A Comparative Analysis of the Impact of After-School Arts Programs on Executive Functions

Abstract

Drawing on theoretical support for the cognitive benefits of the arts, this study explored the impact of different art forms on executive functions. Sixty students (aged 13–15) from Malayer, Iran, completed the Free Research Executive Evaluation (FREE) battery. Three groups had at least one year of after-school training in music, painting, or theater, while a fourth group had no arts training. The music group achieved the highest scores in shifting and updating tasks, followed by the painting group, which outperformed theater and non-art-trained students. In inhibition, the theater group scored highest in Victoria Stroop–Inhibition and Happy–Sad–Inhibition tasks, with post-hoc comparisons showing an advantage over music in Victoria Stroop. Art-trained groups outperformed the non-art-trained group in most tasks, except Victoria Stroop, where non-art-trained students scored higher than music but not theater or painting, though the difference was not significant. These findings suggest that training in different art forms may enhance executive functions in distinct ways.