Description:
Physical activity is important for the health of all individuals, however, the determinants of physical activity behaviour for women who are overweight remain largely unexplored. The purpose of this investigation was to explore a range of factors that influence participation in physical activity for a group of women who are overweight. Participants were 30 women, aged 25-71 years, with a mean age of 46.8 years (+12.95) and an average BMI of 31.2 kg/m(2) (+5.6). Self-reported level of physical activity, perceived barriers and facilitators of physical activity, attitudes, intentions and perceived behavioural. control to physical activity were measured. Seventeen participants were generally active, with self-reported moderate physical activity of 218.53 min (+/- 113.82) in the last 7 days; whereas 13 participants were reportedly less active 43.46 (+/- 42.98) min. Active participants were more likely to identify social reasons for participating in physical activity, while inactive participants perceived that their laziness prevented them from being physically active. There were no significant differences between active and inactive overweight women for attitude, intention or subjective norm for moderate-intensity physical activity. There was a significant difference between these women in perceived behavioural control (p = .014) for moderate-intensity physical activity, as women who felt more in control of their physical activity behaviour were more likely to engage in physical activity than inactive women. Future research should investigate interventions to increase behavioural control of moderate-intensity physical activity in women who are overweight. (c) 2007 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Description:
Physical activity is important for the health of all individuals, however, the determinants of physical activity behaviour for women who are overweight remain largely unexplored. The purpose of this investigation was to explore a range of factors that influence participation in physical activity for a group of women who are overweight. Participants were 30 women, aged 25-71 years, with a mean age of 46.8 years (+12.95) and an average BMI of 31.2 kg/m(2) (+5.6). Self-reported level of physical activity, perceived barriers and facilitators of physical activity, attitudes, intentions and perceived behavioural. control to physical activity were measured. Seventeen participants were generally active, with self-reported moderate physical activity of 218.53 min (+/- 113.82) in the last 7 days; whereas 13 participants were reportedly less active 43.46 (+/- 42.98) min. Active participants were more likely to identify social reasons for participating in physical activity, while inactive participants perceived that their laziness prevented them from being physically active. There were no significant differences between active and inactive overweight women for attitude, intention or subjective norm for moderate-intensity physical activity. There was a significant difference between these women in perceived behavioural control (p = .014) for moderate-intensity physical activity, as women who felt more in control of their physical activity behaviour were more likely to engage in physical activity than inactive women. Future research should investigate interventions to increase behavioural control of moderate-intensity physical activity in women who are overweight. (c) 2007 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Description:
Perceptual-cognitive skills and decision-making in sport have typically been explored using videobased protocols in settings where participants are not exposed to the type of competitive pressures that characterise a game situation. Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the influence of competitive pressure, or competitive anxiety, on decision-making accuracy. Seventy-seven (Male=44, Female=33) undergraduate students with mean age of 20.16 years (SD = 3.18) were randomly assigned to an experimental (n=56) or control group (n=21) and completed a video–based perceptual decision-making test of 25 temporally occluded offensive soccer plays. Participants in the experimental group completed the test with and without competitive pressure conditions. Pressure was manipulated by introducing a competition for a monetary prize. Participants in the control condition completed the test twice without competition. All participants completed a state anxiety measure prior to each test. The competition produced significantly higher cognitive anxiety than no competition; however, this was not reflected in any significant differences in decisionmaking accuracy. Although not statistically significant, more experienced performers tended to score more accurately with competitive pressure.
