Department of Physical Therapy, School of Allied Health Sciences, Walailak University, Nakhon Si Thammarat, 80160, Thailand.
BMC Pediatr. 2020 Mar 12;20(1):118. doi: 10.1186/s12887-020-2017-2.
Childhood is an important period for developing maturity in thinking. Accumulating evidence shows the association between physical activity and cognitive function. Although both the intelligence quotient and emotional quotient have been reported to be associated with physical activity, there is a limited amount of published research regarding the association between physical activity and cognitive function in children and youths. With respect to creativity, an important skill for the twenty-first century, little evidence on the creative quotient promotion in childhood is available. The present study, therefore, is designed to explore the correlation between physical activity and creativity.
The participants included 1447 students with different age groups in 34 schools from Southern Thailand. Age groups were categorized according to Thailand's 2016 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth, where 521 students were aged 6-9 years, 487 students were aged 10-13 years, and 439 students were aged 14-17 years. Creativity was measured through the use of the Test for Creative Thinking-Drawing Production (TCT-DP). Active play, time with family and peers, and sedentary behavior were monitored by the Thailand Physical Activity Children Survey-the Student Questionnaire (TPACS-SQ).
The correlation between the TCT-DP score representing creativity and active play was noticed in adolescents (r = 0.148, p = 0.001), but not found in participants aged 6-13 years. Active play was associated with time with family and peers in all age groups (r = 0.485, p < 0.001).
The present data supports the idea that optimal physical activity is required during childhood for developing thinking process. Promotion of active play with family and peers may facilitate creativity skills.
儿童期是思维成熟的重要时期。越来越多的证据表明，身体活动与认知功能之间存在关联。尽管智商和情商都与身体活动有关，但关于儿童和青少年身体活动与认知功能之间的关联，发表的研究有限。至于创造力，这是 21 世纪的一项重要技能，关于儿童时期创造力提升的证据很少。因此，本研究旨在探索身体活动与创造力之间的相关性。
参与者包括来自泰国南部 34 所学校的 1447 名不同年龄组的学生。年龄组根据泰国 2016 年《儿童和青少年身体活动报告卡》进行分类，其中 521 名学生年龄为 6-9 岁，487 名学生年龄为 10-13 岁，439 名学生年龄为 14-17 岁。创造力通过使用创造性思维测验-绘画生产（TCT-DP）来衡量。积极游戏、与家人和同龄人共度的时间以及久坐行为通过泰国身体活动儿童调查-学生问卷（TPACS-SQ）进行监测。
在青少年中，创造力代表的 TCT-DP 得分与积极游戏之间存在相关性（r=0.148，p=0.001），但在 6-13 岁的参与者中未发现。积极游戏与所有年龄组的与家人和同龄人共度的时间相关（r=0.485，p<0.001）。
本研究数据支持这样一种观点，即儿童期需要进行最佳的身体活动，以促进思维过程的发展。促进与家人和同龄人一起积极游戏可能有助于提高创造力技能。
