The purpose of this study was to answer the research question: How does exercise before reading instruction influence the behaviors, feelings, and thoughts of third grade students? Sixteen third-grade students participated in the study. Behaviors (observed via videotape), feelings (obtained via a Semantic Differential Scale), and thoughts (obtained via interview) concerning exercise in class were collected and analyzed. The data revealed that behaviors in two students appeared more attentive during reading instruction after participating in classroom exercise. The Semantic Differential scale proved to be inconclusive due to variables surrounding the method. The interview revealed an overall positive attitude towards exercise in this classroom. Because students have demonstrated an interest in exercise, and it has been observed that exercise may in fact positively influence behavior in a typical classroom, further research is needed to address the potential of instilling exercise into regular routines of classrooms across the nation.
Physical inactivity is a key determinant of health across the lifespan. A lack of activity increases the risk of heart disease, colon and breast cancer, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, osteoporosis, anxiety and depression and others diseases. Emerging literature has suggested that in terms of mortality, the global population health burden of physical inactivity approaches that of cigarette smoking. The prevalence and substantial disease risk associated with physical inactivity has been described as a pandemic. The prevalence, health impact, and evidence of changeability all have resulted in calls for action to increase physical activity across the lifespan. In response to the need to find ways to make physical activity a health priority for youth, the Institute of Medicine's Committee on Physical Activity and Physical Education in the School Environment was formed. Its purpose was to review the current status of physical activity and physical education in the school environment, including before, during, and after school, and examine the influences of physical activity and physical education on the short and long term physical, cognitive and brain, and psychosocial health and development of children and adolescents. Educating the Student Body makes recommendations about approaches for strengthening and improving programs and policies for physical activity and physical education in the school environment. This report lays out a set of guiding principles to guide its work on these tasks. These included: recognizing the benefits of instilling life-long physical activity habits in children; the value of using systems thinking in improving physical activity and physical education in the school environment; the recognition of current disparities in opportunities and the need to achieve equity in physical activity and physical education; the importance of considering all types of school environments; the need to take into consideration the diversity of students as recommendations are developed. This report will be of interest to local and national policymakers, school officials, teachers, and the education community, researchers, professional organizations, and parents interested in physical activity, physical education, and health for school-aged children and adolescents.
Up to date the scientific discussion about how frequency and regularity of physical activity can be increased is dominated by social-cognitive models. However, increasing evidence suggests that emotions and feelings have greater influence on physical activity than originally assumed (Rhodes, Fiala, & Conner, 2009). Generally speaking, humans possess an evaluative system with a basic action tendency to approach pleasurable events and to avoid aversive ones (Cacioppo & Berntson, 1999). Evaluative responses to a behavior and associated emotional states may influence a decision regarding whether or not to repeat being physically active. Generally, behavior associated with positive evaluations has a higher probability of being repeated than behaviors without such an association. On the contrary, an association with negative evaluations tends to decrease the probability of repeating to be physically active. Hence, evaluative responses to physical activity or the related situation can be an important aspect in the process of physical activity maintenance (McAuley et al., 2007). Several social-cognitive models of behavior change and maintenance were recently extended to take the influence of affective responses into account, in a way that variables already included in the models (e.g. outcome expectancies or attitudes) were more clearly articulated into their cognitive and affective components. For example, with regard to Social Cognitive Theory, Gellert, Ziegelmann and Schwarzer (2012) proposed to distinguish between affective and health-related outcome expectancies, and in the Theory of Planned Behavior, researchers suggested to differentiate between cognitive and affective attitudes (Lawton, Conner, & McEachan, 2009). The results of these and other studies suggest that affective components make a unique contribution to the explanation of the physical activity behavior (Brand, 2006). Other examples come from social cognition research, where it was shown that automatic evaluative responses are part of our everyday life and that they decisively influence health behavior (Hofmann, Friese, & Wiers, 2008). Accordingly, there is evidence that people who exercise regulary hold more positive automatic evaluations with exercise than non-exercisers (Bluemke, Brand, Schweizer, & Kahlert, 2010). Although significant progress has been made in showing that evaluative responses to physical activity and associated emotional states are important predictors of physical activity underlying psychological processes are far from being fully understood. Some important issues still remain to be resolved. Which role play affective states compared to concrete emotions when influencing physical activity? How do affective states and emotions interact with cognitive variables such as intentions? Are evaluative processes before, during or after physical activity important to predict future physical activity? Do negative and positive evaluations interact antagonistically or rather synergistically when physical activity as a new behavior shall be adopted? Future research will help us to resolve these and a lot of other so far unresolved issues.
