This study examined whether approach-avoidance training (AAT) could promote physical activity among insufficiently active individuals. Two experiments tested typical and consequence-based AAT using neutral physical activity and sedentary stimuli in Experiment 1 and physical activity images with positive and negative affective valence in Experiment 2. Across the two experiments, single-session AAT was associated with increased approach (vs. avoidance) tendencies and immediate postintervention physical activity. The overall pattern of findings suggested that consequence-based AAT may hold greater behavioral promise under affective stimulus conditions. These findings provide preliminary support for the role of automatic processes in physical activity promotion.
Youth sport is increasingly recognized as a platform for fostering physical health and psychosocial development. Yet, the vast majority of existing knowledge stems from research in Western contexts. On the African continent, home to nearly 25% of the world’s youth, studies remain scarce, though emerging literature highlights sport’s transformative potential amid diverse cultural, socioeconomic, and geopolitical realities. This scoping review synthesizes English-language, peer-reviewed research on youth sport across Africa’s five geopolitical regions. Seven shared psychosocial themes emerged: socioeconomic barriers to participation, gender-based inequities, positive youth development and sport-for-development peace outcomes, coaching efficacy and leadership, mental and physical health benefits, globalization and talent migration, and sport tourism and community impacts. Findings demonstrate the sport’s capacity to address local challenges. By mapping shared and region-specific themes, the review offers a comprehensive overview of youth sport knowledge in Africa while identifying key gaps to guide future psychosocial research on the continent.
This commentary advances a reframing of science as a dialectical process that moves from local lifeworld to provisional universals and back to locally situated renewal. We term this movement Indigenized Science. Building on two decades of cultural praxis work, we propose that universalization has broadened inclusion yet often stalls before reembedding knowledge into the geographic, linguistic, and sociopolitical contexts where athletes live and practitioners work with coaches, teammates, staff, and administrative leadership. Herein, we (a) synthesize how cultural sport psychology has progressed from early calls for awareness to contextualized inquiry, (b) identify limits of prevailing Anglophone methodological canons when transported across geographic settings, and (c) propose a culturally relevant and safe actionable framework for indigenizing research and practice. We offer an actionable framework specifying six intervention points: literature (multilingual and cross-regional canons), philosophies of science (context-congruent epistemologies), development of cooperation (international cooperation), situating of authors/participants/contexts (explicit "place" and positionality), modes of inquiry (community-compatible designs and elicitation), and analytic strategies (coanalysis and coauthorship to preserve local meaning). We exemplify how these choices cohere to enhance ecological validity, ethical reciprocity, and knowledge translation across diverse systems. This contribution reveals a methodological and ethical orientation, but it is not a replacement for scientific generalization. Rather, it is a disciplined return to contexts renewing and reinforcing science. We conclude with implications for scientist-practitioner training, positioning indigenization as a rigor-enhancing route to globally relevant, locally resonant sport psychology.
Given the impact of class cohesion on students' learning, it's relevant to explore its relationship with other affective and cognitive variables. This study explored the connections between class cohesion, engagement, disruptive behaviors, and perceived academic performance in physical education. This cross-sectional study design involved 853 students, 413 boys (M=14.54, SD =1.35) and 440 girls (M =14.32; SD =1.44) from nine secondary schools in Spain. Multilevel structural equation modeling was conducted. The results showed that task cohesion was positively related with engagement, and negatively related to disruptive behaviors at the student level and class level. Additionally, engagement and disruptive behaviors were positively and negatively related, respectively, to perceived academic performance in physical education at both levels. Finally, engagement mediated between task cohesion and perceived academic performance in physical education only at the student level. It appears important to promote class cohesion, which could help students engagement during classes and, consequently, improve their academic performance.
This randomized controlled trial examined whether Mindful Sport Performance Enhancement (MSPE) improves objective performance under pressure, increases flow, and reduces competitive anxiety and aggression in youth soccer. Fifty-two male academy outfield players were randomized to 6 weeks of MSPE or an education-based active attention control. Assessments were completed pre, post, and 3-month follow-up; 90-min matches were framed as selection-relevant trials and video-coded by blinded raters. Mixed analyses of variance showed a significant Group × Time interaction for under pressure performance (p < .001): MSPE improved at posttest and remained superior at follow-up. Relative to education-based active attention control, flow increased and somatic anxiety decreased, with smaller effects for cognitive anxiety and aggression; aggression was not maintained. Findings were robust to sensitivity analyses using linear mixed-effects model. Exploratory mediation analyses provided no clear evidence that changes in psychological variables explained performance gains. Overall, MSPE offers a practical, field-ready approach for supporting under pressure performance and related psychological outcomes in youth soccer.
