{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]],"date-time":"2026-07-08T17:13:19Z","timestamp":1783530799052,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]],"date-time":"2026-07-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1783468800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JFMK"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Objectives: Effective operational functioning within the tactical domain requires a high integration of physical and psychological capacities under stressful conditions. This study investigated the impact of physical exertion at varying intensities (anaerobic and aerobic running) on subsequent change-of-direction speed (CODS) performance among police students, while evaluating the role of mental toughness (MT) and biological sex. Methods: Thirty police students (36.7% female) completed running protocols at different intensities (300-yard shuttle run and 2.4 km Cooper test), immediately followed by the Illinois Agility Test (IAT) to assess CODS performance. Mental toughness was evaluated using the Mental Toughness Index (MTI). Repeated-measures ANOVA and ANCOVA were used to analyze the main and interaction effects. Results: Initial repeated-measures ANOVA revealed that increasing running intensities significantly degraded CODS performance, demonstrating large main effects for both the anaerobic (F = 56.70, p &lt; 0.001, \u03b72p = 0.661) and aerobic (F = 47.50, p &lt; 0.001, \u03b72p = 0.621) protocols. After introducing mean-centered MT as a covariate, the main effect of Running Speed remained highly significant in both the anaerobic (F = 57.52, p &lt; 0.001, \u03b72p = 0.673) and aerobic (F = 46.01, p &lt; 0.001, \u03b72p = 0.622) models, with no significant univariate interaction effects involving MT or sex on the rate of decline. Mixed ANCOVA showed a significant main effect of sex on absolute IAT times under both anaerobic and aerobic conditions, with males consistently outperforming females. No significant differences in baseline MT scores were observed between sexes (p = 0.507). Conclusions: The findings demonstrate that physical fatigue robustly impairs CODS performance at a parallel rate for both male and female police students. Mental toughness does not neutralize the physiological rate of performance decline under acute fatigue. Practical training programs should integrate physical and psychological conditioning scenarios, while workload management protocols can be uniformly applied across biological sexes.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jfmk11030268","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]],"date-time":"2026-07-08T15:40:09Z","timestamp":1783525209000},"page":"268","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Running Speed and Mental Toughness: Effects on Change-of-Direction Speed in Police Students"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"11","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5319-0958","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ranko","family":"Rajovi\u0107","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Neuroscience in Education, Faculty of Education, University of Primorska, 6000 Koper, Slovenia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7196-7185","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nenad","family":"Koropanovski","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Criminalistics, University of Criminal Investigation and Police Studies, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8625-5375","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Filip","family":"Kuki\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Physical Education and Sports, University of Banja Luka, 78000 Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6268-5274","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Igor","family":"Rado\u0161evi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Physical Education and Sports Management, Singidunum University, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2592-451X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Milo\u0161","family":"Milo\u0161evi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Physical Education and Sports Management, Singidunum University, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7153-2993","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Milivoj","family":"Dopsaj","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Sport and Physical Education, University in Belgrade, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"919","DOI":"10.1080\/02640410500457109","article-title":"Agility Literature Review: Classifications, Training and Testing","volume":"24","author":"Sheppard","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Sports Sci."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Joseph, A., Wiley, A., Orr, R., Schram, B., and Dawes, J.J. (2018). The Impact of Load Carriage on Measures of Power and Agility in Tactical Occupations: A Critical Review. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 15.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph15010088"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"731","DOI":"10.4067\/S0717-95022020000300731","article-title":"Association of Sex-Related Differences in Body Composition to Change of Direction Speed in Police Officers While Carrying Load","volume":"38","author":"Koropanovski","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. Morphol."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Koropanovski, N., Orr, R.M., Dopsaj, M., Heinrich, K.M., Dawes, J.J., and Kuki\u0107, F. (2022). Effects of Maximal and Submaximal Anaerobic and Aerobic Running on Subsequent Change-of-Direction Speed Performance among Police Students. Biology, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/biology11050767"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Orr, R.M., Kuki\u0107, F., \u010cvorovi\u0107, A., Koropanovski, N., Jankovi\u0107, R., Dawes, J.J., and Lockie, R.G. (2019). Associations between Fitness Measures and Change of Direction Speeds with and without Occupational Loads in Female Police Officers. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 16.","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph16111947"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1202","DOI":"10.1177\/00315125231165819","article-title":"Mental Toughness and Resilience in Trail Runner\u2019s Performance","volume":"130","author":"Gameiro","year":"2023","journal-title":"Percept. Mot. Ski."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"26","DOI":"10.1111\/jopy.12079","article-title":"The Conceptualization of Mental Toughness Tests of Dimesionality, Nomological Network, and Traitness","volume":"83","author":"Gucciardi","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Pers."},{"key":"ref_8","unstructured":"Clough, P., and Strycharczyk, D. (2012). Developing Mental Toughness: Improving Performance, Wellbeing and Positive Behaviour in Others, Kogan Page Publishers."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"718","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jsams.2017.02.007","article-title":"Controlling Coaching and Athlete Thriving in Elite Adolescent Netballers: The Buffering Effect of Athletes\u2019 Mental Toughness","volume":"20","author":"Gucciardi","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. Sci. Med. Sport"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"192","DOI":"10.2466\/pms.100.1.192-194","article-title":"Relationship between Mental Toughness and Physical Endurance","volume":"100","author":"Crust","year":"2005","journal-title":"Percept. Mot. Ski."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1182","DOI":"10.1016\/j.paid.2007.11.011","article-title":"Mental Toughness, Optimism, Pessimism, and Coping among Athletes","volume":"44","author":"Nicholls","year":"2008","journal-title":"Personal. Individ. Differ."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"307","DOI":"10.2165\/11586070-000000000-00000","article-title":"Interactive Processes Link the Multiple Symptoms of Fatigue in Sport Competition","volume":"41","author":"Knicker","year":"2011","journal-title":"Sports Med."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"929","DOI":"10.1007\/s00421-008-0818-3","article-title":"Do We Really Need a Central Governor to Explain Brain Regulation of Exercise Performance?","volume":"104","author":"Marcora","year":"2008","journal-title":"Eur. J. Appl. Physiol."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"857","DOI":"10.1152\/japplphysiol.91324.2008","article-title":"Mental Fatigue Impairs Physical Performance in Humans","volume":"106","author":"Marcora","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Appl. Physiol."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1317","DOI":"10.1080\/1612197X.2023.2204312","article-title":"Effects of Mental Toughness on Athletic Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis","volume":"22","author":"Hsieh","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Sport Exerc. Psychol."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"390","DOI":"10.1111\/jhn.12257","article-title":"Comparison of Multi- and Single-Frequency Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis with Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry for Assessment of Body Composition in Post-Menopausal Women: Effects of Body Mass Index and Accelerometer-Determined Physical Activity","volume":"28","author":"Cuberek","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Hum. Nutr. Diet."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"958","DOI":"10.1519\/JSC.0000000000003044","article-title":"Relationship of Strength and Conditioning Metrics to Success on the Army Ranger Physical Assessment Test","volume":"33","author":"Barringer","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Strength Cond. Res."},{"key":"ref_18","first-page":"5","article-title":"Association of Shorter and Longer Distance Sprint Running to Change of Direction Speed in Police Students","volume":"27","author":"Streetman","year":"2022","journal-title":"NBP Nauka Bezb. Polic."},{"key":"ref_19","first-page":"214","article-title":"The Reliability of the 300-Yard Shuttle Run in High School Girls Basketball Players","volume":"3","author":"White","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Sports Sci."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"29","DOI":"10.1016\/j.physbeh.2017.12.015","article-title":"An Integrative Perspective of the Anaerobic Threshold","volume":"205","author":"Sales","year":"2019","journal-title":"Physiol. Behav."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"558","DOI":"10.1177\/193229680700100414","article-title":"Blood Lactate Measurements and Analysis During Exercise: A Guide for Clinicians","volume":"1","author":"Goodwin","year":"2007","journal-title":"J. Diabetes Sci. Technol."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"942","DOI":"10.1519\/JSC.0000000000003489","article-title":"2.4-Km Run and 20-m Multistage Fitness Test Relationships in Law Enforcement Recruits After Academy Training","volume":"34","author":"Lockie","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Strength Cond. Res."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"60","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ramd.2016.03.001","article-title":"Reliability and Accuracy of Coopers Test in Male Long Distance Runners","volume":"10","author":"Carnero","year":"2017","journal-title":"Rev. Andal. Med. Deporte"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2752","DOI":"10.1519\/JSC.0b013e3182890ac3","article-title":"Test-Retest Reliability, Criterion-Related Validity, and Minimal Detectable Change of the Illinois Agility Test in Male Team Sport Athletes","volume":"27","author":"Hachana","year":"2013","journal-title":"J. Strength Cond. Res."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Stamatis, A., Deal, P.J., Morgan, G.B., Forsse, J.S., Papadakis, Z., McKinley-Barnard, S., Scudamore, E.M., and Koutakis, P. (2020). Can Athletes Be Tough yet Compassionate to Themselves? Practical Implications for NCAA Mental Health Best Practice No. 4. PLoS ONE, 15.","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0244579"},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"212","DOI":"10.1037\/rep0000499","article-title":"Mental Toughness and Osteoarthritis: Postsurgery Improvement in Knee Pain\/Functionality in Older Adults","volume":"68","author":"Stamatis","year":"2023","journal-title":"Rehabil. Psychol."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"14","DOI":"10.5937\/nabepo27-36389","article-title":"Psychometric Properties of the Serbian Version of Mental Toughness Inventory and Dark Triad Dirty Dozen in Police Students","volume":"27","author":"Dopsaj","year":"2022","journal-title":"Nauka Bezb. Polic."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"96","DOI":"10.1080\/00223891.2012.696080","article-title":"Examining the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) Among Early and Late Adolescents and Their Mothers","volume":"95","author":"Hawk","year":"2013","journal-title":"J. Personal. Assess."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"135","DOI":"10.1016\/j.edurev.2010.12.001","article-title":"Eta Squared and Partial Eta Squared as Measures of Effect Size in Educational Research","volume":"6","author":"Richardson","year":"2011","journal-title":"Educ. Res. Rev."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.18261\/njsp.9.1.9","article-title":"Personality and Hardiness among Police Students: An Evaluative Pilot Study","volume":"9","author":"Risan","year":"2022","journal-title":"Nord. J. Stud. Polic."},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"152","DOI":"10.1080\/1612197X.2015.1121509","article-title":"Mental Toughness in South African Competitive Tennis: Biographical and Sport Participation Differences","volume":"14","author":"Cowden","year":"2016","journal-title":"Int. J. Sport Exerc. Psychol."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1250","DOI":"10.1111\/jopy.12472","article-title":"Bridging the Gap: A Network Approach to Dark Triad, Mental Toughness, the Big Five, and Perceived Stress","volume":"87","author":"Papageorgiou","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Personal."},{"key":"ref_33","first-page":"52","article-title":"A Comparison of Anaerobic Endurance Capacity in Elite Soccer, Handball and Basketball Players","volume":"46","author":"Sporis","year":"2014","journal-title":"Kinesiology"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"250","DOI":"10.1113\/EP085370","article-title":"Sex Differences in Fatigability of Dynamic Contractions","volume":"101","author":"Hunter","year":"2016","journal-title":"Exp. Physiol."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"232","DOI":"10.1037\/mil0000074","article-title":"Development and Validation of a Military Training Mental Toughness Inventory","volume":"27","author":"Arthur","year":"2015","journal-title":"Mil. Psychol."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"291","DOI":"10.1016\/bs.pbr.2018.10.004","article-title":"The Effects of Mental Fatigue on Sport-Related Performance","volume":"Volume 240","author":"Pageaux","year":"2018","journal-title":"Progress in Brain Research"}],"container-title":["Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2411-5142\/11\/3\/268\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]],"date-time":"2026-07-08T16:15:12Z","timestamp":1783527312000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2411-5142\/11\/3\/268"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]]},"references-count":36,"journal-issue":{"issue":"3","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9]]}},"alternative-id":["jfmk11030268"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/jfmk11030268","relation":{},"ISSN":["2411-5142"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2411-5142","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,8]]}}}