The effects of physique-salient and physique non-salient exercise videos on women's body image, self-presentational concerns, and exercise motivation

This experiment examined the effects of exposure to physique-salient (PS) and physique non-salient (PNS) exercise videos and the moderating influence of perceived physique discrepancies, on body image, self-presentational concerns, and exercise motivation. Eighty inactive women (M age = 26) exercised to a 30 min instructional exercise video. In the PS condition, the video instructor wore revealing attire that emphasized her thin and toned physique. In the PNS condition, she wore attire that concealed her physique. Participants completed pre- and post-exercise measures of body image, social physique anxiety (SPA) and self-presentational efficacy (SPE) and a post-exercise measure of exercise motivation and perceived discrepancies with the instructor's body. No main or moderated effects emerged for video condition. However, greater perceived negative discrepancies were associated with poorer post-exercise body satisfaction and body evaluations, and higher state SPA. There were no effects on SPE or motivation. Results suggest that exercise videos that elicit perceived negative discrepancies can be detrimental to women's body images.     

Social comparison orientation as related to two types of closeness

Two studies examined the relationship between social comparison orientation (SCO) and two types of closeness (dimensional closeness and psychological closeness) in the context of appearance-related comparisons among women. A pilot study showed that these two types were relatively independent constructs, and provided evidence for the differential validity of the constructs. Consistent with our expectations, women high in SCO perceived more dimensional closeness with other women in terms of appearance (Study 1, n = 94) and perceived more psychological closeness with other women (Study 2; n = 126) than women low in SCO. Overall, women, but especially women high in SCO, reported most dimensional closeness in response to the most attractive women and most psychological closeness in response to women of medium levels of attractiveness.     

The boundaries between attachment and personality: Localized versus generalized effects in daily social interaction

A diary study examined the effects of romantic attachment (avoidance, anxiety) and autonomous and sociotropic personality on levels of sociability within social interactions across relational contexts (N = 89 undergraduates). As expected, the effects of domain-specific romantic attachment avoidance and anxiety on sociability were localized to social interactions with romantic partners, whereas the effects of autonomy and sociotropy were generalized across relational contexts (i.e., across social interactions with romantic partners, family members, friends, and acquaintances/others). Furthermore, the effects of both autonomy and sociotropy on sociability were partially mediated by domain-specific attachment in domain-congruent (romantic) but not domain-incongruent (non-romantic) relational contexts: romantic avoidance partially mediated the effects of autonomy on sociability toward romantic partners, whereas romantic anxiety partially mediated the effects of sociotropy. These results suggest that autonomy and sociotropy summarize global regularities in relational responding that correspond to those described by attachment avoidance and anxiety—although (unlike attachment) they do so across relational contexts. Domain-specific attachment representations, in contrast, govern responding within context-congruent domains and act as a mechanism through which personality guides social interaction within these domains.     

The relationship between habitual physical activity status and executive function in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease: a longitudinal,cross-lagged panel analysis

To determine whether habitual physical activity status specifically influences executive function change in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) over 1 year. In this longitudinal cohort study, 45 participants with AD were recruited and provided follow-up data approximately 1 year later. Executive function measures (map search task, digit symbol substitution task, controlled oral word association task, verbal fluency task) and habitual physical activity measures (Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) and handgrip strength) were taken at baseline and follow-up. Individual composites were subsequently created. Additional demographic, lifestyle, and neuropsychiatric measures were also taken. In a structural equation model (χ²(26) = 9.84, p = .998, comparative fit index = 1.00, root mean square error of approximation = .00), a significant association was found between habitual physical activity and executive function change (β = .27, p = .04). In a cross-lagged panel analysis, a significant path was found between the PASE score and executive change (β = .22, p = .01). As higher habitual physical activity levels were associated with reduced executive function change, the promotion of low-intensity habitual physical activities in individuals with a diagnosis of AD may be warranted. Further research is needed, however, to explore the impact of habitual physical activity on the trajectory of change across cognitive domains, and how this relates to the progression of the underlying pathology associated with this disease.     

Predicting parental social influences: The role of physical activity variability

Objectives

This study examined how variations in the activity of adolescents might relate to the social influences used by parents. Specifically, mean differences in activity across adolescents (individual differences) as well as variation in activity within adolescents (intra-individual variation) were used to predict the use of family social influence.

Design

A prospective design was used.

Methods

High school students (N = 329) completed measures of activity (six times) and social influences received from family (positive, negative, collaborative) (five times) over a one-year period. A multilevel analysis was used to predict each of the three types of social influence. The predictors included activity in two forms: The individual’s mean level of activity (i.e., individual differences) and activity at the previous time point as a deviation from the individual’s mean activity level (i.e., intra-individual variation).

Results

Controlling for age, gender and school, results revealed that both individual differences in mean activity level (b = 0.04, p < .001) and intra-individual variation in activity (b = −0.02, p = .055) predicted use of collaborative influence. For positive influence, only individual differences in mean activity level was a predictor (b = 0.02, p < .001). Neither form of activity predicted parental use of negative influence.

Conclusions

Results revealed support for the positive relationship between both positive and collaborative types of influence and individual differences in activity that is typically reported in the literature. However, a negative relationship between intra-individual variation in activity and collaborative social influences also was found. This negative relationship, where lower activity than normal by the adolescent was related to a greater use of collaborative influence by the parent, may be indicative of a regulatory form of social influence.     