Flexible nonlinear periodization (FNLP) is a form of exercise programming that encourages individuals to acutely match exercise demand to their physical and mental resource availability. It is unclear how exercise is chosen and experienced by individuals following this invitation. This mixed-method study aimed to understand the viability of FNLP-based exercise. Twenty-four participants initiated pre-and postexercise surveys when asked to engage in FNLP for 14 days. Each participant was interviewed to review visualized survey data and elaborate on reasonings for and consequences of their decisions. Integrated quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis to generate patterns of meaning. Resource-concordant decisions were perceived to support recovery, training overload, and novel activities. Resource-discordant decisions were made to distract from stressors, for social engagement, or in response to self-imposed expectations. Experiences were neither universally pleasant nor unpleasant. Findings begin to disentangle the complexity of exercise behavior and inform FNLP refinement.
Competitive athletes often avoid reminiscing about the milestones they reach as they pursue their goals in sport. We conducted four studies that showed that one reason for this may be the reminiscing-is-debilitating belief-the tendency for people to believe that reminiscing about milestones causes worse future performance. Basketball fans and players (total N = 1,029) read scenarios about athletes who had reached a milestone and were continuing to pursue an ultimate goal. Our results showed that people believed that athletes should reminisce about the milestone for a shorter amount of time to help their future performance (Study 1) and that athletes who were portrayed as reminiscing about their milestone accomplishments were expected to perform worse in a subsequent competition due the expectation that reminiscing reduces preparedness for, and commitment toward, ultimate goals (Studies 2-4). These findings help explain why many athletes avoid maximizing their positive feelings after milestone successes.
This study examined whether information about sport participation influences stereotypes associated with autistic persons with intellectual disabilities, focusing on the warmth and competence dimensions of stereotype content and their facets. Participants (N = 325, Mage = 26.09), primarily students without self-reported disability, completed an online experiment using a between-subjects randomized design. Participants read a vignette describing an autistic person with intellectual disabilities, in which sport participation was manipulated (elite, recreational, or control). Participants then rated the target on perceived warmth and competence using 30-item scales including facet subscales. Results showed significant effects of sport participation on perceived competence: F(2, 322) = 52.66, p < .001, ηp2=.25. The elite athlete was perceived as more competent than both the recreational and control targets. The recreational athlete was rated higher that the control target. These findings suggest that sport participation may shape social perceptions of autism, although field studies are needed to examine real-world effects.
Mental health problems are still prevalent in sport, and their early symptoms often appear as nonspecific psychological distress. While research in the general population has unveiled both "dark" and "bright" sides of fantasy, knowledge is scarce regarding how sport fantasy proneness affects psychological distress. In this study, we examined the hypothesis that how sport fantasy affects psychological distress depends on athletes' perception of deflated reality. Using a sample of 397 British Universities and Colleges Sport players, we demonstrated a stronger support for the "mitigating hypothesis" (i.e., fantasy "mitigates" psychological distress as deflated reality increases) than the "magnifying hypothesis" (i.e., fantasy "magnifies" psychological distress as deflated reality increases), even after adjusting for athlete psychological strain. The findings suggest that sports fantasy is not necessarily a bad thing, and deflated reality may serve as a "catalyst" for sports fantasy. Future research should consider more proximal factors underlying sport fantasy and deflated reality for athletes' mental health.
A recent meta-analysis found that perfectionism was related to orthorexia (obsessive healthy eating). However, the meta-analysis included only three samples from the sport and exercise domain, so estimates were imprecise and, for perfectionistic concerns, unclear. We conducted a continuously cumulating meta-analysis to update these estimates. Following a preregistered protocol, with open data and code, we recruited three samples-255 gym members (age: 32.92 years, SD = 8.58), 297 functional athletes (age: 33.89 years, SD = 8.65), and 278 runners (age: 41.15 years, SD =13.14). Reanalysis of meta-analytical effects incorporating these samples (total N=1,717) showed that orthorexia had a medium, positive relationship with perfectionistic strivings (r+ = .31, 95% CI [.15, .46]) and a small-to-medium positive, relationship with perfectionistic concerns (r+=.26, 95% CI [.11, .40]). The findings confirm that both dimensions of perfectionism are potential risk factors for orthorexia in the sport and exercise domain.