Description:
Stereotypes and self-perceptions are important in understanding how people develop their self-knowledge and social identity, become members of groups, and view groups and their members. While we have some understanding of the stereotypical view of the physical education teacher, we currently have little knowledge of how physical education pre-service teachers (students studying a physical education degree) are stereotyped, and also if there is any relationship between these stereotypes and how physical education pre-service teachers perceive themselves. The purpose of this study was to examine the stereotypes and self-perceptions of physical education pre-service teachers. The aims were to describe how physical education pre-service teachers stereotype and perceive themselves, examine if there are differences in the stereotypes and self-perceptions between males and females, and to explore if there were relationships between what the physical education pre-service teachers believed stereotyped them and how they perceived themselves. Participants were 250 students (n=120 males, n=130 female) studying a 4-year Bachelor of Education (Physical Education) degree at a university who completed a questionnaire which contained 10 items about how they viewed physical education pre-service teachers (stereotypes), and 26 items on how they viewed male physical education pre-service teachers and female pre-service teachers (stereotypes) and 26 items on how they view themselves (selfperceptions). Factor analysis revealed 2 stereotype factors, which were labelled as Sociable (e.g., socialise, partying, drinking, loud and outgoing) and Health and Lifestyle (e.g., fit, playing sport and not smoking). The stereotype of the male physical education pre-service teacher, comprised two factors: physical, assertive and aggressive behaviour (e.g., aggressive, dominant, self-confident, and competitive) and physical and self-presentation factors (muscular, athletic, physically fit, physically coordinated, and attractive). The stereotype of female physical education pre-service teachers comprised three factors: physical appearance and ability (e.g., physically fit, athletic, able-bodied, attractive, thin, and physically coordinated), aggressive and assertive behavioural style (e.g., intimidating, unapproachable, and aggressive), and masculine behavioural style (e.g., aggressive, masculine, feminine, muscular and dominant). The self-perception of male physical education pre-service teachers comprised three factors: perceived appearance and ability (e.g., athletic, physical fit, thin, attractive, muscular and pleased with their body), aggressive and confident behaviour (e.g., intimidating, dominant, show off and aggressive) and independence and intellect (e.g., independent, ambitious, self confident and intelligent). The self-perception of female physical education pre-service teachers comprised three factors: strong willed behaviour (e.g., ambitious, and dominant), presentation and appearance (e.g., pleased with their body, attractive, thin and self confident), and aggressive and dominant behaviour (e.g., aggressive, intimidating, masculine and show off). There were significant relationships between the male physical and self-presentation stereotype factor stereotype and perceived appearance and ability self-perception factor and between the male physical, assertive and aggressive behaviour stereotype factor and the male aggressive and confident behaviours self-perception factor. For females, the aggressive and dominant behaviour stereotype was related to both the aggressive and assertive behavioural style self-perception factor and the masculine behavioural style self-perception factor. It is suggested that future studies investigate the stereotypes and self-perceptions of students in schools during the recruitment phase of socialisation, and the possible influence of the physical education teacher education programme, faculty leaders, and significant others on the physical education pre-service teachers' self-perceptions, stereotypes and soci lisation into physical education.
Description:
The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of in-game physical exertion on decision-making performance of Australian football umpires. Fifteen Australian football umpires (Mage = 36, s = 13.5 years; Mgames umpired = 235.2, s = 151.3) volunteered to participate in the study. During five competitive Australian football pre-season games, measures of in-game physical exertion (blood lactate levels, global positioning system [GPS]) and decision-making performance (video-based test) were obtained. There were no significant correlations between physical exertion in a particular quarter and decision-making performance in either the same quarter or any other quarter. Video-based decision-making performance was effected by time in game χ2(3) = 24.24, P = 0.001, with Quarter 4 performance significantly better than both Quarter 2 and Quarter 3. In-game physical exertion (blood lactate) significantly decreased over the course of the game χ2(3) = 11.58, P = 0.009. Results indicate no definable link between in-game physical exertion and decision-making performance. It is, however, presumed that decision-making performance may be affected by the time or context of the game. Future research is warranted to explore the relationship between physical exertion and decision-making performance to potentially inform Australian football umpire training programmes that replicate in-game physical and decision-making demands.
Description:
In this review we identified sport-based perceptual-cognitive training literature to systematically evaluate current video-based methodologies and their resultant effectiveness to improve perceptual-cognitive performance (i.e., decision-making). A comprehensive literature search of electronic databases from 1994-2013 was conducted to identify relevant studies. We identified 139 articles, of which 25 met all the inclusion criteria. Study design and test measures of the 25 articles were assessed against a classification scale to rate methodological quality. The methodological quality of the 25 studies varied, with quasi-experimental the most common design. Additionally, studies varied in the skill level of participants and the amount of video-based information presented during the training. We conclude that videobased training programs can be used to enhance perceptual-cognitive performance and outline several recommendations for future video-based perceptual-cognitive training programs particularly with respect to the validity and reliability of the instruments used to measure perceptual-cognitive performance.
