was also implemented to evaluate the overall well-being of each child in relation to their sports participation. The assessment was conducted by kinesiologists in small groups before practice sessions. Data were analyzed by R-4.4. One sample t-test, and Pearson correlation were applied; p-value <0.05 taken statistically significant. RESULTS: The 28.6% of children present a deficit (i.e. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), significantly more males (n=7) than females (n=1), p<0.04. There was no difference in terms of M-ABC-2 psychomotor tests except for static balance skill in which children with deficits scored 8 seconds compared to 17sec, p<0.01. No difference in levels of psycho-physical wellbeing and sports gratification (overall M = 73.5, SD = 12.0) was detected. Statistically significant correlation was found for coordination and walking (r= 0.71; p<0.001), strength and walking (r= 0.62; p<0.001), agility and ball catch (r= 0.61; p< 0.001) and finally coordination and strength (r= 0.54; p<0.001). CONCLUSION: This project is ongoing, and after 23 weeks of intervention, we will do the follow up to evaluate the program’s impact. Preliminary results indicate that the psycho-physical background of this sample is in line with the normative trends. The use of sport-specific drills, combined with general movement activities, is finalized to maximize neuromuscular adaptation and overall athletic performance. In addition, the program aims to foster structured socialization, teamwork, and cognitive function, which contributes to the ultimate goal of enhancing psychological well-being. These findings could provide valuable insights into the role of accessible sports programs in promoting overall child development living in disadvantages area.
Read CV Mattia SmargiassiECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH24