psych exam 3 chp 17 ,18 ,19

Focusing on Relevant Environmental Cues

- An external focus of attention has been found to be beneficial to performance in a variety of tasks, such as those that focus on balance, accuracy, speed and endurance, and maximum force production. - An external focus results in increases in performance outcomes, movement efficiency, and movement kinematics. - Because the effectiveness of an external focus generalizes across many situations and skill levels, teachers and coaches should teach athletes how to focus externally.

Shifting Attentional Focus

- Attentional flexibility is known as the ability to alter the scope and focus of attention as demanded by the situation. - For example, prior to a shot a golfer uses a broad external focus to assess factors such as the wind, length of the fairway, traps, etc. After appraising the situation, she shifts to a broad internal focus (to recall similar shots). During her preshot routine when she monitors her tension level and breathing, she has a narrow-internal focus. Finally, she uses a narrow external focus when addressing the ball.

Types of Attentional Focus

- Broad attentional focus - Narrow attentional focus - External attentional focus - Internal attentional focus

Category 2: Reinforcement Approaches

- Chart attendance and participation. -Rewards improve attendance but must be provided throughout the length of the program. -Providing feedback to participants on their progress has positive motivational effects. -Participants keep written records of their physical activity (self-monitoring).

Choking as an Attentional Problem

- Choking is an attentional process that leads to impaired performance and the inability to retain control over performance without outside assistance. - Choking is characterized by performers' exhibiting conscious step-by-step execution of skills and a breakdown of automated movement patterns.

Overanalyzing Body Mechanics as an Attentional Problem

- Conscious processing hypothesis: Choking occurs when skilled performers focus too much of their conscious attention to the task, much as they would do if they were a novice at the task. - According to this hypothesis, performance decreases only with increased focus on several task-relevant cues.

Expert-Novice Differences in Attentional Processing

- Expert players attend more to advance information (e.g., arm and racket cues) than do novices and thus can make faster decisions and can better anticipate future actions. - Expert players attend more to movement patterns of their opponents than do novices. - Expert players search more systematically for cues than do novices. - Expert players selectively attend to the structure inherent in their particular sport more than novices (e.g., they can pick up structured offensive and defensive styles of play). - Expert players are more successful in predicting the flight pattern of a ball than novices are.

Guidelines for Using Exercise as Therapy

- Explore the clients' exercise history (good and bad experiences. - Provide a precise diagnosis of the psychological problem. - Use an individualized exercise prescription for duration, intensity, and frequency of exercise. - Evaluate the influence of family and friends (to facilitate support). - Develop a plan for any lack of adherence and irregular patterns of exercise. - Make exercise practical and functional (e.g., bicycling to work, doing hard physical work). - Encourage exercise as an adjunct to other forms of therapy. A multimodal therapeutic approach is more effective than the use of a single intervention. - Include a variety of activities, which enhance adherence to the exercise regimen. - Exercise therapy should be done only by qualified professionals. - No exact criteria for training have been established. - It is suggested that formal training and practical experience in both the psychological and sport sciences are necessary because of the multidisciplinary approach to treatment.

Recognizing Attentional Problems: External Distracters

- External distracters may be defined as stimuli from the environment that divert people's attention from the cues relevant to their performance. - Visual distracters (e.g. spectators in sport) - Auditory distracters (e.g., plane flying over, loud or unexpected noises)

Concentration and Optimal Performance

- Focus on only the relevant cues in the athletic environment and eliminate distractions. - The ability to automatically process or execute movements is critical in performance environments

Category 3: Cognitive-Behavioral Approaches

- Goal setting should be used to motivate individuals. --Exercise-related goals should be ----self-set rather than instructor-set, ----flexible rather than fixed, and -----time-based rather than distance-based. -Cognitive techniques: Dissociative strategies emphasize external distractions and the environment and produce significantly higher levels of exercise adherence than associative strategies focusing on internal body feedback.

Interventions to Help Alleviate Choking Under Pressure

- Imagery builds athletes' confidence. - Preshot routines help keep athletes task-focused and relaxed. - Secondary task focus helps athletes focus on one task-relevant cue. - Exposure to stressful situations allows athletes to feel more comfortable.

Recognizing Attentional Problems

- Internal Distracters - Attending to past events (what was?) - Attending to future events (what if?) - Choking under pressure - Overanalysis of body mechanics - Fatigue - Inadequate motivation

Six Rules for Creating Effective Self-Talk

- Keep phrases short and specific. - Use the first person and present tense. - Construct positive phrases. - Say your phrases with meaning and attention. - Speak kindly to yourself. - Repeat phrases often.

Maintaining Attentional Focus

- Maintaining attentional focus for the duration of the competition or performance is also part of concentration. - This can be difficult because on average, people engage in about 4,000 distinct thoughts in a 16-hour day.

Mindfulness Intervention to Help Alleviate Choking Under Pressure

- Mindfulness is "the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment" (Kabat-Zinn, 2003, p. 145) - Mindfulness differs from the relaxation response (see chapter 13) and meditation in that people practicing mindfulness consciously attend to specific thoughts and feelings that arise in awareness and observe them nonjudgmentally while meditation focuses on clearing the mind. - Mindfulness Intervention to Help Alleviate Choking Under Pressure - Mindfulness interventions have been developed and initial experimental studies have supported the effectiveness of a mindfulness training program in enhancing concentration, reducing anxiety, and improving performance. - Other initial research has supported the idea that mindfulness training can reduce emotional reactions to stress in military personnel.

Uses of Self-Talk

- Motivational - Initiating action - Sustaining effort - Instructional - Skill acquisition - Breaking bad habits

Environmental Factors cont.

- Physical activity characteristics --Exercise intensity, frequency, and duration ----Exercise intensities should be kept at moderate levels to enhance the probability of long-term adherence to exercise programs. --Comparing group with individual programs ----Although exercising with a group generally produces higher levels of adherence than does exercising alone, certain people prefer to exercise alone for convenience. Tailor programs to fit individuals and the constraints they feel can help them adhere to the program. --Leader qualities ----Program leadership is important in determining the success of an exercise program. ----Exercise leaders influence the success of an exercise program, so they should be knowledgeable, give lots of feedback and praise, help participants set flexible goals, and show concern for safety and psychological comfort. -----However, an exercise leader may not be effective in all situations, so leaders should be tailored to the participant needs and likes.

Self-Talk and Performance Enhancement

- Positive self-talk improves performance. Under certain conditions negative self-talk enhances performance as well. - Determine the type of task and most appropriate type of self-talk needed for enhancing performance on the task. - Consider culture when looking at effects of positive and negative self-talk on performance.

Exercise and Quality of Life

- Quality of life has been defined as "individuals' perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards, and concerns" (World Health Organization Group, 1995, p. 1405). - Quality of life is a person's behavioral functioning ability—being able to do everyday stuff and living long enough to do it. - Physically active people report a better quality of life. - It has been found that a regular exercise program can enhance employees' feelings of life satisfaction, job satisfaction, and self-worth. - In college students levels of physical activity were related to increased satisfaction with life, whereas increased sedentary behavior was related to lower levels of satisfaction with life. Thus, college students should not only try to increase their physical activity, but also to decrease their sedentary behavior. - Physically active (versus inactive) individuals tend to be in better health, report more stamina, have more positive attitudes toward work, and report a greater ability to cope with stress and tension. - Exercise produces small increases in total sleep time, although it has no effect on how long it takes to fall asleep. - Older adults who are physically active versus inactive report greater life satisfaction—attributable to less dependence on others—and better overall physical health. - Sociodemographic variables such as income, education, marital status, and age are not significantly related to perceptions of quality of life. - Exercise programs contribute to a person's quality of life by influencing affect, perceived stress, physical health, and life satisfaction.

Maintaining Situational Awareness

- Situation awareness is the ability that allows players to size up game situations, opponents, and competitions to make appropriate decisions based on the situation, often under acute pressure and time demands. - Experts and novices demonstrate situational awareness in that they differ in their attentional processing.

Coaching Behaviors and Self-Talk

- Supportive coaching behaviors help produce more positive and less negative self-talk. - Negative punishment coaching behaviors help produce more negative self-talk and less positive self-talk.

Runner's High

- The runner's high is a euphoric sensation, usually unexpected, of heightened well-being, an enhanced appreciation of nature, and transcendence of time and space. - Preliminary results out of Germany provide initial evidence that there is a chemical change (endorphins) in the brain related to the runner's high. - Characteristics conducive to the runner's high are few distractions; cool, calm weather and low humidity; and a duration of at least 30 minutes. - Runners differ regarding whether and how often they experience the runner's high and may require slightly different sets of conditions to get it.

Selected Research Findings on Association-Dissociation

- Think of association and dissociation as a continuum (versus a simple dichotomy). - Associative strategies are generally correlated with faster running performances, although runners use both associative and dissociative strategies. - Dissociation does not increase probability of injury, but it can decrease fatigue and monotony. - Dissociation should be used by people who want to increase adherence to exercise.

Reduction of Depression

-A moderate relationship exists between exercise and depression. -This is a correlation, not a cause-effect relationship. -Exercise is as effective as psychotherapy in reducing depression. -The positive effects are seen across age groups, health status, race, socioeconomic status, and genders. -Both aerobic and anaerobic exercise are associated with reductions in depression. -Severe depression usually requires professional treatment, which may include medication, psychotherapy, electroconvulsive therapy, or a combination of these, with exercise as an adjunct. -Exercise produces larger antidepressant effects when the training program is at least 9 weeks long. -Reductions in depression after exercise do not depend on fitness levels. -Exercising three to five times per week produces significant reductions in depression compared to once-a-week exercise. (continued) -Team sports during high school reported lower depression scores in early adulthood; sport participation might protect against depressive symptoms in early adulthood. -Exercising outdoors (compared to indoors) produced a more positive affect, excitement, less fatigue, and reductions in depressive symptoms in a depressed sample. -In a prison population it was found that moderately intense cardiovascular plus resistance training reduced depressive symptoms over a control (no exercise) group for these prisoners, while also reducing anxiety and hostility scores.

Acute Effects of Exercise

-Aerobic exercise is associated with lower state anxiety and higher tranquility scores. -Reviews of hundreds of studies involving thousands of participants show general consensus about the positive effects (generally moderate) of exercise in reducing both acute and chronic anxiety (not simply attributable to a time-out or rest). -Postexercise reductions in state anxiety return to preexercise anxiety levels within 24 hours (maybe as soon as 4 hours). -Longer training programs (sessions conducted over weeks rather than hours or days) are more effective than shorter ones. -Exercise intensities between 30% and 70% of maximal heart rate appear to be associated with the greatest reduction in postexercise state anxiety. -Moderate-intensity exercise produced the greatest positive effects in affective responses. -Even low-intensity exercise improved affect. -For anaerobic exercise (e.g., weightlifting), mood-enhancing effects are evident at 30% to 50% maximum heart rate. -Although acute exercise is no more effective in reducing state anxiety than quiet rest or relaxation, the effects last longer. -Exercise training is particularly effective for people who have elevated levels of anxiety but will reduce anxiety even for people with low levels of anxiety. -All durations of exercise significantly reduce anxiety, although larger effects have been found for periods of up to 30 minutes (especially under moderate-intensity levels). -Exercise is associated with reductions in muscle tension. -Reductions in anxiety are not necessarily tied to the physiological gains resulting from exercise bouts. -Anxiety reduction after exercise occurs regardless of intensity, duration, or type. -Aerobic exercise can produce anxiety reductions similar in magnitude to those with other commonly employed anxiety treatments. -Anxiety reduction after exercise occurs in all types of participants (e.g., male or female, fit or unfit, active or inactive, anxious or nonanxious, healthy or nonhealthy, younger or older, patients with or without anxiety disorders).

Category 1: Behavior Modification Approaches

-Behavior modification is the planned, systematic application of learning principles to the modification of behavior. -Prompts: Verbal, physical, or symbolic cues initiate behaviors (e.g., posters encouraging people to take the stairs, placing running shoes by bed). -Contracting: Participants enter into a contract with their exercise practitioners.

Personal Factors

-Demographic variables -Cognitive and personality variables -Behaviors -Demographic variable example: Blue-collar workers typically have lower exercise adherence rates than white-collar workers. However, increased choices can increase their adherence rates. -Cognitive and personality examples ---Self-efficacy and self-motivation have been consistently related to physical activity adherence. ---Beliefs about and expectations of benefits from exercise are associated with increased physical activity levels and adherence to structured physical activity programs among adults. -Behaviors example: Early involvement in sport and physical activity should be encouraged because a positive relationship exists between childhood exercise and adult physical activity patterns.

Psychological explanations

-Enhanced feeling of control -Feeling of competency and self-efficacy -Positive social interactions -Improved self-concept and self-esteem -Opportunities for fun and enjoyment

Exercise and Changes in Cognitive Functioning

-Exercise programs conducted over long periods are associated with moderate gains in cognitive functioning. -Acute aerobic exercise increased executive cognitive functioning in planning and problem solving. -Aerobic physical activity has a positive effect on cognition and brain functions; executive central command is most affected by aerobic exercise. -Acute exercise increased cognitive functioning in the form of working memory only for people low in working memory. -Moderate to vigorous physical activity enhances executive functioning in children with ADHD. -Integrating physical activity into the classroom produced increases in children's intrinsic motivation, perceived competence, and effort.

