Investigation of baseline attention, executive control, and performance variability in female varsity athletes

AbstractTo examine attention, executive control, and performance variability in healthy varsity athletes and identify unique resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) patterns associated with measures of speed, stability, and attention.  A sample of 29 female university varsity athletes completed cognitive testing using the Attention Network Test- Interactions (ANT-I) and underwent resting-state functional MRI (rsfMRI) scans. Performance was characterized by examining mean reaction time (RT), variability in performance (ISD), and attention network scores on the ANT-I. RsfMRI data were analyzed using an independent component analysis (ICA) in the frontoparietal (FPN), dorsal attention (DAN), default mode, (DMN), salience (SN), and sensorimotor (SMN) networks. Group-level analyses using the performance variables of interest we re conducted. Athletes’ performance on the ANT-I revealed a main effect of orienting and executive control (ps<0.001; partial η2 = 0.68 and 0.89, respectively), with performance facilitated (i.e., faster RT) when athletes were presented with valid cues and congruent flankers. Alerting, orienting, and executive control performance were associated with differences in rsFC within the SN, DMN, and FPN, respectively. Slower R Ts were associated with greater rsFC between DAN and bilateral postcentral gyri (p<.001), whereas more stable performance was associated with greater FC between the SMN and the left precuneus (p<.05).  Consistent wit...

Source: Brain Imaging and Behavior - February 18, 2022 Category: Neurology Source Type: research