The mediation role of executive functions as predictors between physical activity and academic performance in high school students

• Physical activity, attention and inhibition predict academic performance. • Emotional regulation doesn’t predict academic performance. • Attention is a mediator between physical activity and academic performance. • Inhibition is a mediator between physical activity and academic performance. • Physical activity directly and indirectly improves academic performance. Several studies have highlighted the intricate interplay between physical activity, executive functions, and academic performance. However, the nuanced relationships among these variables necessitate further investigation into the roles of physical activity and executive functions as predictors or mediators of academic success. A study was conducted with a convenience sample comprising 172 Spanish high school students. This study assessed physical activity levels, executive functions (specifically focusing on cognitive components such as attention and inhibition, as well as the affective component of emotional regulation), and academic performance. The findings revealed several key insights: firstly, both physical activity and cognitive executive functions (specifically attention and inhibition) emerged as significant predictors of academic performance. However, emotional regulation did not show a significant predictive relationship. Secondly, cognitive executive functions (attention and inhibition) were found to partially mediate the association between physical activity and academic performance. These results suggest that interventions targeting improvements in both physical activity levels and cognitive executive functions, particularly attention and inhibition, may yield positive outcomes in terms of academic performance among students in compulsory secondary education.