Exercise Psych - exam Flashcards
Define affect
Expression of value given to a feeling state
Positive or negative
Define emotions
Brief responses of negative or positive feelings evoked by particular situations
Can contribute to mood
Define mood
Host of transient fluctuating affective states that can be positive or negative
Types of Factor that can affect mood
Exogenous- transient conditions in the environment
Endogenous rhythms- innate biological processes eg menstrual cycle
Traits and temperament -general tendency people have in experiencing affect
Characteristic variability- individual differences in the magnitude of mood fluctuations
Other things that affect mood
Repeated intense emotions
Physiological changes - sleep, drugs, exercise
How does exercising affect mood
Hormones - endorphins, serotonin, noradrenaline, adrenaline, dopamine (runners high)
Self - esteem + self efficacy
Previous experience exercising
Task variables that affect mood
Intensity - Inc intensity inc arousal, effects depends on participants response to arousal
Duration
Mode
Situational variables affecting exercise and mood
Physical environment
Social environment
Interact with personal and task variables to influence mood
Describe the mastery hypothesis
Improved emotional stability, self sufficiency + conscientiousness from persistent involvement in meaningful activity
Inc sense of global wellbeing, euphoric highs, sense of accomplishment
Improved concentration
Experience vivid physical sensations
Describe the distraction hypothesis
Decreased awareness of feelings of fear, tension and irritability
Distraction from worry and rejection
Countering effect on inertia, fatigue + depression
Theories on psychosocial benefits of exercise that enhance mood
Mastery theory
Distraction theory
How do you measure affect
Self report - likert scale or circumplex model of affect
Describe likert scale
Measures response to each adjective on a scale typicallly 1-5
Can be done on how you feel in the moment or over 4 weeks
Describe circumplex model of affect
Can be used for single terms
Rate each term by feeling -5 to +5 and arousal 1-6
These are mapped onto plot
Consideration for self report of affect
Single items may be better - less likely to change variable being measured through act of measurement
Other ways to measure affect
Skin conductance
EMG
EEG
Neuroimaging
Describe hedonic principle
Humans seek pleasure and avoid displeasure so positive reinforcement + feeling good encourages participation
Describe the affective-reflective theory
Dual process depending on affect and automatic response
An exercise related stimulus causes an automatic association (type 1 process)
This causes automatic effect valuation + encoded effect + cognition
Automatic effect valuation causes action impulse + allows reflective valuation
Reflective valuation (type 2 process) allows action plans
Action impulse + action plans lead to behaviour
Exercise intensity + motivation to exercise
Intensity Inc above ventilatory threshold- feels unpleasant may put people off BUT often get affective rebound at end (due to sense of accomplishment etc)
Exercise below threshold feels more pleasant
When do people have most positive affect
Self - selected physical activity below threshold
As
Perception of control and ability
Exercise outcomes
Describe attention restoration theory
People have limited capacity to direct attention to something that’s not interesting- directed attentional fatigue
How to counter direct attentional fatigue
Fascination - different/ novel objects/environments
Being away - from noise/busyness/normal environments
Extent of connectedness - doing it with others
Compatibility
What is natural environment
Characterised by variety of different + novel objects of interest that replenish depleted energy and attention
Why is exercise in the natural environment better
Less noise / over crowding which can overwhelm ability to direct attention + cause further negative emotions
It promotes positive emotions and affect due to aestically pleasing factors that use effortless attention or fascination
Who gets the biggest effects from being in natural environment
Extremely stressed/fatigued individuals
Get more positive mood changes and perform better on stress tasks
Effect of sitting on mood and affect
Negatively influences situational negative affect, tiredness and energy levels
Restoration still occurs when sitting in a natural environment but to a lesser extent
Effect of exercise duration on mood
Favourable effect on various mood profiles regardless of duration
Define mental health
Whole state can be flourishing and good or bad.
Who is more likely to have mental health problems
Smokers
Poor social-economic background
Potential consequences of poor mental health
Likely to die earlier
NHS 5 steps to mental well-being
Connect, be active, take notice, learn new skills, give to others
Exercising can tick off most of these
Impact of physical activity on mental illness
Decreased risk + helps mx of major depressive disorder, anxiety + psychosis
Improved sleep quality (+ cardiorespiratory fitness)
But the more severe the mental illness less impact PA has
What mental health Sx / problems can PA help
Illness duration
Dec suicide attempts (but not ideation)
Global functioning
QoL
Normalising
Dec antipsychotic prescriptions
Social inclusion
Memory
Type of PA best for mental health
Sport- most favourable mental health outcomes, positive social development, dec social exclusion
Leisure time PA - more enjoyable, Inc participation + motivation
Work time PA - has no association with mental illness
Facilitators for participating in community mental health exercise programs
Good, easily accessible facilities
Education + training
Flexibility
Peer support - buddy system
Consistent communication
1ST SESSION V IMPORTANT
What is the moving for mental health report
Used to help inform govt policy + promote benefits of community based PA
Why was the moving for mental health report needed?
Covid had significant impact on mental health + accelerated inequalities
PA is beneficial but only under right conditions - need to identify + promote these
PA decreased in Covid 1.2 million more inactive adults
Much of the sector stopped + never recovered from covid
Moving for mental health outcomes
- Develop cross-govt strategy promoting movement for mental health
- Office for health improvement + disparities responsible for this - should work with other departments to create more opportunities
- Prioritise cross sector partnerships and role of experts by lived experience
- Professionals + volunteers should receive standardised training + professional development
- Prioritise + fund more consistent + accessible evaluations to identify improvements
Depression prevalence
1in 6 adults worldwide
Affects 150 million worldwide
Define depression
Concurrent presence of at leat 5/10Sx which occur most of the day, nearly everyday for 2 weeks. 1sx must be low mood, anhedoinia, or low energy (core Sx of depression)
Depression Sx
Core - low mood, low energy, anhedoina
Others - difficulty concentrating, psychosis, sleep changes, appetite changes, feeling worthless, inappropriate guilt, fatigue, psychomotor agitation
Depression Mx
Mindfulness, exercise, SSRI, CBT, ECT
Impact of exercise on depression
Regularly active 15% less likely to get depression in future
150 mins exercise per week dec risk depression 30%
Psychological benefits of PA for depressed
Dec anxiety + depression sx
Dec psychological distress
Improved mood, sleep, energy + concentration levels
Improved self esteem, confidence and connectedness
What exercise has the biggest benefits for depression
Moderate intensity, aerobic exercise with supervision by exercise professionals
But exercise at any intensity likely to help prevent subsequent depression
Team sport = fewer Sx anxiety + depression
Motivation regulation spectrum
Ranges from
Autonomous motivation (I love doing it)
To controlled motivation (I have to do it)
Autonomous better in LT