Cardiovascular Fitness and Cognitive Functioning in Older Adults

-Fitness training has beneficial effects on the cognitive functioning of older adults. -These effects were largest for those tasks involving executive control (e.g., planning, scheduling, working memory, task coordination). -Fitness training combined with strength and flexibility programs have a greater positive effect on cognition than fitness training having only an aerobic component. -Effects appear to occur more in females than in males. -Effects on cognition were largest when exercise training exceeded 30 minutes per session. -From a physiological perspective, cardiovascular exercise appears to protect the brain against the normal effects of aging and helps repair or restore the aged brain. -The relationship between exercise and cognitive functioning is larger for older adults than it is in the general population.

Physiological explanations

-Increases in cerebral blood flow -Changes in brain neurotransmitters (e.g., norepinephrine, endorphins, serotonin) -Increases in maximum oxygen consumption and delivery of oxygen to cerebral tissue -Reductions in muscle tension -Structural changes in the brain -Increases in serum concentrations of endocannabinoid receptors

Settings for Exercise Interventions

-Informational interventions that used "point-of-decision" prompts to encourage stair use or community-wide campaigns -Behavioral or social interventions that used school-based physical education, social support in community settings, or individually tailored health behavior change -Environmental and policy interventions that created or enhanced access to places for physical activity combined with informational outreach activity

Guidelines for Improving Exercise Adherence

-Match the intervention to the participant's stage of change. -Provide cues for exercises (signs, posters, cartoons). -Make the exercise enjoyable. -Tailor the intensity, duration, and frequency of the exercises. -Promote exercising with a group or friend. -Have participants sign a contract or statement of intent to comply with the exercise program. -Offer a choice of activities. -Provide rewards for attendance and participation. -Give individualized feedback. -Find a convenient place for exercising. -Have participants reward themselves for achieving certain goals. -Encourage goals to be self-set, flexible, and time-based (rather than distance-based). -Remind participants to focus on environmental cues (not bodily cues) when exercising. -Use small-group discussions. -Have participants complete a decision balance sheet before starting the exercise program. -Obtain social support from the participant's spouse, family members, and peers. -Suggest keeping daily exercise logs. -Practice time management skills. -Help participants choose purposeful physical activity.

Chronic Effects of Exercise

-Physical fitness is positively associated with mental health and well-being. -Exercise is associated with the reduction of stress emotions such as state anxiety. -Anxiety and depression are common symptoms of failure to cope with mental stress, and exercise has been associated with a decreased level of mild to moderate depression and anxiety. -Long-term exercise is usually associated with reductions in traits such as neuroticism and anxiety. -Appropriate exercise results in reductions in various stress indicators, such as neuromuscular tension, resting heart rate, and some stress hormones. -Current clinical opinion holds that exercise has beneficial emotional effects across ages and sexes. -Physically healthy people who require psychotropic (mood-altering) medication may safely exercise under close medical supervision.

Environmental Factors

-Social environment ---Spousal support is critical to enhancing adherence rates for people in exercise programs. ---Spouses should be involved in orientation sessions or in parallel exercise programs. -Physical environment ---Access to facilities, local crime, distance from home to school

Exercise and the Reduction of Depression

-The prevalence of major depression in the United States has increased steadily since the early 1950s. -Depression was the leading cause of death in Canada and the United states in 2010. -Depression is especially prevalent in girls and women, who have depression 1.7 times more frequently than men (Albert, 2015). -Depressive disorders are estimated to affect approximately 5% to 8% of adolescents in the United States.

How to Enhance Mood Through Exercise

-Use rhythmic abdominal breathing. -Avoid interpersonal competition. -Make it a closed predictable activity. -Use rhythmic and repetitive exercise movements. -Exercise 20 to 30 minutes in duration, moderate intensity, 2 or 3 times per week. -Make it enjoyable.

Mirrors or No Mirrors in Exercise Settings?

-Women who are generally sedentary and have poor perceptions of self tend to focus more often on their own physique, which appears to result in increases in negative affect since this heightens the perceived discrepancy between the actual and the ideal physique. -There was not a negative effect on social physique anxiety with women who were generally more active and confident in their ability to exercise.

