Short playful interactions improve executive functions in children

Abstract

Executive Functions (EFs) are foundational for lifelong flourishing, supporting critical capacities such as planning, decision-making, and self-regulation. Research highlights the malleability of EFs in children, with both long-term and short-term interventions shown to effectively enhance these vital skills. Consequently, there is a growing interest in methods to cultivate EFs from early childhood. Social playfulness, a natural and integral part of children's lives, supports broad developmental benefits and may offer a promising avenue for improving EFs. This study examined the effect of a short playful interaction compared to a physical control activity on children's EF performance and mood. A total of sixty-two children aged 6 to 10 years participated in either a playful interaction or a physical activity with an adult female. The results showed that playful interaction, but not physical activity, improved attentional performance, and in particular response times in the Flanker task. Additionally, playful interaction enhanced children's positive mood and led to stronger social bonds with the co-player. These promising findings suggest that playful interactions are multidimensional activities that simultaneously engage cognitive, emotional, and social functions. We suggest that social playfulness holds unique potential for interventions aimed at training EFs in primary school children, as it is highly enjoyable and easy to learn and integrate into daily activities.

Keywords: Attention; Children; Executive functions; Physical exercise; Social playfulness.

Fig. 1

PANAS scores for positive affect and negative affect, pre and post the short playful or physical interactions. Error bars indicate Mean ± SEM; * p < .05; ** p < .01; *** p < .001.

Fig. 2

Flanker mean response time in seconds, pre and post the short playful or physical interactions. Error bars indicate Mean ± SEM; ** p < .01.