Background: Physical self-concept and physical self-esteem are important sources of general self-esteem and overall health. Evidence indicates that exercise leads to an enhancement in physical self-concept and physica...Background: Physical self-concept and physical self-esteem are important sources of general self-esteem and overall health. Evidence indicates that exercise leads to an enhancement in physical self-concept and physical self-esteem. Until now however, it remained unclear whether the beneficial effects of exercise were impacted by different types of exercise environments. Thus, the purpose of this study was to experimentally investigate, whether the presence or absence of an instructor or other group members influenced elder adults’ physical self-concept and esteem. Method: Participants were 46 women and 20 men (Mean age 65.4, SD = 4.36) who were randomly assigned to one of four experimental groups differing across two factors—group versus no-group and instructor versus no-instructor. Participants took part in an 8-week-walking program with a comparable number of training sessions across the four experimental groups. Physical self-concept and physical self-esteem were assessed both pre and post exercise intervention. Results: Descriptively, the highest improvement in physical self-concept and esteem were observed in the instructor/no-group and the no-instructor/group condition. Between these two conditions, no significant difference of change was observed. Moreover, no improvement was observed when both instructor and group were present. Conclusion: Effects of either instructor presence or group presence may be explained by mechanisms of social integration and social support. An unexpected absence of effects on self-concept and esteem under the instructor/group condition are explained with reference to an individual’s cognitive dissonance caused by the need to adapt to different exercise oriented goals or attitudes of the instructor and the group members which might hinder the positive development of the self.展开更多
This study aimed to clarify the amount of physical activity, lifestyle, and self-esteem of elementary school students living in Aomori Prefecture Japan. The subjects were ninety-one elementary school students in the 4...This study aimed to clarify the amount of physical activity, lifestyle, and self-esteem of elementary school students living in Aomori Prefecture Japan. The subjects were ninety-one elementary school students in the 4th to 6th grades who live in A town. The subjects were asked to fill out a questionnaire about lifestyles and self-esteem and to wear the lifestyle-related recorder Life Coder GS<span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;"><sup>®</sup></span></span> (Suzuken, Japan) for a total of four days, two weekdays and two holidays. The results showed the amount of exercise such as the number of steps taken was significantly higher on weekdays than on holidays. There was no difference by gender or classification of obesity. In addition, when they go to school on foot, the number of steps and fast walking time was significantly higher than when using the bus. Screen times of holidays were significantly longer than those of weekdays. The number of steps on holidays was negatively correlated with screen time, and positively correlated with the factor of “self-assertion/self-determination” of self-esteem scale. Health promotion is needed so that the entire community, including family and friends, can develop daily physical activities.展开更多
文摘Background: Physical self-concept and physical self-esteem are important sources of general self-esteem and overall health. Evidence indicates that exercise leads to an enhancement in physical self-concept and physical self-esteem. Until now however, it remained unclear whether the beneficial effects of exercise were impacted by different types of exercise environments. Thus, the purpose of this study was to experimentally investigate, whether the presence or absence of an instructor or other group members influenced elder adults’ physical self-concept and esteem. Method: Participants were 46 women and 20 men (Mean age 65.4, SD = 4.36) who were randomly assigned to one of four experimental groups differing across two factors—group versus no-group and instructor versus no-instructor. Participants took part in an 8-week-walking program with a comparable number of training sessions across the four experimental groups. Physical self-concept and physical self-esteem were assessed both pre and post exercise intervention. Results: Descriptively, the highest improvement in physical self-concept and esteem were observed in the instructor/no-group and the no-instructor/group condition. Between these two conditions, no significant difference of change was observed. Moreover, no improvement was observed when both instructor and group were present. Conclusion: Effects of either instructor presence or group presence may be explained by mechanisms of social integration and social support. An unexpected absence of effects on self-concept and esteem under the instructor/group condition are explained with reference to an individual’s cognitive dissonance caused by the need to adapt to different exercise oriented goals or attitudes of the instructor and the group members which might hinder the positive development of the self.
文摘This study aimed to clarify the amount of physical activity, lifestyle, and self-esteem of elementary school students living in Aomori Prefecture Japan. The subjects were ninety-one elementary school students in the 4th to 6th grades who live in A town. The subjects were asked to fill out a questionnaire about lifestyles and self-esteem and to wear the lifestyle-related recorder Life Coder GS<span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;"><sup>®</sup></span></span> (Suzuken, Japan) for a total of four days, two weekdays and two holidays. The results showed the amount of exercise such as the number of steps taken was significantly higher on weekdays than on holidays. There was no difference by gender or classification of obesity. In addition, when they go to school on foot, the number of steps and fast walking time was significantly higher than when using the bus. Screen times of holidays were significantly longer than those of weekdays. The number of steps on holidays was negatively correlated with screen time, and positively correlated with the factor of “self-assertion/self-determination” of self-esteem scale. Health promotion is needed so that the entire community, including family and friends, can develop daily physical activities.
