This study examined the effects of physical activity versus relaxation on short-term memory retention in college students. It found that students who did a 15-minute bout of moderate physical activity before a memory test performed better on measures of immediate word recall and recognition compared to students who listened to relaxing music. Specifically, those in the physical activity group recalled on average 1.77% more words immediately, 1.23% more on a recognition task, and scored 6.23% higher on a total word recall measure. The results support the hypothesis that physical activity improves short-term memory retention more than a sedentary relaxation activity.

1. ResultsIntroduction Methods
References
• UMass students are unique in that 50% of the student
population work off campus jobs for pay, that is over 20
hours per week. This is 30% over the national average of
working college students. (Murphey, 2003, p.10). Therefore,
our student population must capitalize on the time spent with
their studies in order to achieve exceptional grades.
Necessary for exceptional grades is the use of executive
functions, such as short term memory retention.
• Retention plays a pivotal role for students because in order to
succeed on exams they must be able to recall and process the
information they have learned. Short term memory is a
system where information that is required for performing
perceptive tasks such as reasoning, comprehension and
learning, are retained for a short period of time, often a few
seconds or minutes (Jonides, Lewis, Nee, Lustig, Berman,
Moore, 2008).
• Multiple studies have shown that exercise exerts a positive
influence on cognitive function, particularly executive
function; a group of mental processes of which working
memory is a part of. Studies examining relaxation techniques
that have suggested improved short term memory
functioning due to a decrease in stress- related cortisol.
(Khalsa, 2012, p.14) There is not a sufficient amount of
evidence that suggest whether relaxation techniques or
physical activity will have a greater effect on short term
memory retention.
• The purpose of this study is to examine whether a bout of
physical activity or listening to relaxing music will have a
greater effect on short term memory retention.
• We predict that the physical activity condition will improve
short term memory retention more than the sedentary
relaxation intervention, because of the potential effects that
moderate intensity physical activity have on brain
physiology and chemistry.
• There is strong evidence that exercise improves immediate
retention. Participants in the exercise condition established
statistically significant greater scores on the learning task
(i.e. recall and recognition) compared to the sedentary
condition.
• These results supported our hypothesis in which we believed
exercise would improve short term memory than the
sedentary condition.
• Indirectly, exercise improves mood, sleep, reduces stress,
and anxiety. Problems in these areas frequently cause or
contribute to cognitive impairment.
• Since an increase in physical activity in peoples’ daily lives
can lead to better memory, students should perform physical
activity regularly to help improve academic performance.
• Future research should aim at assessing other forms of
exercise (i.e. strength training, yoga, and tai chi) or
examining a high intensity exercise in college students to see
if it induces different results.
1. Bean, J. (2011). Rey auditory verbal learning test, Rey AVLT. Encyclopedia
of Clinical Neuropsychology, 2174-2175. doi: 10.1007/978-0-387-79948-
3_1153.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Student Health and Academic
Achievement. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/health_and
_academics/index.htm. Accessed Nov. 13, 2015
2. Gathercole, S.E., & Alloway, T.P. (2011) Working memory and learning: A
practical guide for teachers. Los Angeles: SAGE Pub.
3. Gothe, N., Kramer, A., & McAuley, E. (2014). The Effects of an 8-Week
Hatha Yoga Intervention on Executive Function in Older Adults. Gerontology
Series A-Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, 69(9), 1109-1116.
4. Jonides, J., Lewis, R. L., Nee, D. E., Lustig, C. A., Berman, M. G., Moore,
K. S. (2008). “The mind and brain of short-term memory”. Annual Review of
Psychology 59: 193–224. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.59.103006.093615.
5. Khalsa, S. (2012). Your brain on yoga (p. 14). Boston: Harvard Health
Publications
6. Pontifex, MB., Hillman, CH., Fernhall, B., Thompson, KM., Valentini, TA.
The effect of acute aerobic and resistance exercise on working memory.
Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2009; 41 (4): 927-934. Pub Med
doi: 10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181907d69
Table 1: Descriptive statistics of total sample of participants
Figure 1: Average scores on RAVLT in test conditions
*p<.05 Sedentary Condition Exercise Condition
Figure 1 shows the mean averages for each pair in a paired T-
Test. There is a significant difference in each pair. In Pair 1,
TrialVIPA(12.62+1.805) and TrialVI (10.85+1.676), Pair 2,
RecognitionPA (14.31+1.109) and Recognition (13.08+1.706),
Pair 3, TrialSumPA(57.31+6.447) and TrialSum
(51.08+8.200)(P<0.05).
• On average, the PA performance was 1.77% higher in Pair 1,
1.23% higher in Pair 2, and 6.23% higher in Pair 3 than
Music.
The Effects of an Acute Bout of Exercise on Immediate Retention
Tracy Johnson, Karoline Karliyil, Connie Ng, Xiomara Pearson
College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Department of Exercise and Health Sciences
Julie A. Wright, PhD
Variable Mean (SD) or %
Age (years) 24.38 (5.7)
Body Mass index 25.2 (4.5)
RHR (BPM) 77.6 (11.3)
% Female 69
% White 30
% Black 23
% Asian 30
% Hispanic 15
Discussion
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Trial VI Trial VIPA Recognition RecognitionPA
NumberofWords
Condition
Average Number of Words Recalled
*
*
Subjects
• 13 Umass Boston undergraduate students currently enrolled in
Exercise and Health Sciences
• Ages 20-45
• Males and females of different PA levels and ethnicities
Measures
• Physical Activity: Resting heart rate was assessed for each
subject prior to physical activity. Subjects were asked to lightly
jog on a treadmill for 15 minutes, staying within a moderate
heart rate range
• Sedentary: Classical music was played through headphones in a
quiet space for 15 minutes
• Memory Test: 15 words were read out loud to the subject who
then recalled as many words as possible (learning trial/trials 1-5).
This would be repeated 5 times. Next a new list of words
“interference” would be read out loud and recalled by the
subject. Then the subject was asked to recall the words from the
first list (trial 6). Lastly, the subject would check off as many
remembered words from the first list (recognition).
Experimental Design
• The subjects were asked to come in twice. The first day, subjects
were randomly placed into physical activity group or music
group.
• After the intervention, the researchers administered the memory
test.
• On the second day, the subject was placed in the other group, and
the memory test administered again
Statistical Analysis
• A paired T-test was used to compare means of the sedentary and
exercise conditions.
Purpose and Hypothesis