Affective reactions to real-life stressors and the role of physical activity in sports students – An Ambulatory Assessment study

Students are exposed to a variety of stressors that can negatively affect their health and performance. Using an Ambulatory Assessment approach, this study investigated whether and how positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) changed in response to real-life stressors in sports students. In addition, the study investigated how physical activity (PhyA) moderated affective reactions to stressors. 62 participants of a German university (m = 23, f = 38, d = 1; age: M = 21.55 years, SD = 2.47) reported their daily stressors, affective states and PhyA (context, intensity and duration) six times per day via smartphone over five days (30 prompts per participants). To test the hypotheses multilevel models were calculated. Stressor context predicted affective reactions. PA was lower and NA was higher when general (financial problems) or academic (exam periods) stressors were reported. General PhyA had a positive effect on sports students affect (higher PA, lower NA). However, when PhyA was performed in exercise classes within their study program and a stressor was reported, PA decreased. The results showed that certain stressors interact negatively with affective states. Furthermore, the results suggested that PhyA, depending on the context where it occurred, may also induce negative affective changes in this target group of sport students. More studies need to examine how PhyA moderates affective reactions to stressors and examine the influences of context specific PhyA (e.g., type of PhyA) in more detail.     

Antecedents and consequences of family social control use following an adolescent physical activity lapse

Objectives

This study explored the relationship between social control and behavior by examining both the antecedents of social control use following a physical activity lapse as well as the behavior reaction to the use of social control.

Design

As part of a larger project, high school students (N = 547) were prospectively followed over the course of a year and reported physical activity every two months.

Methods

For this study, 123 adolescents who reported experiencing a physical activity lapse sometime during the year were selected. Family physical activity and adolescent activity prior to the lapse were used to predict family use of social control tactics following the lapse. Use of social control tactics were used to differentiate whether adolescents increased their activity following the lapse or not.

Results

Results revealed that family physical activity predicted use of positive and collaborative social control following an adolescent activity lapse. Adolescent physical activity prior to the lapse also predicted parental use of collaborative social control following the lapse. In terms of the adolescent’s behavior reaction, an increase in collaborative social control following the lapse appeared to differentiate those who reported an increase in activity following the lapse compared with those who reported no increase.

Conclusions

This study provided support for physical activity behavior being both an antecedent and consequence of parental social control.     

When is peer rejection justifiable? Children's understanding across two cultures

This study investigated how Korean (N = 397) and U.S. (N = 333) children and adolescents (10 and 13 years of age) evaluated personality (aggression, shyness) and group (gender, nationality) characteristics as a basis for peer rejection in three contexts (friendship rejection, group exclusion, victimization). Overall, peer rejection based on group membership was viewed as more unfair than peer rejection based on personality traits. Children viewed friendship rejection as more legitimate than group exclusion or victimization and used more personal choice reasoning for friendship rejection than for rejection in any other context. Although there were a few cultural differences, overall, the findings provided support for the cultural generalizability of social reasoning about peer rejection.     

VERB™ Summer Scorecard: Findings from a Multi-level Community-based Physical Activity Intervention for Tweens

The benefits of physical activity for adolescents are well established. Multi-level interventions may be especially effective in establishing and sustaining health-enhancing behaviors. This study explored the influences of a multi-level community intervention aimed at increasing physical activity among tweens (youth 9–13). Two Florida school districts far apart served as intervention and comparison sites in a quasi-experimental post-test design. Youth in grades 5 through 8 in the intervention community (n = 1,253) and comparison community (n = 866) completed an anonymous post-intervention survey. An intent-to-treat analysis did not show any statistically significant group differences for the physical activity outcomes examined. However, a subset analysis revealed that students who reported participating in the intervention were more likely to be physically active than youth in the comparison group, as well as youth in the intervention community who reported not participating. Participating in the intervention was significantly related to meeting recommendations for vigorous physical activity (OR = 2.08, P = 0.0259), being physically active on weekends (OR = 1.84, P = 0.0017), and reporting more days of trying a new game or sport (OR = 1.49, P = 0.046) after controlling for grade, gender, race/ethnicity, and SES. These findings support the efficacy of multi-level interventions to create effective health behavior change, especially when linkages among community, media, schools, and the home are present.     

Daily experiences and well-being: Do memories of events matter?

Retrospective subjective well-being (SWB) refers to self-reported satisfaction and emotional experience over the past few weeks or months. Two studies investigated the mechanisms linking daily experiences to retrospective SWB. Participants reported events each day for 21 days (Study 1) or twice a week for two months (Study 2). The emotional intensity of each event was rated: (1) when it had recently occurred (proximal intensity); and (2) at the end of the event-reporting period (distal intensity). Both sets of ratings were then aggregated across events and used to predict retrospective SWB at the end of the study. Path analyses showed that proximal intensity predicted retrospective SWB whereas distal intensity did not. The effect remained even after controlling for trait happiness and neuroticism. These results suggest that daily experiences influence retrospective SWB primarily through abstract representations of the past few weeks or months (as measured by aggregated proximal intensity ratings) rather than the explicit recollection of individual events during the same period (as measured by aggregated distal intensity ratings). Retrospective SWB, in turn, mediated the effect of daily experiences on global SWB (i.e., self-reported satisfaction and emotional experiences in general).