The effects of an 8-week Taekwondo exercise intervention on inhibitory control in university students with depressive symptoms demonstrated the following-evidence from behavior and ERPs.

Abstract

Background: In university students with depressive symptoms, inhibitory control dysfunctions strongly contribute to functional impairments, yet they are not adequately addressed in current therapies. This study aims to investigate the intervention effect of an 8-week Taekwondo exercise program on inhibitory control in individuals with depressive symptoms.

Methods: A total of 41 university students with depressive symptoms were randomly divided into a Taekwondo group and a control group. The Taekwondo group participated in an 8-week intervention. Behavioral and ERP measures were collected before and after the intervention during a response inhibition task.

Results: 1.The 8-week Taekwondo exercise intervention significantly improved depressive symptoms in the exercise group (P < 0.05), while depressive symptoms in the control group worsened, although the difference was not statistically significant;2.The results from the behavioral task showed a statistically significant difference in accuracy between the Taekwondo group and the control group in the Go condition during the post-test stage (P < 0.05). In the Nogo condition, there was also a significant difference in accuracy between the two groups (P < 0.05). Notably, only the Taekwondo group exhibited a significant improvement in Nogo condition accuracy from pre-test to post-test (P < 0.001);3.The event-related potential (ERP) results revealed a significant time × group interaction effect for N2 amplitude, F(1, 39) = 4.821, P = 0.034, ƞ_p²=0.110. Additionally, there was a significant condition × electrode interaction effect, F(3, 117) = 18.368, P < 0.001, ƞ_p²= 0.320. For N2 latency, the time × group interaction effect was significant, F(1, 39) = 13.028, P < 0.001, ƞ_p²=0.250, and a significant time × condition × electrode interaction effect was also observed, F(3, 117) = 3.199, P = 0.026, ƞ_p² = 0.076.

Conclusion: Regular moderate-intensity Taekwondo exercise can effectively improve response inhibition in university students with depressive symptoms, along with improvements in depressive symptoms. The changes in N2 amplitude and latency at the Fz, Cz, and Pz electrode sites under task conditions may represent the cognitive neural processing mechanism through which Taekwondo enhances response inhibition in students with depressive symptoms.