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Peer-reviewedCC BYFrontiers in psychology

The relationship between volleyball experience and mental rotation ability in university students: the mediating role of updating function.

  • Donghai Huang1
  • Dongyi Huang1
  • Peixin Shi2
  • Pengyun Zhang2
  • Muhammad Nubli Abdul Wahab3
  • Zhipu Wang4
  • Heng Wang2
4 affiliations
  1. 1School of Physical Education, Ningxia Normal University, Guyuan, China.
  2. 2College of Physical Education, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang, China.
  3. 3Center for Human Science, University Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, Kuantan, Malaysia.
  4. 4College of Physical Education, Changwon National University, Changwon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, Republic of Korea.
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Abstract

This study aims to explore the relationships among university students' volleyball experience, executive functions, and mental rotation ability, and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Using a cross-sectional design, 60 university students were categorized into high (HVEG), medium (MVEG), and low (LVEG) volleyball experience groups, and their mental rotation ability and executive functions were assessed. Multiple linear regression was conducted, structural equation modeling was performed with Mplus 8.3, and mediation effects were tested using 5,000 bootstrap samples. Results showed that significant differences among the three groups in executive function and mental rotation ability (p < 0.05), with the HVEG showing significantly shorter reaction times than the LVEG. Among the sub-components of executive function, only updating function was significantly correlated with mental rotation ability (p < 0.01). Mediation analysis revealed that volleyball experience was significantly associated with mental rotation ability (direct effect: β = -0.492, 83.8% of the total effect), and the updating function played a partial mediating role in this relationship (indirect effect: β = -0.094, 16.2% of the total effect). In conclusion, greater volleyball experience was associated with better (faster) mental rotation performance in university students, with the updating function playing a partial mediating role in this association.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{huang2026relationship,
  title = {{The relationship between volleyball experience and mental rotation ability in university students: the mediating role of updating function.}},
  author = {Donghai Huang and Dongyi Huang and Peixin Shi and Pengyun Zhang and Muhammad Nubli Abdul Wahab and Zhipu Wang and Heng Wang},
  journal = {Frontiers in psychology},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1927911},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42924189},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - The relationship between volleyball experience and mental rotation ability in university students: the mediating role of updating function.
AU  - Donghai Huang
AU  - Dongyi Huang
AU  - Peixin Shi
AU  - Pengyun Zhang
AU  - Muhammad Nubli Abdul Wahab
AU  - Zhipu Wang
AU  - Heng Wang
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/08
JO  - Frontiers in psychology
DO  - 10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1927911
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42924189
AB  - This study aims to explore the relationships among university students' volleyball experience, executive functions, and mental rotation ability, and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Using a cross-sectional design, 60 university students were categorized into high (HVEG), medium (MVEG), and low (LVEG) volleyball experience groups, and their mental rotation ability and executive functions were assessed. Multiple linear regression was conducted, structural equation modeling was performed with Mplus 8.3, and mediation effects were tested using 5,000 bootstrap samples. Results showed that significant differences among the three groups in executive function and mental rotation ability (p < 0.05), with the HVEG showing significantly shorter reaction times than the LVEG. Among the sub-components of executive function, only updating function was significantly correlated with mental rotation ability (p < 0.01). Mediation analysis revealed that volleyball experience was significantly associated with mental rotation ability (direct effect: β = -0.492, 83.8% of the total effect), and the updating function played a partial mediating role in this relationship (indirect effect: β = -0.094, 16.2% of the total effect). In conclusion, greater volleyball experience was associated with better (faster) mental rotation performance in university students, with the updating function playing a partial mediating role in this association.
SN  - 1664-1078
ER  -