ECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH28
INTRODUCTION: Currently, an increasing number of people are recognizing the effectiveness of mindfulness meditation training in improving attention and adopting it as a means to enhance attentional capacity [1,2]. Dynamic visual attention in football relies on efficient psychophysiological regulation. Traditional mindfulness training lacks real-time, objective feedback[3]. This study investigated whether Open Monitoring (OM) meditation, when assisted by AI-driven real-time neurofeedback, is more effective than similarly assisted Focused Attention (FA) training in improving mindfulness, parasympathetic regulation, and dynamic attention in athletes. METHODS: We recruited 32 soccer players (age: 20.69 ± 0.14 years) and 32 university students (age: 20.22 ± 0.67 years) who had no prior meditation experience. The study used a 3 (Time: pre-test, post-single-session, post-6-weeks) × 4 (Probe Location: target, non-target, blank, no-probe) × 3 (Group: FA, OM, control) mixed-design. Both meditation groups participated in a 6-week program (40 minutes per session/week) with identical Brainco BCI headsets for AI-driven neurofeedback. Only the meditation style differed. Outcomes included mindfulness (FFMQ), heart rate variability (HRV), and dynamic visual attention (MOT with dot-probe). We collected measurements at pre-test, post-single-session, and post-6-weeks to ensure consistency. RESULTS: After the 6-week intervention, OM meditation with AI-driven feedback improved mindfulness in students (p < 0.05) and soccer players (p = 0.009). It also increased parasympathetic activity in both groups (RMSSD/HF, p < 0.05). In contrast, FA meditation did not significantly affect HRV. Tracking accuracy improved in all groups (p < 0.001). Detection sensitivity increased only for students in the meditation groups (p < 0.05), highlighting intervention differences. DISCUSSION: Short-term OM meditation, facilitated by AI-real-time neurofeedback, effectively enhanced mindfulness and parasympathetic regulation in football athletes, according to these results. Compared to FA meditation, AI-supported OM meditation can substantially improve athletes' cognitive and physiological readiness, potentially supporting better performance in competitive sports. Further research is needed to determine the long-term effects and generalizability to other athlete populations. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: This study was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds of the China Institute of Sport Science (Grant No. 25-28). [1] Baltar Y C, et al . The Effects of Mindfulness Meditation on Attentional Control During Off-Season Among Football Players[J].SAGE Open, 2018, 8(2) [2] Bu D,et al. Mindfulness training improves relaxation and attention in elite shooting athletes: A single-case study[J]. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 2019, 50(1):4-25. [3] Kosmyna N,et al .An EEG-Based Closed-Loop Biofeedback System for Real-Time Monitoring and Improvement of Engagement
Read CV MA YANECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH28
Introduction Smartphone use has become a dominant lifestyle behavior among Z-generation college students, raising growing concerns about its potential impact on emotional well-being and brain function. Although previous studies have linked excessive smartphone use to negative affect, the underlying neural correlates remain unclear, particularly regarding how smartphone use may relate to alterations in resting-state brain function. The present study aimed to examine the associations between weekly smartphone use time, resting-state functional activity, and emotional states, including positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA), in college students. Methods Fifty college students were recruited and classified into low- and high-smartphone use groups based on weekly usage time, with no significant differences in age or sex between groups. Weekly smartphone use time was obtained from the built-in screen time statistics function of participants' mobile phones and averaged across the past week. Participants completed the PANAS to assess positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA). Resting-state fMRI data were collected and preprocessed, and fALFF values were computed. The hippocampus and DLPFC were defined as regions of interest using the AAL atlas due to their roles in cognition, memory, and emotion regulation. One-way ANOVA was conducted to compare age, fALFF, and emotional measures between groups. Pearson correlation analyses were further performed to examine associations between smartphone use time, brain activity, and affective measures. Results (1) Significant group effects were observed in resting-state fALFF within bilateral hippocampus and DLPFC. The high-use group showed higher fALFF in the left hippocampus (F(1, 48) = 7.92, p = .007, eta_p2 = .142), right hippocampus (F(1, 48) = 4.21, p = .046, eta_p2 = .081), left DLPFC (F(1, 48) = 8.08, p = .007, eta_p2 = .144), and right DLPFC (F(1, 48) = 4.22, p = .046, eta_p2 = .081). (2) The high-use group reported significantly lower positive affect (PA), F(1, 48) = 5.84, p = .020, eta_p2 = .109, while negative affect (NA) showed a marginal group difference, F(1, 48) = 3.85, p = .056, eta_p2 = .074. (3) In terms of emotional measures, smartphone use was positively associated with NA (r = .378, p = .007), while No significant association was found between smartphone use and PA, despite a slight negative trend. Conclusion The high-use group showed elevated resting-state fALFF in bilateral hippocampus and DLPFC, accompanied by lower positive affect (PA). Correlation analyses further revealed that smartphone use time was positively associated with hippocampal fALFF and NA, but not with PA or DLPFC activity. Given that hippocampal plasticity is known to be sensitive to behavioral modulation, including aerobic exercise, future studies may examine whether structured physical activity programs are associated with improvements in cognitive and emotional functioning among college students.
Read CV Ling JiangECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH28
Perceptual-cognitive skills are key indicators of an athlete’s level of expertise and are closely associated with gaze behavior. However, objectively assessing these skills in real-world settings remains challenging. Digital approaches, such as fixed-screen (FS) video-based tests, have been proposed as standardized alternatives. More recently, immersive technologies have been suggested as potentially more representative and effective tools for perceptual-cognitive assessment. Nevertheless, this assumption has yet to be thoroughly examined. The purpose of this study was to determine which digital viewing condition—virtual reality (VR), 360° video (360°V), or traditional FS video—produces results most comparable to real-world (RW) performance in a boxing-specific anticipation task. Thirty-one highly-trained boxers (22.2 ± 5.0 years) were recruited to anticipate a series of 24 standardized boxing punches presented in RW and across three digital conditions (VR, 360°V, FS) using a head-mounted display. Gaze behavior was recorded in all conditions using a Tobii eye-tracker. Head excursion, anticipatory performance (accuracy and reaction time), as well as perceived presence and workload, were assessed across digital viewing conditions. Linear mixed-effects models were used to compare outcomes between conditions. Results showed significantly longer mean fixation durations in RW and VR compared with 360°V and FS (p < 0.001). Pitch head movements were significantly greater in VR and 360°V than in FS (p < 0.001). Anticipatory performance revealed mixed findings across viewing conditions. No significant differences were observed in perceived presence or workload. These findings highlight important differences introduced by digital technologies when studying perceptual-cognitive skills such as anticipation.
Read CV Mildred Loiseau TaupinECSS Paris 2023: OP-SH28