In cognitive science, the connection between athletic expertise and working memory has recently received increasing attention. However, to date, there has been no meta-analysis comparing the working memory performance of athletes and non-athletes. The Active Mind group at the Institute of Psychology, University of Jyväskylä, conducted a study to compare the working memory performance of the two groups overall. They also examined the role of factors such as sport type and performance level in the results.
The working memory advantage of athletes over non-athletes was evident across various sports and performance levels. Interestingly, this advantage was more pronounced when athletes were compared to a sedentary population than in the analysis where the sedentary population was excluded from the reference group of non-athletes. Doctoral researcher Chenxiao Wu states that most of the studies included in this meta-analysis were well-conducted, had a low risk of bias, and showed no signs of publication bias.
These findings indicate a consistent link between sports and better working memory performance, while a sedentary lifestyle appears to be associated with poorer working memory. Piia Astikainen, associate professor and head of the research team, says her group has previously studied the effects of aging on cognitive functions and brain function and found that a physically active lifestyle can partially mitigate the negative effects of aging on them. The current findings in athletes add to the evidence of the benefits of sports for human perception and underscore the importance of physical activity in promoting brain health.
The study is part of the SportsFace project and Chenxiao Wu’s doctoral dissertation, supervised by associate professor Piia Astikainen. The SportsFace project aims to explore the effects of sports on cognitive functions and face perception using electrophysiological and behavioral performance measures. The findings will deepen our understanding of the relationship between sports, working memory, and social perception.
Wu, C., Zhang, C., Li, X., Ye, C., & Astikainen, P. (2024). Comparing working memory performance in athletes and non-athletes: a meta-analysis of behavioral studies. Memory, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2024.2423812
