Caterina Pesce

University of Rome "Foro Italico" · Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences

While research in specific academic disciplines has individually advanced knowledge and practice for promoting multiple aspects of health and well-being in children and adolescents, still missing is an understanding of the interconnectedness of many critical aspects of development and how to intentionally weave these factors to advance a more holis...

This study aimed at investigating (1) the cognitive and motor predictors of divergent movement ability (DMA) in childhood and (2) the role of sport and enriched physical education (PE) experience. Participants were 165 fifth graders, aged 10–11 years, with different histories (onset and duration) of participation in enriched PE. They were assessed...

The inconsistent conclusions regarding the effects of physical activity (PA) on children's executive functions (EFs) call for an investigation of the mediators that may explain this relationship during development. This study attempted to examine the potential mediating role of chil-dren's weight status and motor competence (MC) in the PA-EFs relat...

This study examined the effects of a physical education intervention consisting of cognitively challenging physical activity games on school children’s executive functions and motivational regulations. Ninety-nine fourth- and fifth-grade children participated in this two-group, repeated measures, quasi-experimental study with a cross-over design. C...

Measurement of motor competence is a vital process to advancing knowledge in the field of motor development. As motor competence is being more widely linked to research in other academic domains (e.g., public health, neuroscience, behavioral health), it is imperative that measurement methodology and protocols are reproducible with high degrees of v...

The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the effects of movement strategies during academic time, on children's and adolescents' cognitive processing, memory, behavioral control, and academic skills. We used a 2 × 2 design to categorize studies, based on their level of integration with (low vs. high) and relevance to the learning content (low...

In aging societies, physical activity may benefit functional fitness influencing the health of older people. The aim of this study was to explore the interrelation between age and perception of health and quality of life, and the mediating effects of functional fitness in older individuals. One hundred and sixty-six late middle-aged (55–64 years, y...

Background: Engaging in classroom-based physical activity (PA) breaks may help increase children's subjective wellbeing and enjoyment of PA, important precursors for children to remain engaged in PA. We conducted a systematic review to investigate the effect of brief classroom-based PA interventions on primary school children's subjective wellbein...

Contact with water, even from birth, may be an important experience for child development. In this work, we aimed to investigate if baby swimming might influence infant development in motor and cognitive domains. We assigned infants to either a 10-week baby swimming intervention ( n = 12; M age = 13 months ( SD) = 7) or a control group ( n = 15; M...

Research combining physical activity with the training of cognitive skills such as executive functions is emerging as a novel and fruitful intervention approach for children. Purpose: This study aimed to examine the impact of an intervention program including cognitively engaging physical activity on preschool children’s cognitive outcomes and phys...

Introduction In 2008, a conceptual model explaining the role of motor competence (MC) in children’s physical activity (PA), weight status, perceived MC and health-related fitness was published. Objective The purpose of the current review was to systematically compile mediation, longitudinal and experimental evidence in support of this conceptual m...

Approaches to foster motor creativity differ according to whether creative movements are assumed to be enacted creative ideas, or solutions to emerging motor problems that arise from task and environmental constraints. The twofold aim of the current study was to investigate whether (1) an enriched physical education (PE) intervention delivered with...

Background Children with disabilities often engage in less than the recommended amount of daily physical activity (PA). Classroom-based PA breaks are a favourable method of promoting PA for children. However, evaluations of these programs in specialist schools are scarce, with even less research into their feasibility and acceptability. This may hi...

Study aim : To investigate age-related changes in rhythmic reproduction ability in relation to the complexity of the adopted movement task. Material and methods : A Stereophotogrammetric system was used to quantify individual rhythmic performances through motion analysis. Seventeen younger adult (age: 34.8 ± 4.2 yrs) and sixteen older adult (age: 6...

Background Physically active learning (PAL) - integration of movement within delivery of academic content - is a core component of many whole-of-school physical activity approaches. Yet, PAL intervention methods and strategies vary and frequently are not sustained beyond formal programmes. To improve PAL training, a more comprehensive understanding...

The COVID-19 pandemic and the associated governmental restrictions suddenly changed everyday life and potentially affected exercise behavior. The aim of this study was to explore whether individuals changed their preference for certain types of physical exercise during the pandemic and to identify risk factors for inactivity. An international onlin...

