Exploring The Relationship Between Physical Activity And Executive Function In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Review

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is defined as a complex neurodevelopmental condition marked by persistent impairments in social interaction, communication, restricted and repetitive behavior across motor and sensory modalities. Deficits in children with ASD are related to non-well development in executive functions (inhibition response, working memory and cognitive flexibility). This paper aims to perform a systematic review to examine the effects of physical activity on executive functions in children with ASD, underlining didactic implications for teachers and promoting inclusive and adapted physical activity programs. The PRISMA protocol was used to conduct a systematic review of SportDiscuss, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and GoogleScholar. Studies included in the systematic review evidenced positive effects of physical activity on executive functioning, motor skills proficiency and related factors in children with ASD. Future research should clarify the long-term effects of physical activity both on executive function and daily behavior to develop specific teacher/educators interventions and public policy recommendations