Investigating the Pathways between Social Factors, Physical Activity, and Mental Health on Cognitive Efficiency in Young Adults

Abstract

Cognitive health is important across the life span and cognitive functions, particularly executive functions, are positively correlated with subjective well-being and success in adulthood (Loprinzi, 2013). The present study aimed to investigate how social factors, mental health, and physical activity impacts cognition in young adults. Young adults aged 18-30 (N = 134) answered questionnaires regarding levels of physical activity, social support, social participation, anxiety, depression, and overall well-being. Participants completed Trail Making Tasks A and B to measure their cognitive efficiency (i.e., combined processing speed, psychological flexibility, visual search, and attention). Across all samples, one of the most consistent findings was the strong inverse relationship between mental health and quality of life. This reinforces the previous research that psychological distress is a barrier to well-being, regardless of age or background. In the combined sample, the set of predictors was significant for Trail Making Task A, but not Trail Making Task B. Our results suggest that physical activity and age may be particularly predictive of attentional functioning among young adults.

Date of Award	2025
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	Eastern Illinois University
Supervisor	Anne Walk (Supervisor)