APS
2026 APS Annual Convention · 2026
Day-to-Day Physical Activity Impacts Longitudinal Cognitive Growth across Childhood
- Pedro Espinosa-Villafranca
Max Planck Institute for Human Development - Marie Schmidt
Max Planck Institute for Human Development - Nancy Palacios-Mena
Universidad de los Andes - Salome Amissah-Essel
University of Cape Coast - Onur Aksünger
Max Planck Institute for Human Development - Andrés Felipe Ramírez Arévalo
Universidad de los Andes - Ying Lin
Max Planck Institute for Human Development - Chi Ngo
Emmy Noether Group RAVEN (Real-world Applications of Variability in Episodic Memory and Neurodevelopment)
Abstract
Day-to-day variation in children’s physical activity may shape early cognitive development. This project uses accelerometry to track physical activity over 18 months alongside repeated cognitive testing. We predict that greater moderate-to-vigorous activity will forecast improvements in episodic memory and executive functions, and that environmental affordances will modulate these associations.