Strategies for Enhancing Adherence to Exercise

1. Behavior modification approaches 2. Reinforcement approaches 3. Cognitive-behavioral approaches 4. Decision-making approaches 5. Social-support approaches 6. Intrinsic approaches

Four Components of Concentration

1. Focusing on relevant environment cues (selective attention: selecting what cues to attend to and disregard) 2. Maintaining attentional focus 3. Situation awareness: the ability to understand what is going on around oneself (to size up a situation) 4. Shifting attentional focus when necessary

Category 5: Social Support Approaches

A person (e.g., spouse, family member, friend) has a favorable attitude toward another person's involvement in an exercise program. Social support can be enhanced by participation in a small group, the use of personalized feedback, and the use of a buddy system.

Transtheoretical Model

A person progresses through six stages of change: Precontemplation: Does not exercise Contemplation: Has fleeting thoughts of exercising Preparation: Exercises, but not regularly enough Action: Has been exercising regularly, but for less than six months Maintenance: Has been exercising regularly for more than six months Termination: Exercisers have exercised for five years

Acute Versus Chronic

Acute: Short-term and possibly, but not necessarily, temporary effects arising from a single bout of exercise Chronic: Long-term effects

Motivational Interviewing

An intervention to increase the likelihood of a client's considering, initiating, and maintaining specific strategies to reduce harmful behavior via an interview. Motivation to change is elicited from the client rather than the counselor. Client-counselor relationship is more of a partnership.

Anaerobic Versus Aerobic Exercise

Anaerobic: Short-term, or short-burst, activities not involving the transportation of oxygen (e.g., weightlifting, baseball) Aerobic: Longer-term activities that increase pulmonary and cardiorespiratory system activity (e.g., cycling, running)

Multiple-resource pool

Attention is distributed throughout the nervous system (like microprocessors), and each microprocessor has its own unique capabilities and resource-performance relationship. This is the most accepted view today.

Attentional Capacity

Attention is limited in the amount of information that can be processed at one time. Controlled processing: is mental processing that involves conscious attention and awareness of what you are doing when you perform a sport skill. Automatic processing: is mental processing without conscious attention. Elite athlete peak performance is associated with --being absorbed in the present and having no thoughts about past or future --being mentally relaxed and having a high degree of concentration and control --being in a state of extraordinary awareness of both the body and the external environment. Athletes can change from controlled processing to automatic processing as they become more proficient. - Attentional capacity is compromised (ego-depleted) by having to perform the cognitive secondary task before the primary task, demonstrating our limited processing capacity.

Attentional Selectivity

Attentional Selectivity refers to letting some information into the processing system while other information is screened or ignored, akin to using a searchlight to focus on certain things. Common attentional selectivity errors: - Being too broad in one's focus - Being distracted from relevant information by irrelevant information - Inability to shift focus rapidly enough among all relevant cues

Explaining Attentional Focus: Three Processes

Attentional selectivity Attentional capacity Attentional alertness

Components of Self-Talk

Categories of positive self-talk - Psych-up (power) - Confidence (I can make it) - Instruction (focus on technique) - Anxiety control (calm down) Categories of negative self-talk - Worry (I'm wrong again) - Disengagement (I can't keep going) - Somatic fatigue (I'm tired) Neutral self-talk category: - Irrelevant thoughts (what will I do later tonight?)

Exercise as an Adjunct to Therapy

Despite the psychological benefits of exercise, it should not be used in all cases of depression, stress, or other emotional disorders.

Cyclic pattern of stages of change

During exercise, behavior induction strategies are used during the different transtheoretical stages (Prochaska, DiClemente, & Norcross, 1992). Matching the intervention to the stage of change is effective in producing high levels of regular exercise. Physical Activity Maintenance Model Key aspects to predicting the maintenance of physical activity: ---Goal setting: Commitment attainment, satisfaction ---Self-motivation: Persistence in the pursuit of behavioral goals independent of any situational constraints ---Self-efficacy: Confidence to overcome barriers and avoid relapse ---Physical activity environment: Access, attractiveness, enjoyable scenery, social support ---Life stress: Recent life changes, everyday hassles

How Self-Talk Works

Event: Missing an important shot in a tennis match Self-talk: "Keep your eye on the ball—this match isn't over." Response: Better concentration, optimism, calm

Ecological Model

Examine frameworks versus specific variables (Dishman et al., 2004). Explain how the environment and behaviors affect each other. Take into consideration intrapersonal (e.g., biological), interpersonal (e.g., family), institutional (e.g., schools), and policy (e.g., laws at all levels) influences.

