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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health

Sec. Children and Health

Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1644306

This article is part of the Research TopicExploring the cognitive benefits of physical activity in young peopleView all articles

Multidisciplinary Correlates of Table Tennis Participation in Children: A Concept Mapping Study

Provisionally accepted
  • Jiangsu Food & Pharmaceutical Science College, Huai'an, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Background Table tennis engages a combination of motor, cognitive, and psychosocial skills, demanding quick decision-making, precise coordination, and interpersonal interaction. This study explored the relationship between participation in table tennis training and improvements in children's motor abilities, cognitive development, and psychological resilience. Methods A total of 312 children (156 boys, 156 girls), aged 8–14 years, participated in a 12-month structured table tennis program. Motor performance was evaluated via agility drills, simple reaction time, and hand–eye coordination tasks. Cognitive outcomes were assessed using the Stroop Test and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Psychosocial indicators encompassed self-efficacy, peer interactions, and perceived stress. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to examine hypothesized direct and indirect associations among these domains. Results Longer training duration was significantly associated with improved reaction time (r = −0.42, p < 0.001), agility (r = −0.38, p < 0.001), and hand-eye coordination (r = 0.46, p < 0.001). WCST errors (r = −0.38, p < 0.001) and Stroop response time (r = −0.42, p < 0.001) decreased. Self-efficacy (r = 0.41, p < 0.001) and social competence (r = 0.42, p < 0.001) increased, while perceived stress (r = −0.39, p < 0.001) and antisocial behavior (r = −0.43, p < 0.001) declined. Structural equation modeling revealed significant associations among motor, cognitive, and psychosocial outcomes. Conclusion The findings indicate that structured table tennis training is associated with enhancements in motor coordination, executive functioning, and psychosocial well-being. These results highlight its potential value as an effective component of school-based developmental programs.

Keywords: table tennis, Motor performance, Executive Function, cognitive flexibility, Child Development, psychological resilience

Received: 10 Jun 2025; Accepted: 03 Sep 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Liu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Jiang Liu, Jiangsu Food & Pharmaceutical Science College, Huai'an, China

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