Effect of Exercise on Cognition, Memory, and Executive Function: A Study-Level Meta-Meta-Analysis Across Populations and Exercise Categories
Effect of Exercise on Cognition, Memory, and Executive Function: A Study-Level Meta-Meta-Analysis Across Populations and Exercise Categories
| Autoři: | František Bartoš Martina Lušková Kseniya Bortnikova Karolína Hozová Klára Kantová Zuzana Iršová Tomáš Havránek |
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| Publikováno v: | IES Working Papers 31/2025 |
| Klíčová slova: | Publication bias, Bayesian, Brain health, Evidence, Policy |
| JEL kódy: | I12, I10, J24 |
| Citace: | Bartoš F., Lušková M., Bortnikova K., Hozová K., Kantová K., Iršová Z., Havránek T. (2025): " Effect of Exercise on Cognition, Memory, and Executive Function: A Study-Level Meta-Meta-Analysis Across Populations and Exercise Categories " IES Working Papers 31/2025. IES FSV. Charles University. |
| Abstrakt: | Physical exercise is widely believed to enhance cognition, yet evidence from meta-analyses remains mixed. Here we compile a study-level dataset of 2,239 effect-size estimates from 215 meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials examining the effect of exercise on general cognition, memory, and executive functions. We find strong evidence of selective reporting and large between-study heterogeneity. Analyses adjusted for publication bias reveal average effects much smaller than commonly reported (general cognition: standardized mean difference, SMD, = 0.227, 95% credible interval 0.116 to 0.330; memory: SMD = 0.027, 95% credible interval 0.000 to 0.227; executive functions: SMD = 0.012, 95% credible interval 0.000 to 0.147), along with wide prediction intervals spanning both negative and positive effects. Subgroup analyses identify specific population-intervention combinations with more consistent benefits. Overall, broad claims of generalized cognitive enhancement resulting from physical exercise appear premature; the evidence supports targeted, population- and intervention-specific recommendations. |
| Ke stažení: | wp_2025_31_bartos, luskova, bortnikova, hozova, kantova, irsova, havranek |
