Physical activity and executive function in adolescents: Dual rumination pathways and mindfulness moderation
4 affiliations
- 1Institute of Sports Science, Nantong University, Nantong, China
- 2Department of Physical Education, Dankook University, Yongin, South Korea
- 3Department of Physical Education, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong, China
- 4College of Physical Education, Dalian University, Dalian, China
Abstract
Background: Late adolescence is a developmental period in which executive functions are relatively consolidated but remain sensitive to behavioral and environmental influences. Physical activity (PA) has been associated with executive-function outcomes, but the psychological factors that may be related to this association remain unclear. Objective: This study examined whether PA_total was associated with a reaction-time-based executive-function composite (EF_RT) through intrusive rumination (IR) and deliberate rumination (DR), and whether mindfulness moderated the PA_total → IR and IR → EF_RT associations. Methods: Late adolescents (N = 450; 266 males; aged 17–19 years) completed measures of PA, rumination, and mindfulness. EF_RT was derived from standardized RT-based indicators from computerized Flanker, 2-back, and More–Odd Shifting tasks. Lower EF_RT values indicate better RT-based task performance. Structural equation models were used to test parallel indirect associations and observed-variable interaction terms, with gender included as a covariate. Bias-corrected bootstrapping with 5,000 resamples was used to estimate indirect and conditional indirect associations. Results: PA_total showed significant positive total and direct associations with EF_RT, indicating that higher PA_total was associated with higher RT-based scores, that is, slower or less efficient RT-based task performance. Significant indirect associations were observed through both IR and DR. Mindfulness moderated the PA_total → IR and IR → EF_RT associations, and the conditional indirect association through IR varied across levels of mindfulness. Because EF_RT is a reaction-time-based composite, positive coefficients involving EF_RT indicate higher RT-based scores, reflecting longer reaction times or larger RT costs, rather than better EF ability. Conclusions: PA_total, rumination, mindfulness, and EF_RT were interrelated in late adolescents. The findings should be interpreted as cross-sectional associations involving RT-based executive-function performance, including an unexpected positive PA_total–EF_RT association indicating slower or less efficient RT-based performance, rather than as evidence of causal effects on EF ability.
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BibTeX
@article{wang2026physical,
title = {{Physical activity and executive function in adolescents: Dual rumination pathways and mindfulness moderation}},
author = {Shimeng Wang and Mingyang Lu and Yang Yang and Bochun Lu and Yiwen Zhou and Shipeng Ding},
journal = {PLOS One},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0357384},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357384},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Physical activity and executive function in adolescents: Dual rumination pathways and mindfulness moderation
AU - Shimeng Wang
AU - Mingyang Lu
AU - Yang Yang
AU - Bochun Lu
AU - Yiwen Zhou
AU - Shipeng Ding
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/01
JO - PLOS One
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0357384
UR - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357384
AB - Background: Late adolescence is a developmental period in which executive functions are relatively consolidated but remain sensitive to behavioral and environmental influences. Physical activity (PA) has been associated with executive-function outcomes, but the psychological factors that may be related to this association remain unclear. Objective: This study examined whether PA_total was associated with a reaction-time-based executive-function composite (EF_RT) through intrusive rumination (IR) and deliberate rumination (DR), and whether mindfulness moderated the PA_total → IR and IR → EF_RT associations. Methods: Late adolescents (N = 450; 266 males; aged 17–19 years) completed measures of PA, rumination, and mindfulness. EF_RT was derived from standardized RT-based indicators from computerized Flanker, 2-back, and More–Odd Shifting tasks. Lower EF_RT values indicate better RT-based task performance. Structural equation models were used to test parallel indirect associations and observed-variable interaction terms, with gender included as a covariate. Bias-corrected bootstrapping with 5,000 resamples was used to estimate indirect and conditional indirect associations. Results: PA_total showed significant positive total and direct associations with EF_RT, indicating that higher PA_total was associated with higher RT-based scores, that is, slower or less efficient RT-based task performance. Significant indirect associations were observed through both IR and DR. Mindfulness moderated the PA_total → IR and IR → EF_RT associations, and the conditional indirect association through IR varied across levels of mindfulness. Because EF_RT is a reaction-time-based composite, positive coefficients involving EF_RT indicate higher RT-based scores, reflecting longer reaction times or larger RT costs, rather than better EF ability. Conclusions: PA_total, rumination, mindfulness, and EF_RT were interrelated in late adolescents. The findings should be interpreted as cross-sectional associations involving RT-based executive-function performance, including an unexpected positive PA_total–EF_RT association indicating slower or less efficient RT-based performance, rather than as evidence of causal effects on EF ability.
SN - 1932-6203
ER -