Movement Science Lab, Institute of Sport Science, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, 06120 Halle (Saale), Germany.
Sport Psychology, Institute of Sport Science, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Jan 20;19(3):1138. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19031138.
The assessment of core executive functions (EFs; i.e., inhibition, working memory, cognitive flexibility) has often been presented as a diagnostic tool for evaluating cognitive functions in recent publications. For example, EFs are essential in soccer because players must quickly adapt, change strategies, and inhibit responses in rapidly changing game situations. Previous research has shown relations between (subjectively rated) game performance and the EFs of soccer players. Nevertheless, the previous studies' samples were heterogeneous in their performance level (experts vs. amateurs), and the ratings were rather unsystematic (no validated rating protocol). Therefore, the current study aimed to predict soccer players' game performance (i.e., systematically rated by coaches) with the help of EF performance. Therefore, we assessed the game performance (small-sided game, Game Performance Assessment Instrument [GPAI]) and EFs (inhibition: flanker task; working memory: 3-back task; cognitive flexibility: number-letter task) of 94 male soccer players (12-19 years old) from Germany's highest competitive level. Multiple regression model results indicate that inhibition (i.e., flanker effect) and calendar age explain ~18% of players' game performance variance. Results have to be interpreted with regard to the age-dependency of game performance and EFs. In conclusion, even though the results are based on a cross-sectional study, it appears that calendar age needs to be considered when assessing EFs.
核心执行功能（EFs；即抑制、工作记忆、认知灵活性）的评估在最近的出版物中经常被作为评估认知功能的诊断工具。例如，EF 在足球中非常重要，因为球员必须在快速变化的比赛情况下快速适应、改变策略和抑制反应。先前的研究表明（主观评定的）比赛表现与足球运动员的 EF 之间存在关系。然而，之前的研究样本在表现水平上存在差异（专家与业余选手），而且评分也相当不系统（没有经过验证的评分方案）。因此，本研究旨在借助 EF 表现来预测足球运动员的比赛表现（即由教练进行系统评分）。为此，我们评估了 94 名来自德国最高竞争水平的男性足球运动员的比赛表现（小场比赛，比赛表现评估工具[GPAI]）和 EF（抑制：flanker 任务；工作记忆：3-back 任务；认知灵活性：数字字母任务）。多元回归模型结果表明，抑制（即 flanker 效应）和年龄解释了约 18%的球员比赛表现差异。结果需要考虑到比赛表现和 EF 的年龄依赖性。总之，尽管结果基于横断面研究，但在评估 EF 时似乎需要考虑年龄因素。