Social Cognitive Theory

Exercise behavior is influenced by personal, behavioral, and environmental factors, particularly self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is strongly related to exercise participation, especially in middle-aged and older adults. Social cognitive theory has produced some of the most consistent results in predicting exercise behavior (Bandura, 1986, 1997).

Theory of Planned Behavior

Exercise behavior is made up of intentions, subjective norms and attitudes, and perceptions of ability to control behavior (Ajzen & Madden, 1986). Intentions are the product of an individual's attitude toward a particular behavior and what is normative regarding the behavior (subjective norm). Quality and strength of intentions are important as well as people's perceptions of their ability to perform better in influencing behavior.

Exercise and Chronic Diseases

Exercise has been linked to positive effects on people with these conditions: Human immunodeficiency virus Multiple sclerosis Cancer Parkinson's disease Diabetes Coronary heart disease

Preventing a Relapse

Expect and plan for lapses (e.g., schedule alternative activities while on vacation). Develop coping strategies (e.g., relaxation training, time management, imagery) for dealing with high-risk situations such as going on vacation or getting sick. Replace "shoulds" with "wants" to provide more balance in your life. "Shoulds" put pressure and expectations on you. Use positive self-talk and imagery to avoid self-dialogues focusing on relapse. Identify situations that put you at risk and attempt to avoid or plan for these settings. Do not view a temporary relapse as catastrophic because this undermines confidence and willpower.

Category 6: Intrinsic Approaches

Focus on the experience itself. Take a process orientation. Engage in purposeful and meaningful physical activity.

Theories and Models of Exercise Behavior

Health belief model Theory of planned behavior Social cognitive theory Self-determination theory Transtheoretical model Ecological model Physical activity maintenance model

Barriers to Physical Activity

Health issues: Physical limitations, injury, poor health, pain and soreness, psychological problems Inconvenience: Lack of access to facilities, crowded facilities, lack of transportation, other commitments Lack of motivation and energy: Feeling lazy or unmotivated, too much effort Lack of social support: No exercise partner, lacking support from spouse Lack of time and money

Problem of Exercise Adherence

Help those who start exercising to overcome barriers to continuing the exercise program. Help exercisers develop contingency plans to overcome factors leading to relapses (not exercising).

Determinants of Exercise Adherence

In addition to theories, a number of determinants of exercise behavior have been identified. Table 19.2 lists a number of factors that influence physical activity involvement. Most of these specific determinants fall within two broad categories: ---Personal factors ---Environmental factors

Integration of Models and Theories

In reality, a combination of models might provide the best prediction for exercise behavior. For example, integrating the ecological model with self-determination theory could help to enhance physical activity levels.

Psychological Benefits of Exercise

Increased levels of self-esteem and self-concept Increased feelings of enjoyment Decreased feelings of physiological and psychological stress Increased feelings of self-confidence Elevated mood states Decreased levels of anxiety and depression

Attentional Alertness

Increases in emotional arousal narrow the attentional field. Example of arousal attentional narrowing: Losing sensitivity to cues in the peripheral visual field with increased emotional arousal

Variable-allocation theory

Individuals are flexible and can choose where to focus their attention, allocating it on more than one task at a time

Single-channel theory

Information is processed through a single and fixed-capacity channel

Depression and Physical Activity Involvement

Initial research has demonstrated that individuals with moderate or high levels of depressive symptoms were less physically active and were less likely to participate in team sports compared to the low-depression group. As age increased from 10 to 19 years old, depressive symptoms tended to increase and physical activity tended to decrease. Implication: Youngsters (especially girls) with depressive symptoms should be encouraged to participate in physical activity and sports, not only to reduce their depression, but also to gain the benefits of physical activity.

Category 4: Decision-Making Approaches

Involve exercisers in decisions regarding program structure. Develop balance sheets: Completing a decision balance sheet to increase awareness of the costs and benefits of participating in an exercise program can enhance exercise adherence.

