The relationships among executive functions, self-regulation, and physical exercise in children with autism spectrum disorder

Tse, Andy C.Y., Liu, Venus H.L., Lee, Paul H., Anderson, David I. and Lakes, Kimberley Dawn (2023) The relationships among executive functions, self-regulation, and physical exercise in children with autism spectrum disorder. Autism, 1-15. (doi:10.1177/13623613231168944).

Abstract

Physical exercise is widely reported beneficial to executive functions in children with autism spectrum disorder. However, its impact on self-regulation in the population remains unknown. This study is to test whether two types of physical exercise (cognitively engaging vs non-cognitively engaging) benefited self-regulation and whether the social, emotional, and physical needs of an individual mediated the exercise–executive function and exercise–self-regulation relationships. Sixty-four children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder were randomly assigned into 1 of 3 groups: learning to ride a bicycle (n = 23), stationary cycling (n = 19), or an active control with walking (n = 22). Two executive functions (flexibility and inhibition), self-regulation and the mediating roles of perceived social support, enjoyment, stress, physical self-efficacy, and perceived physical fitness were assessed. Participants in the learning to ride a bicycle group significantly improved their executive functions (p values <.01). The learning to ride a bicycle group and the stationary cycling group also significantly enhanced their self-regulation (p values <.001). Mediation analyses showed that physical self-efficacy and perceived physical fitness partially mediated the exercise–executive function relationship. Meanwhile, perceived social support significantly mediated the exercise–self-regulation relationship (p <.05). Our findings highlight the value of cognitively engaging exercise on enhancing executive functions in children with autism spectrum disorder in part by improving their physical self-efficacy and perceptions of fitness. Lay abstract: This study examined the impacts of two types of physical exercises (two-wheel cycling vs stationary cycling) on cognition and self-regulation among 64 children with autism spectrum disorder. It also explored the role of social, emotional, and physical needs of an individual in the relationship between exercise, cognition, and self-regulation. Results showed that participants in the two-wheel cycling group showed significant improvements in their cognition and that the two exercise groups also enhanced their self-regulation. Moreover, this study also revealed that the social need is crucial in mediating the relationship between exercise and self-regulation. This study strengthens the notion that cognitively engaging exercise is more beneficial than the non-cognitively engaging exercise in enhancing cognition in children with autism spectrum disorder.

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Contributors

Author: Paul H. Lee

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