Trott et al.1 conducted a meta-analysis to study the association between total physical activity (PA) levels and academic performance in adults. Only 6 of the 36 studies included were found to be appropriately homogeneous to be included in the meta-analysis. This meta-analysis found a signficiant association between physical activity and academic performance (objective measures: GPA, mean grades, academic score etc.) with an odds ratio of 3.04. Per Layne Norton, an effective size odds ratio of .2 is low, .5 is moderate, and .8 is large; suggesting that 3 is substantial.
Odds ratio = (odds of event in exposed group)/(odds of event in non – exposed group)
In this case an odds ratio of 3.04 suggests that exposure to physical activity may provide a 3x increase the odds of performing higher academically.
PA has been consistently associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety. Better mental health could help explain the correlation to positive academic performance. However, because of the mixed results of the 30 studies left, that weren’t included in the meta-analysis, the the authors warn to treat the results with caution. The authors discuss that the reason behind the mixed results could be because of the heterogeneity of measurement of both dependent and independent variables. Basically, there were many different tools used to measure PA that were then interpreted in many different ways. They mention that the reliability PA self-report tools is questionable.
The studies gathered for this review were all cross-sectional, longitudinal, case control and longitudinal studies. These are lower on the totem pole in regards to strength of evidence compared to randomized control trials. The authors suggest that yes this meta-analysis did find evidence associating PA with academic performance, the remaining literature is not consistent in those associations. Of note, people are usually sedentary when they study. This could well be a confounding variable explaining the mixed results in other studies.
- Trott M, Kentzer N, Horne J, Langdown B, Smith L. Associations between total physical activity levels and academic performance in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Educ Health Promot. 2024;13:273. Published 2024 Jul 29. doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_1618_23