Exercise and the Reduction of Anxiety and Depression

Mental health problems account for 30% of the total days of hospitalization in the United States and 10% of the total medical cost. Although a cause-effect relationship has not been established, regular exercise is associated with reductions in anxiety and depression. High-intensity aerobic activity is not absolutely necessary in producing positive effects. Other activities (e.g., strength training, yoga) also have produced positive effects. Participation in competitive sports (which is also a form of exercise) has been shown to reduce anxiety

Associative attentional strategy

Monitoring bodily functions and feelings, such as heart rate, breathing, and muscle tension -Internal sensory monitoring (e.g., muscle soreness, breathing, fatigue, thirst) -Active self-regulation (e.g., technique, cadence, strategy)

Exercise and Mood Changes

Mood is a host of transient, fluctuating affective states that can be positive or negative (e.g., feelings of elation, happiness, sadness). Mood is generally defined as a state of emotional or affective arousal of varying, impermanent duration. Exercise is related to positive changes in mood state. Exercise improves positive mood regardless of the number of negative and positive affective states in a given day.Exercisers with choice of exercise mode scored lower on negative affect than exercisers with no choice. Perception of fitness may be responsible for part of the mood-enhancing effects of exercise (as opposed to the actual level of fitness itself).

Why Exercise Behavior and Adherence Are Important

More than half of adults do not meet the minimum requirement of 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week. The prevalence of obesity by race is as follows: Non-Hispanic Asian (11.7%), non-Hispanic white (34.5%), Hispanic (42.5%), and non-Hispanic-black (48.1%). Approximately 1 in 5 (21%) adults meet the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines. Fewer than 3 in 10 high school students get at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day. Of people 18 and older in the United States, 36% are classified as obese, with women (38.3%) higher than men (34.3%). People who earn less than $15,000 a year are most likely to be obese (36%). The prevalence of obesity among youth is 17%. Men (54%) are more likely than women (46%) to meet 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for aerobic activity. Obesity rates increased from 2000 to 2014 in adults (30.5% to 37.7%) and youth (13.9% to 17.2%). Approximately 38% of U.S. adults 20 years and older are obese, and 17% of children ages 6 to 11 are obese. Approximately 603 million adults and 107 million children worldwide are obese. The prevalence of obesity doubled in 73 countries from 1980 to 2015 and continuously increased in most countries. Excess body weight accounted for about four million deaths in 2015. China and India had the highest number of obese children, whereas the United States had the highest number of obese adults. Obesity rates have increased in both rich and poor countries, indicating the problem is not simply about wealth or income. Changes in the food environment and food systems are probably major drivers.

Changing Negative Self-Talk to Positive Self-Talk

Negative: "He robbed me on the line call—the ball was in." Positive: "There's nothing I can do about it. If I play well, I'll win anyway."

Dissociative attentional strategy

Not monitoring bodily functions; distraction and tuning out

Self-Determination Theory

People are inherently motivated to feel connected to others within a social milieu (relatedness), to function effectively in that milieu (effectance), and to feel a sense of personal initiative in doing so (autonomy). Self-determination theory (SDT) was able to predict adherence in overweight and obese participants (Edmunds, Ntoumanis, & Duda, 2007). Participants who display autonomy in their exercise behavior and have strong social support systems exhibit stronger motivation and enhanced exercise adherence (Standage, Sebire, & Loney, 2008). SDT has made an important contribution in terms of viewing intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on a continuum rather than a dichotomy.

Top Reported Reasons People Say Why They Don't Exercise

Perceived lack of time Lack of energy Lack of motivation Sedentary behavior Keys ---Exercise professionals should highlight the benefits of exercise and provide a supportive environment to involve sedentary people in physical activity. ---People often cite time constraints for not exercising, but such constraints are more perceived than real and often reveal a person's priorities. ---People of different ages or sexes often cite different reasons for not exercising.

Negative Self-Talk

Performers who are able to think more positively about negative stressful events are more successful. Ironic processing occurs—trying not to perform a negative action inadvertently causes that event to occur (e.g., driving into the water hazard in golf).

Exercise and Changes in Personality and Cognitive Functioning

Personality -In a review of the literature, McDonald and Hodgdon (1991) found that aerobic fitness training increased scores on self-sufficiency and intelligence and decreased scores on insecurity. Development of the self -Exercise is related to participants' self-concept, self-esteem, and self-efficacy (Fox, 1997). -Regular exercise is related to increased self-esteem. -Esteem-enhancement effects of exercise are especially pronounced in people with low self-esteem. -Positive changes in self-concept and self-esteem were associated with participation in physical education and directed play (Gruber, 1986). -Exercise programs designed to enhance self-esteem should emphasize experiences of success, feeling of increased physical competence, and attainment of goals. Exercise and Hardiness -Hardiness is a personality disposition that involves a sense of personal control, commitment and purpose, and the flexibility to adapt to unexpected changes. -Exercise can help protect against stress-related illness, especially for hardy people. -A hardy personality and exercise in combination are more effective in preserving health than either alone.