Description:
OBJECTIVES: To develop a valid and reliable video-based decision-making test to examine and monitor the decision-making performance of Australian football umpires. DESIGN: Validation assessments with test re-test reliability. METHODS: A video-based decision-making test was developed from a pool of 156 video-based decision-making situations. Australian football umpires (n=56) and players (n=45) participated in two separate phases of analysis. In phase one, players completed a test re-test reliability assessment with a 100 video-clips. Results indicated 24 clips were a reliable measure of decision-making performance. In phase two, umpires completed a test re-test protocol with 80 clips, 24 of which were the reliable clips identified by the player cohort in phase one. These 24 clips provided a measure of construct validity. Face and content validity were assessed by skill acquisition specialists, expert umpire coaches, and umpires. RESULTS: From each of phase one and two of the reliability assessment, 24 clips were found to have a kappa value greater than 0.30, providing a total of 48 reliable video-clips. Construct validity was supported, with the umpire group performing significantly better than the player group on the 24 clips presented to both groups on each testing occasion. Face and content validity were also demonstrated. CONCLUSIONS: This investigation demonstrated the ability prospectively to determine reliability and validity of the video-based decision-making test designed specifically for Australian football umpires. Establishing the validity and reliability of the video clips ensures future investigations can accurately and consistently measure the decision-making performance of Australian football umpires.
Description:
Decision-making is a central component of the in-game performance of Australian football umpires; however, current umpire training focuses largely on physiological development with decision-making skills development conducted via explicit lecture-style meetings with limited practice devoted to making actual decisions. Therefore, this study investigated the efficacy of a video-based training programme, aimed to provide a greater amount of contextualised visual experiences without explicit instruction, to improve decision-making skills of umpires. Australian football umpires (n = 52) were recruited from metropolitan and regional Division 1 competitions. Participants were randomly assigned to an intervention or control group and classified according to previous umpire game experience (i.e., experienced; less experienced). The intervention group completed a 12-week video-based decision-making training programme, with decision-making performance assessed at pre-training, and 1-week retention and 3-week retention periods. The control group did not complete any video-based training. Results indicated a significant Group (intervention; Control) x Test interaction (F(1, 100) = 3.98; P = 0.02, partial 2 = 0.074), with follow-up pairwise comparisons indicating significant within-group differences over time for the intervention group. In addition, decision-making performance of the less experienced umpires in the intervention group significantly improved (F(2, 40) = 5.03, P = 0.01, partial 2 = 0.201). Thus, video-based training programmes may be a viable adjunct to current training programmes to hasten decision-making development, especially for less experienced umpires.
Description:
This study investigated the effects of imagery training on reactive agility and whether reacting to unpredictable stimuli could be improved using imagery. Forty-seven female athletes (Mage = 21.51, SD = 2.32) were randomly assigned to either a three-week physical training, imagery training, or control condition. Physical training condition involved physically rehearsing the reactive agility task, whereas the imagery training condition involved imagining the presenting stimulus and performing the reactive agility task. The control condition did no reactive agility training. A 3 (training conditions) x 7 (reactive agility performance components) mixed-model MANOVA was conducted to examine changes in reactive agility performance from the training interventions. Physical training improved decision time components and overall reactive agility performance. Imagery training improved Stimulus-Decision Time and Stimulus-Foot performance, but not overall reactive agility performance. No performance improvements occurred for the control condition. Findings support imagery use for the decision time variables associated with lightstimulus reactive agility performance. The lack of overall reactive performance improvement may indicate that imagery training is not effective for all components of perceptual-motor performance. Performance change inconsistencies appear to indicate that participants may not have generated unpredictable stimuli during imagery. Future investigation as to whether imagery improvements translate to sport-specific reactive tasks is needed.
Description:
This study investigated the effects of imagery training on reactive agility and whether reacting to unpredictable stimuli could be improved using imagery. Forty-seven female athletes (Mage = 21.51, SD = 2.32) were randomly assigned to either a three-week physical training, imagery training, or control condition. Physical training condition involved physically rehearsing the reactive agility task, whereas the imagery training condition involved imagining the presenting stimulus and performing the reactive agility task. The control condition did no reactive agility training. A 3 (training conditions) x 7 (reactive agility performance components) mixed-model MANOVA was conducted to examine changes in reactive agility performance from the training interventions. Physical training improved decision time components and overall reactive agility performance. Imagery training improved Stimulus-Decision Time and Stimulus-Foot performance, but not overall reactive agility performance. No performance improvements occurred for the control condition. Findings support imagery use for the decision time variables associated with lightstimulus reactive agility performance. The lack of overall reactive performance improvement may indicate that imagery training is not effective for all components of perceptual-motor performance. Performance change inconsistencies appear to indicate that participants may not have generated unpredictable stimuli during imagery. Future investigation as to whether imagery improvements translate to sport-specific reactive tasks is needed.