Predictable Mispredictions in the Context of Physical Activity and Sport: A Review

Theoretical models and research that aim to identify antecedents of participation in physical activities or sport can measure antecedents of physical activity behaviour through instruments that involve subjective predictions. In this article, we argue that such instruments may not reflect physical activity experiences or behaviour accurately because people are not very good predictors of future states. Additionally, we propose that mispredictions may be predictable because they are “caused” by tendencies to neglect processes related to hedonic adaptation and competing alternatives. We also suggest that it may be possible to improve measurement of antecedents through methods that focus respondents' attention on factors that cause mispredictions or through experiential sampling methods.     

Phonological effects in visual word recognition: investigating the impact of feedback activation

P. M. Pexman, S. J. Lupker, and D. Jared (2001) reported longer response latencies in lexical decision tasks (LDTs) for homophones (e.g., maid) than for nonhomophones, and attributed this homophone effect to orthographic competition created by feedback activation from phonology. In the current study, two predictions of this feedback account were tested: (a) In LDT, observe homophone effects should be observed but not regularity or homograph effects because most exception words (e.g., pint) and homographs (e.g., wind) have different feedback characteristics than homophones do, and (b) in a phonological LDT ("does it sound like a word?"), regularity and homograph effects should be observed but not homophone effects. Both predictions were confirmed. These results support the claim that feedback activation from phonology plays a significant role in visual word recognition.     

Seek,and You Will Find: The Influence of Expectations on Evaluations of Physical Activity

Despite hundreds of studies on the effects of expectations on evaluations, few commentaries have focused on summarising the relevance of these findings for physical activity pursuits. Moreover, a parsimonious framework on the nature of these relationships in physical activity is yet to be developed. Such a framework is important given the significance of physical activity evaluations in predicting future physical activity participation. Based on existing models on persuasion, it is premised that the self can be persuaded by one's own expectations about physical activity and that such persuasion can support or refute those expectations. Which of these effects are created, and the extent of one's psychological and physical involvement in the creation of physical activity evaluations, is likely to hinge on motivation and ability to confirm or disconfirm expectations. Evidence from related bodies of literature is presented to support the primary tenets of the model, which is termed the expectation‐to‐evaluation model, and recommendations for practitioners and future research are offered.