The 5 Ps of Self-Talk

Personalized: The person should individually shape the content of self-talk so it has special meaning. Practiced: Self-talk should be practiced before implementing it in competitive situations. Gaining familiarity with and clarity on how and when to use self-talk is important for its effectiveness. Purpose: Knowing what needs to be accomplished will facilitate superior interventions and help determine the nature of the statements employed based on the nature of the task. Positive phrasing: Self-talk should be positive, telling the individual what to do or providing motivation to continue or both, especially in adverse situations. Position: Tailor the self-talk to the person's current situation. (For example, find out whether he believes his self-talk will improve his situation, what stage of learning he is at, and whether he is likely to use self-talk when stressed.)

How Exercise Enhances Psychological Well-Being

Physiological and Psychological Explanations

Six Dimensions of Well-Being

Self-acceptance (positive views of oneself) Positive relation to others (trusting, caring, and empathetic relationships) Autonomy (self-determined with intrinsic motivation and self-referenced standards) Environmental mastery (effective mastery of the environment to fulfill personal values) Personal growth (sense of development and self-fulfillment over time) Purpose in life (directed toward purposeful goals for living)

Why Exercise for Psychological Well-Being?

The hectic pace of our modern, technological society causes stress and increased demands; more people than ever are feeling their ill effects. Sixteen million and 18 million people, respectively, age 18 and older in the U.S. population experience anxiety disorders and depression. By the year 2020, depression will be second only to cardiovascular disease as the leading cause of death and disability. Anxiety disorders and depression cost the public $57 billion a year. Exercise positively influences feelings of well-being and decreases anxiety and depression. Epidemiological data show that physical activity is positively associated with good mental health in the U.S. and Canadian populations.

Health Belief Model

The likelihood of exercising depends on the person's perception of the severity of health risks and appraisal of the costs and benefits of taking action. Overall, there is inconsistent support for predictions of exercise behavior with the health belief model (Becker & Maiman, 1975).

Why People Have a Problem With Exercise Adherence

The prescriptions are often based solely on fitness data, ignoring people's psychological readiness to exercise. Most exercise prescriptions are overly restrictive and are not optimal for enhancing motivation for regular exercise. Rigid exercise prescriptions based on principles of intensity, duration, and frequency are too challenging for many people, especially beginners. Traditional exercise prescription does not promote self-responsibility or empower people to make long-term behavior change.

Reducing Anxiety and Depression With Exercise

The vast majority of research on the relationship between exercise and psychological well-being has used aerobic exercise. Activities such as weight or strength training, yoga, and other nonaerobic exercises have produced positive effects on psychological well-being.

Techniques for Improving Self-Talk

Thought stopping -Identify negative thoughts. -Stop the thoughts. -Focus on task-relevant thoughts. Changing negative self-talk to positive self-talk Combining self-talk with self-feedback

Top Reported Reasons People Say Why They Exercise

Weight control (counter obesity epidemic) Reduced risk of cardiovascular disease Reduction in stress and depression Enjoyment Building self-esteem Socializing Keys ---Exercise combined with proper eating habits can help people lose weight. ---Weight loss should be slow and steady.Both the physiological and psychological benefits of exercise can be cited to persuade sedentary people to initiate exercise. ---Maintenance and initiation of physical activity are critical.

KEY POINT Athletes need to focus on only the relevant cues in the

athletic environment and to eliminate distractions

KEY POINT Concentration=

attention

Change in rate of exercise program participation over time.

decreases overtime

Exercise professionals should consistently provide sound, scientific information about exercise and physical activity to (KEY POINT)

increase the likelihood that clients will adhere to a fitness program.

Self-talk

is any statement or thought about self. Appropriate self-talk helps one focus on the present and keeps one's mind from wandering. Types of self-talk: - Positive (motivational) - Instructional - Negative - Spontaneous - Goal-directed

KEY POINT Once a skill is learned well, an overemphasis on body mechanics

is detrimental to performance.

Attention

is the concentration of mental effort on sensory or mental events.

Concentration

is the mental effort placed on sensory or mental events. It is the person's ability to exert deliberate mental effort on what is most important in a given situation.

KEY POINT Automatic processing is

less restrictive than controlled processing

Although a cause-effect relationship has not been established (KEY POINT)

regular exercise is associated with reductions in anxiety and depression.