Browsing by Author "Herold F."

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    The Effect of the Playing Positions in Basketball on Measures of Cognitive Performance
    (Springer Nature, 2023) Mancı E.; Günay E.; Güdücü Ç.; Herold F.; Bediz C.Ş.
    Purpose: To compete at a high-performance level, an athlete needs not only extraordinary physical capabilities but also extraordinary cognitive capabilities. However, position-specific differences concerning cognitive performance capabilities in team sport athletes (e.g., basketball) have, so far, not been extensively studied. Thus, this study investigated possible position-specific differences in specific cognitive performance capabilities in a cohort of trained basketball athletes playing guard, forward, or center positions for more than 10 years. Methods: 27 male basketball players and 20 sedentary controls were included in this study. We used three cognitive tests (i.e., Change Detection Test, Timewall Test, and Mackworth Clock Test) to investigate possible cognitive performance differences concerning position-specific capabilities. Thereto, indices of cognitive performance were compared between the athletes of the different playing positions and sedentary controls. Results: In the Change Detection Test, the number of correct answers from guards was significantly higher than the one of the forwards, centers, and sedentary controls (p <.001). During the Timewall Test, centers’ timing scores were significantly higher than the one of the guards, forwards, and sedentary controls (p <.001). Concerning the Mackworth Clock Test, no significant differences between the playing positions were observed, although all basketball players outperformed sedentary controls. Conclusion: In summary, the results of this cross-sectional study provide evidence (i) that trained basketball players are equipped with superior cognitive capabilities as compared to sedentary controls, and (ii) that in trained basketball players position-related differences in specific cognitive capabilities occur. In regard to the latter, our findings suggest that guards are equipped with superior visuospatial attention and short-term memory capabilities whereas centers showed superior visuospatial perception and timing abilities. Whether such differences are caused by long-term position-specific training, are a result of a selection process, or a result of both factors needs to be investigated in future longitudinal studies. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
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    The Influence of Acute Sprint Interval Training on the Cognitive Performance of Male Basketball Players: An Investigation of Expertise-Related Differences
    (MDPI, 2023) Mancı E.; Herold F.; Günay E.; Güdücü Ç.; Müller N.G.; Bediz C.Ş.
    Highly developed cognitive abilities are an important prerequisite for reaching elite athletic levels. This study aimed to investigate the effect of an acute sprint interval training (SIT) session on the cognitive performance of amateur and elite players. Eighteen amateur and ten elite male basketball players were included in this study. They were asked to perform an acute SIT consisting of the Wingate Test (i.e., four bouts of 30 s all-out sprints) on a cycle ergometer, interspersed with 4 min of active recovery. Before and after the acute SIT, three cognitive tests (i.e., Change Detection Test, Timewall Test, Mackworth Clock Test) were performed. Exercise-induced changes in cognitive performance and between-group differences were analyzed. We did not observe significant between-group differences in the performance of any cognitive test at the pretest, but elite basketball players outperformed the amateur players in specific measures of the Change Detection Test and Timewall Test after the acute SIT (p < 0.05). In addition, for the Clock Test, only the elite basketball players’ performance improved from pre- to posttest. The current study’s findings suggest that male elite basketball players, compared to amateur basketball players, can preserve their cognitive performance after an acute bout of SIT. © 2023 by the authors.
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    The influence of acute sprint exercise on cognition, gaming performance, and cortical hemodynamics in esports players and age-matched controls
    (Springer, 2024) Mancı E.; Gençtürk U.; Günay E.; Güdücü Ç.; Herold F.; Bediz C.Ş.
    The relationship between esports and cognitive performance has recently gained increasing interest in the scientific community. However, our knowledge of the effects of acute sprint exercise (SE) on game performance and cognitive performance of esports players (as compared to age-matched controls) is scant. To address this gap, this study using a between-subjects design with pretest-posttest comparisons recruited amateur esports players aged between 18 and 35 years, and healthy age-matched controls who did not play esports games. The participants performed the Go/No-go test, Tracking Test, and the First Person Shooter (FPS) game Valorant immediately before and 5 and 30 min after SE. In addition to the behavioral performance, changes in the cortical hemodynamics of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) were recorded before and after the acute physical exercise while playing Valorant using functional near-infrared spectroscopy. The results show that amateur esports players have superior performance in both game performance (p <.001) and specific measures of cognitive performance (i.e., Tracking Test, p <.05), regardless of the sessions. After the acute physical exercise, the gaming performance in both groups improved, and amateur esports players showed a higher accuracy in the Go/No-go task 30 min after SE. Regarding PFC cortical hemodynamics, no significant difference was noticed in the oxygenation values of both groups between pre and post tests, and between-group differences (p >.05). In conclusion, our study provides evidence that (i) amateur esports players have superior cognitive performance in specific domains and (ii) an acute bout of physical exercise can increase the gaming performance of both amateur esports players and healthy age-matched controls. © The Author(s) 2024.
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    Determining Cognitive Performance in Athletes: A Systematic Review Focused on Methodology of Applying Cognitive Tests
    (John Wiley and Sons Inc, 2025) Manci E.; Herold F.; Özdalyan F.; Benli M.D.; Bozkurt Ç.; Gençtürk U.; Gebel A.; Güdücü Ç.; Günay E.; Bediz C.Ş.; Pontifex M.B.; Muller N.G.
    Although in recent years, there have been many studies to determine the cognitive performance of athletes, there are significant differences in the methodological approaches of these studies. Therefore, this methodology-focused systematic review aims to analyze the application methods of cognitive test studies with athletes and to provide standard recommendations for further studies. For this purpose, three electronic databases (Web of Science, PubMed, and Scopus) were searched using predetermined keywords. As a result of the screening, 25 studies were included in the review. The result of this systematic review focused on the methodology of applying cognitive tests and observed considerable heterogeneity in methodological procedures applied in studies investigating the cognitive performance of athletes. The findings of this review highlight the need for the development of standardized procedures for the assessment of cognitive performance in future research while offering practical recommendations for researchers and coaches working in this area. © 2025 The Author(s). Scandinavian Journal of Psychology published by Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.