The ability to recognize emotional facial expressions is integral to social interactions. Older adults experience declines in facial affect recognition (FAR), which can negatively impact their psychosocial functioning and health. As prior research indicates regular physical activity can reduce age-related cognitive declines, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between physical activity and FAR performance in younger and older adults. Physical activity was assessed via self-report. A computerized FAR task was used to measure accuracy and response time. Results showed no age difference in FAR accuracy, but older adults had significantly slower FAR response times for correct responses. In addition, age group moderated the relationship between physical activity and FAR, whereby a greater amount of weekly physical activity was associated with faster FAR response times only for older adults. This suggests that physical activity may mitigate age-related declines in the ability to quickly and accurately recognize emotional facial expressions.
This experimental investigation examined whether the motivational climate created by coaches during a sport clinic impacts Division I athletes' (N= 39; Mage= 20.40 years) motivation and state self-esteem while developing an unmastered skill (i.e., freethrow shooting). Affect was assessed pre-and postclinic. Effort, enjoyment, and social and performance self-esteem were assessed postclinic only. Individual items gauged whether athletes felt that the climate they were immersed in helps optimize their performance and athlete potential. The group in the caring, task-involving climate reported more advantageous responses during the free-throw clinic compared with those in the ego-involving climate. They also reported that they felt that the coaching environment was a more optimal coaching climate. This research addresses a gap in the literature by utilizing an experimental design to assess Division I athlete responses to the coaching climate; however, readers should consider that basketball was not the participants' primary sport.
This study aimed to examine the prevalence of mental well-being and its relationships with depression and anxiety among international elite athletes. The sample consisted of 244 international elite athletes (Mage = 21.41 years, 52.0% men). The prevalence of flourishing, moderate well-being, and languishing across nine countries was 44.7%, 54.1%, and 1.2%, respectively. Elite athletes residing in Sweden were 2.81 times more likely to be flourishing compared with those residing in Australia (adjusted odds ratio = 2.81, 95% CI [1.51, 5.24], p = .001). Nonflourishing athletes were 5.94 times more likely to screen positive for depression (adjusted odds ratio = 5.94, 95% CI [2.66, 13.27]; p < .001) and were 4.72 times more likely to screen positive for anxiety (adjusted odds ratio = 4.72, 95% CI [2.12, 10.53]; p < .001). The results indicate that flourishing promotion in nonclinical elite athlete populations may help reduce the risk of future mental illness.
Quiet eye (QE) characteristics are trainable; however, little is known about the transferability into novel aiming tasks. The current study examines transfer from a dart throwing task to a beanbag throwing task. Twenty-four participants were assigned to either a QE training (QET) or technical training group. Participants completed a pretest, acquisition phase, posttest, and transfer, each with three difficultly conditions. Both groups decreased their error from pre- to posttest, but the QET group decreased error by significantly more. The QET group reported lower error scores and longer QE across the three difficulty conditions, whereas the technical training group decreased performance in the hard condition. In the transfer test, the QET group reported significantly lower error and longer QE than the technical training group. QET improvements learned in one task can be transferred to novel tasks, although task demands and processing requirements may impact the effectiveness of this transfer.
The transition from competitive athletics to postcareer life presents unique challenges driven by shifts in identity. This study examined how multiple identity dimensions influence postcareer adaptation among South Korean student-athletes. Using a threestep approach to latent profile analysis with 393 South Korean student-athletes (150 women; Mage = 20.05 years), three distinct identity profiles, high multidimensional (71%), low multidimensional (24%), and exclusive athletic identity (5%), were identified based on measures of athletic, student, and exercise identity. Gender, career years, and national team experience significantly predicted profile membership. Student-athletes with high multidimensional identity profiles reported significantly greater perceived social support, higher likelihood of long-term physical activity adherence, and lower career concerns compared with other profiles. Results suggest that certain demographic groups, including women and national team experience, may benefit from targeted support for identity development and point to the need for culturally sensitive interventions to support holistic identity development and promote successful postcareer adaptation.
The decoding of nonverbal behavior is thought to be influenced by both bottom-up automatic perceptual and top-down higher order cognitive processes. In this study, we aimed to provide initial evidence for the association between response time and accuracy, as a first step toward understanding how such processes may operate. To that end, 145 individuals (66 female; Mage= 32.18) were presented 80 videos of amateur tennis players' nonverbal behavior directly after the rally. After each video, the participants were asked to estimate whether the previous point was won or lost. The results showed that the response time was about a half second faster for correct (M = 3,052.78 ms, SD = 840) than for incorrect (M = 3,567.77 ms, SD =1,048.15) responses. These findings provide first evidence that faster responses are related to greater accuracy, suggesting that efficient, possibly more intuitive processes may facilitate decoding in this context.