Across species, humans have an unsurpassed capacity for creative thought and innovation. Human creativity is at the roots of extraordinary achievements in the arts and sciences, and enables individuals and their groups to adapt flexibly to changing circumstances, to manage complex social relations, and to survive and prosper through social, technological, and medical innovations. The ability to generate novel and potentially useful ideas and problem solutions (viz., creativity) is a key driver of human evolution, and among the most valued and sought after competencies in contemporary societies that struggle with complex problems and compete for technological and economic supremacy. Because creativity provides fitness functionality in both ancestral and contemporary societies, it stands to reason that (i) the human brain evolved to sustain and promote creative thinking and we should be able to identify (ii) the brain circuitries, genetic drivers, and neurohormonal modulators of the human capacity for creative problem solving and original ideation; and (iii) the core cognitive and emotional processes underlying creative thought. In this Research Topic, we bring together a collection of papers to provide an encyclopedic, open access snapshot of the current state of the art on the neural, cognitive, and emotional correlates of creativity.
The statistics are disturbing: steadily rising numbers of sedentary overweight children and obese teens, and a generation looking at a shorter life expectancy than their parents’. But while it may be obvious that physical fitness benefits both the mind and body, a growing research base is supplying evidence of why this is so, and how these benefits may be reproduced in greater numbers. Physical Activity Across the Lifespan makes a clear, scientific case for exercise, sports, and an active lifestyle in preventing illness and establishing lifetime health habits at both the individual and the population levels. The book focuses on key aspects of physical/mental well-being—weight, mood, and self-regulation—and the role of physical activity in public health and school-based interventions targeting these areas. Contributors review definitional and measurement issues salient to understanding what physical activity is, to analyzing benefits of participation, and to implementing effective interventions. Also addressed are limitations of current research, steps needed to continue building the field, and emerging therapeutic possibilities for activity, such as the role of rough and tumble play in preventing ADHD. Included in the coverage: Physical activity, cognition, and school performance. The influence of social and built environments on physical activity in middle-aged and older adults. Preventing and treating obesity through physical activity. Physical activity in preventing drug use and treating chemical dependence. Antidepressant properties of physical activity. Schools as a foundation for physical activity and an active lifestyle. Physical activity as an adjunct or booster to existing interventions. Physical Activity Across the Lifespan is an innovative text for researchers and practitioners in various disciplines including health promotion/disease prevention, child and school psychology, education, health psychology, and public health, as well as program developers and policymakers in these areas.
Learn how to apply the psychology of health and fitness to your exercise programs and to solve the motivational and behavioral problems you’ll encounter every day in practice. You’ll explore the scientific principles and variables that influence behavior as you develop the confidence to design effective lifestyle interventions for disease prevention and develop individualized exercise programs that promote optimal health.
Rapid developments in brain neuroimaging methods have occurred over the past decade. These advances have revolutionized cognitive and behavioral neuroscience, and are likely to have major influence on clinical psychological, psychiatric, and neurological practice over the coming years. There are a number of excellent books that focus on specific neuroimaging methods, such as fMRI. Furthermore, cognitive and neuroscience texts have increasingly incorporated functional brain neuroimaging. Yet, there are few books to date that consider and review emerging research in the application of brain neuroimaging methods for the study and assessment of behavioral and cognitive disorders. This book provides a broad coverage of current research trends in the clinical application of brain neuroimaging methods in the context of behavioral medicine, neuropsychology, and related areas of medical psychology. It uniquely integrates current neuroimaging methods and studies with current behavioral medicine research, and presents knowledge derived from recent developments in the fields of functional and structural brain imaging. By integrating information from experimental behavioral medicine with clinical insights, this book will serve as a source book for neuropsychologists, psychologists, neurologists, psychiatrists, and other professionals in both clinical practice and academic context. This integration results in the reader having a greater understanding of how the brain controls behavior, the disturbances of behavior that may occur with different disorders, and what clinicians should consider when assessing or working with patients with behavioral problems.