Background The relation between physical activity (PA), motor skills and cognitive function in children is receiving considerable attention. To transition scientific evidence into pedagogical practice, however, we need to further our understanding of which qualitative PA characteristics are best suited to stimulate motor skills and executive functi...

Background Within team sports, players’ ability to inhibit inappropriate behavioral responses and flexibly adapt to upcoming challenges relates significantly to their game performance. As such, there have been calls for cognitively fostering programs to form the basis of game teaching and coaching practice. However, only few studies have tested so...

This chapter focuses on practical implications of embodiment to facilitate learning in educational contexts. Starting from a brief historical overview of the scientific debate of action-perception that form the genesis of embodiment, the chapter progresses to later influential theories. Contemporary trends are discussed in light of theories of embo...

Background This study aimed to use a concept mapping methodology to develop a European framework of the needs of parents/guardians (P/G) for supporting athletes combining sport and education (dual career, DC). Methods By means of a concept mapping methodology, 337 French, Irish, Italian, Portuguese, and Slovenian parents sorted and rated 80 potent...

Physical education (PE) is acknowledged as a relevant context for holistic child and youth development promotion. However, interventional research mostly builds on individual theories focused on specific outcome domains. This study presents a multisport enriched PE intervention that capitalizes on the intersection of different theory-based approach...

The present study aimed to analyze the impact of a multicomponent training (MCT) program in a group of non-active older adults, comparing two different dose distributions. Twenty-four individuals, assigned to two groups, completed 15 weeks of MCT (2 days/week). The continuous group (CMCT; n = 14, 9 females; 71.07 ± 5.09 years) trained for 60 min/se...

Introduction Classroom-based active breaks are a feasible and effective way to reduce and break up sitting time, and to potentially benefit physical health in school children. However, the effect of active breaks on children’s cognitive functions and brain activity remains unclear. Objective We investigated the impact of an active break interventi...

Psychophysical well-being can be supported during development by the integration of extra-curricular activities in scholastic settings. These activities can be implemented in different forms, ranging from physical activities to sitting meditation practices. Considering that both such activities are thought to affect children’s psychophysical develo...

Background. Multi-component group exercise programs are shown to prevent and reduce falls in older adults, with judo training producing positive effects on balance and bone health. Fear of falling (FoF) and negative feelings could lead to a decrease in physical activity, self-esteem, confidence, strength, and balance with advancing age. In contrast...

The search for overarching factors involved in both sport and broader lifestyle and achievement domains may help to understand the early drop-out phenomenon. This study aimed to analyze the association between early sport drop-out and strategic learning skills, checking for the individual and joint role of nationality, school type, gender, age and...

In the surging field of chronic physical activity (PA) and cognition research, problems arise that prevent us from ‘seeing the forest for the trees’. The first aim was to identify them and propose solutions. Moreover, inconsistencies in conclusions of a rising amount of systematic reviews render necessary ‘an umbrella for a rain of evidence’. The s...

Background Classroom‐based active breaks can help typically developing children reduce sitting, increase physical activity and improve cognitive functions and on‐task behaviour. Yet, this strategy has not been tested in children with intellectual disability (ID) – a population who are insufficiently active. This study aimed to investigate the effec...

Background Despite the fact that an educational programme for parents of youth tennis players has been launched recently, there is a need to empower parents of athletes in sustaining the combination of education and sport careers (i.e., dual career) of their talented and elite athletes across sports. The aim of this study was to explore the parents...

Objectives To establish the scientific literature on the parents' view as supporters of dual career (DC) athletes, and to highlight practical implications for the development of education programmes to empower parents in this role. Methodology The systematic literature review included four electronic databases, from which 438 articles published in...

While motivation for physical activity (PA) and PA participation have been linked, research on the relationship between motivation for PA and mental health outcomes is scant, with studies involving children largely underrepresented. Grounded in self-determination theory, this cross-sectional study aimed to determine whether autonomous motivation ve...

This study evaluated whether a theory‐based intervention in physical education (PE) designed to train self‐control may positively impact children’s quick‐temperedness and disruptiveness and whether changes in executive functions (EFs) may be a correlate or antecedent of such effects. One hundred and sixteen children aged 8–9 years participated in a...

