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Association between reaction time, speed and agility in schoolboys

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Abstract

Reaction time (RT), speed of movement and agility are some components of motor skills related to fitness. It has been shown that training positively affects RT, speed and agility; however, the relationship between RT, speed and agility has not been extensively investigated in the literature. The present study aimed to explore the association between clinical RT (RTclin) as a novel RT test, speed and agility among a sample of children. Three hundred and twelve 9- to 12-year-old schoolboys underwent RTclin. Time in speed and agility were determined using the 30-m sprint and 4 × 10-m shuttle run tests, respectively. Socioeconomic status (SES), adiposity and physical activity (PA) were obtained as possible covariates/confounders. Results of hierarchical regression analysis after adjustment for potential confounders indicated that time in the speed did not significantly add to the prediction of RTclin (P > 0.05). However, results of time in the agility analysis indicated that shorter agility time was related to better RTclin (P < 0.01). It is concluded that agility (but not speed) was significantly correlated to better RT in the schoolboys.

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Abbreviations

SES:

Socioeconomic status

BMI:

Body mass index

RT:

Reaction time

RTclin :

Clinical reaction time

PA:

Physical activity

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Acknowledgments

We thank all the participants for their kind participation in the study. No funding was received for performing the present study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran

    Akbar Moradi & Samad Esmaeilzadeh

  2. Islamic Azad University Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran

    Akbar Moradi

Authors
  1. Akbar Moradi
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  2. Samad Esmaeilzadeh
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Correspondence to Samad Esmaeilzadeh.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Human Ethics Committee of the Ardabil Department of Education and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Moradi, A., Esmaeilzadeh, S. Association between reaction time, speed and agility in schoolboys. Sport Sci Health 11, 251–256 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11332-015-0230-4

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