Imagery is widely used in sport, but its effectiveness depends on how it is structured and the range of senses engaged. This study compared Functional Imagery Training-a multisensory, motivational intervention-with single-sense internal visual imagery and a control condition without imagery training. Thirty-eight competitive tennis players completed imagery ability and preference assessments before engaging in a 6-week intervention. Serve accuracy was measured pre- and postintervention using a target-based scoring task. Both imagery conditions led to performance improvements, with Functional Imagery Training producing significantly greater gains. The control group showed no significant change. Imagery ability and preferred use did not predict outcomes, and participants whose training matched their reported preference did not perform better than those mismatched. These findings support the use of multisensory and motivationally grounded approaches such as Functional Imagery Training, suggesting that the structure and emotional relevance of imagery may be more critical for performance than preference or ability.
Self-compassion, a compassionate attitude toward oneself, has been associated with positive physical activity (PA) outcomes. This cross-sectional study on the 33- to 35-year follow-up data of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 examined the associations between self-compassion and self-reported leisure-time PA (LTPA), accelerometer-measured PA, and self-reported sitting time and assessed the moderating effect of PA barrier self-efficacy on these associations. Self-compassion was associated with higher LTPA (N = 2,080), also after adjusting for key PA-related covariates, such as gender, perceived health, and level of education but not after adjusting for barrier self-efficacy. Self-compassion was also associated with higher accelerometer-measured PA (N = 811), and lower sitting time (N = 1,072), but not after adjusting for covariates. Barrier self-efficacy moderated the associations between self-compassion and self-reported activity behaviors, but not accelerometer-measured PA. Higher self-compassion was associated with higher LTPA and lower sitting time in individuals with high barrier self-efficacy. Conversely, higher self-compassion signified lower LTPA in individuals with low barrier self-efficacy. Accounting for barrier self-efficacy is thus necessary for the beneficial role of self-compassion in PA to be realized.
Physical inactivity remains a major public health concern. While affective experiences are known to influence physical activity (PA), it is less clear how affective memories from physical education (PE) influence PA behavior in adulthood. This retrospective study investigated whether remembered enjoyment of PE and experiences of team selection are associated with current PA and sedentary behavior in a German adult sample (N = 692). Results showed that greater remembered enjoyment of PE was positively associated with moderate to vigorous PA (r = .15, p < .001) and negatively associated with sedentary time (r = -.14, p < .001). Being chosen last for teams was linked to lower PA (r = -.11, p = .004). An additional regression analysis identified PE enjoyment as an underlying factor between team selection and PA behavior in adulthood. These findings highlight that affective PE memories may form durable associations that shape lifelong PA behavior.
Exercise at higher intensities has been hypothesized to lead to greater decreases in affective valence, negatively impacting exercise enjoyment and adherence. Thus, findings that high-intensity interval training and sprint interval training (SIT) may be enjoyed more than moderate-intensity continuous training appear paradoxical. The aim of the present study was to examine whether this can be explained by an Intensity × Duration interaction effect. Twenty-nine participants (18 women; mean [standard deviation] age: 24 [5] years, body mass index: 23.4 [3.2] kg/m2, V˙O2max: 39.5 [6.5] ml·kg-1·min-1) performed five cycling sessions involving either 30 min at 80%, 100%, or 110% of the ventilatory threshold (VT), SIT (22-min session including 4 × 30-s all-out sprints), or reduced-exertion high-intensity interval training (REHIT; 10-min session including 2 × 20-s all-out sprints). The decrease in affective valence during exercise was faster with higher intensities, but the brief duration of supramaximal sprints attenuated the absolute drop (no significant differences between REHIT, -0.7 [0.5]; 80% VT, -0.7 [0.5]; and 100% VT, -1.3 [0.6]; significantly greater decreases during SIT, -1.9 [0.6] and 110% VT, -3.0 [0.7]; both p < .01 vs. REHIT and 80% VT). REHIT involved lower exposure to reduced affect compared with the other trials (p < .001), and greater remembered enjoyment (physical activity enjoyment scale: 88 [16] compared with SIT, 71 [22], p < .001, and 110% VT, 73 [20], p = .003; no significance compared with 80% VT, 82 [18] or 100% VT, 76 [21]). Seventy-two percent of participants expressed a preference for REHIT. In conclusion, we provide evidence for an Intensity × Duration interaction effect for changes in affective valence during exercise. This explains the paradoxical finding that despite more rapid decreases in affective valence during exercise, high-intensity interval training/SIT can be enjoyed more than moderate-intensity continuous training.