Internationally, governments, health and exercise practitioners are struggling with the threat posed by physical inactivity leading to worsening outcomes in health and life expectancy and the associated high economic costs. To meet this challenge it is important to enhance the quality, and quantity, of participation in sports and physical activity...

Background: There is a need for interdisciplinary research to better understand how pedagogical approaches in primary physical education (PE) can support the linked development of physical, cognitive and affective aspects of physical literacy and physical activity behaviors in young children living in deprived areas. The Skill Acquisition Methods f...

This chapter explains the relationship between physical activity (PA) and cognition in aging. It starts with the basic, correlational and cross‐sectional level of evidence that PA habits, both unstructured motor activities and structured exercise training, are associated with a comparatively higher maintenance of cognitive efficiency in old age. Th...

Background: This study aims to analyze changes in sedentary elderlies' body composition, comparing the impact of two dose distributions: continuous (60 min/session) vs. accumulated (30 min/session in the morning and 30 min/session in the afternoon), on two types of physical exercise programs (multicomponent-training [MCT] vs. walking interval-trai...

Background: Falls prevention is a critical goal of training program for older individuals. This study explored the effects of a judo program on gait performance in older adults. Methods: Pre- and post-intervention (15 weeks, 1-hr session, twice a week) step length (cm), gait cycle time (s), speed (m·s-1) and cadence (step·min-1) mean values (AVG...

This study analyses the association between EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire indexes (utility index and visual analogue scale) and the physical and mental components of the Short Form Health Survey, considering the impact of some variables that may influence both questionnaires (i.e., age, BMI, physical fitness and cognitive function). Bivari...

The study investigated, through neuroendocrinological, subjective and behavioral assessments, how aging individuals cope with locomotor-cognitive dual-tasking and whether physical activity habits influence the acute response to locomotor-cognitive performance. Seventy-nine healthy participants aged 55–85 years were assessed on locomotor (gait speed...

The relationship between aging and perception of health and quality of life is complex and its mediation mechanisms need to be further explored. The purpose of this study was to investigate the mediating effects of total energy expenditure and intake, body mass, and body image dissatisfaction on the relationship between age and perception of health...

Exercise training is widely promoted as a method to enhance both physical health and cognitive function. Although routine exercise engenders physiological adaptations to the body and brain, its effects on mental processing are uncertain. Our review of the experimental evidence reveals that acknowledging the role of skill acquisition may help clarif...

This cross-sectional study investigated the interactive dual-task (DT) effects of executive function demands and environmental constraints on older adults’ walking and the moderating role of habitual physical activity (PA). Locomotor performance under different environmental constraints (flat versus obstructed walking) and cognitive performance wit...

This study aimed to investigate the effects of a four-month judo training (1-hr session, bi- weekly) on physical and mental health of older adults (69.7±4.2 years). Participants (N=30) were assigned to a judo novice practitioners group (JG=16) or a control group (CG=14), which did not receive any training. Before and after the programme, they under...

Previous research showed that children’s physical activity is positively related to executive functions, whilst screen time shows negative associations. However, it is unclear how school-based sitting time and transitions from sitting to standing relate to cognition. We investigated the relationship between class time sitting/stepping/sit-to-stand...

Currently, there are some scientifi c inconsistencies regarding the effect on the body composition of older adults that different physical exercise programs have (Bouaziz et al. 2016) as well as their time distribution strategies (Donelly et al. 2013). This study compares the effect of the multicomponent program “EFAM-UV©” (2 sessions/week) or a wa...

Il presente studio ha esaminato l'effetto prodotto da un programma di allenamento multicomponente di orientamento neuromuscolare e cognitivo sulla composizione corporea di due gruppi di anziani, mantenendo costante la dose e confrontando la strategia di distribuzione applicata. È stato condotto uno studio longitudinale quasi sperimentale con 27 anz...

SCOPO DELLO STUDIO: Questo lavoro analizza l'effetto di un programma di camminata salutare sulla composizione corporea in un campione di anziani, tenendo conto delle differenze di genere. METODI: Hanno partecipato 20 anziani (76,32±12,43kg e 70,75±4,29anni, di cui 7 donne e 13 uomini) al programma ad intervalli di camminata salutare per 16 settiman...