This research programme had three principal objectives. First, to assess the stability of the exercise heart rate-music tempo preference relationship and its relevance to a range of psychological outcomes. Second, to explore the influence of two personal factors (motivational orientation and dominant attentional style) in a naturalistic exercise-to-music setting. Third, to examine means by which to enhance the exercise experience above and below the ventilatory threshold. In Study 1, a mixed-methods approach was employed to capture responses to differing music tempo conditions across a range of exercise intensities. Results in Study 1 did not support a cubic relationship (Karageorghis et al., 2011) but rather a quadratic one, and there was a weak association between the optimal choice of music tempo and positive psychological outcomes. Music conditions reduced the number of associative thoughts by ~10% across all exercise intensities. Study 2 employed questionnaires with a large sample of female participants (n = 417) attending exercise-to-music classes. Results indicate that motivational orientation and attentional style (Association vs. Dissociation) influence responses to an exercise-to-music class. Study 3 examined the effects of external stimuli (music and video) on psychological variables at moderate and high exercise intensities. Findings served to demonstrate that manipulations of attentional focus can have a salient influence on affect and enjoyment even during high-intensity exercise. The contributions of the research programme include providing empirical evidence that attention can be manipulated during high-intensity exercise using theoretically-guided music selections, and music in combination with video footage, which enhance the exercise experience. Further, the research programme advances understanding of how motivational orientation and attentional style influence responses to music during exercise.

This thesis explores how notions of ability are socially constructed, defined and experienced within physical education (PE). Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts are used to examine the processes through an acknowledgement and consideration of the culture where pupils’ and teachers’ notions of ability are configured, reconfigured, and experienced. The study covered one academic school year in a North London mixed comprehensive school. Fifteen pupils participated in focus groups and individual interviews. The pupils were a mixture of boys (11) and girls (4), a range of abilities and ages (11 – 16 years old), and experienced PE predominantly in ability groups. In addition, six PE teachers were interviewed and PE lesson observations were conducted throughout the study. The findings identify various processes and interactions between individuals and also between individuals and the field that contribute towards the social construction of ability in PE. The findings highlight the complex and dynamic nature of the PE experience where notions of ability and the related practices have a bearing. Hierarchical ability-based practices were apparent that served to reinforce dominant notions of ability but there were other practices that could potentially challenge ‘legitimate’ notions of ability. The study highlights some of the constraints that teachers face in their attempts to integrate broader notions of ability, especially within a performative culture. Variations across the individual experience highlight considerations for pupils in terms of becoming physically literate and reaching their potential. The study aims to raise key questions for stakeholders in considering how ability-based practices work in facilitating a learning environment that supports all levels of ability and preparing all young people for lifelong activity. In addition it stresses the need for greater agreement amongst stakeholders on the purpose of PE in the current climate and suggests that a review of the aims of PE is warranted.

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No description available.

Cultural tourism is assuming ever greater significance, and this study examines one particular form of this tourism whose main resource is the literary work of authors. Literary tourist destinations are places visited because of their associations with books or other literary outputs and with their authors. Such destinations are becoming increasingly popular as visitor attractions. This research examines the visitors to one well-known literary tourist destination. It examines the motivations, experiences and attitudes of the visitors as they relate to the authenticity of the destination. Although literary tourism is a significant part of both the cultural and tourism industries, it is very largely under-researched. Most concentrates on the historical emergence of literary tourist destinations. The present examination uses a case study of tourists visiting the literary tourism area of Haworth, West Yorkshire, England which was home to the literary Bronte family. The nature of the links specifically between literature, authenticity and tourism remain under-researched, with little sustained attention given to questions surrounding the authenticity of literary tourist destinations. Hence, the case study investigates visitor attitudes to the character of authenticity at the destination. Authenticity is evaluated explicitly as a social construct, and the research also questions how tourists respond to the signs or markers of literary connections. In this way, the research adds to the understanding of literary tourist destinations, visitor attitudes to authenticity, and their perceptions of, and responses to, signs as markers of authenticity. The case study is based on a social survey which comprises three different semi-structured questionnaires. While these surveys shared standard questions on motivations and authenticity, each had a distinct focus, which facilitated the assessment of visitor attitudes to a wide range of potential tourism products in the literary tourist destination. This research adds to methodological sophistication in tourism research by its innovative use of visual stimuli as a projection technique, with this method rarely being used in tourism studies. Verbal stimuli were less likely to be appropriate to explore the signs that visitors use as markers of authenticity. Consequently, photographs including key potential signs were used as a stimulus to gain insights into visitor responses. The results indicate that the literary tourist destination of Haworth attracts a broad range of visitor types, and that the different types of visitors differed in their motivations and experiences. It was found that different visitors were motivated to visit Haworth by the desire to learn and by the desire to have fun to varying degrees. Such motivations affected the extent to which they were concerned about the authenticity of the various aspects of the literary tourism product. In a similar vein, the empirical data suggests that visitors varied in the extent to which they considered their experience of the destination had been authentic, and differences also emerged between the features of the literary place that visitors used as markers of authenticity or of inauthenticity.

No description available.

The objective of the research was to explore the development of modern sport in Malaysia and to identify the socio-political and ethnic issues and other problems associated with it. The time period studied is from the year 1800 to the year 2000, which covers the periods of British colonial rule and Malaysia as an independent nation. The extended period of British administration left a paramount effect on the Malaysian society. Eight sport enthusiasts, forty schools, twelve sport associations, the Ministry of Youth and Sport of Malaysia, the Ministry of Education of Malaysia, and the Olympic Council of Malaysia were approached to gather the primary or raw data for the study. In addition, historical facts and sociological perspective on sport and physical education gathered from library research were combined to form the main ingredients and cross-analysed for discussion in the thesis. A chapter was constructed to understand the reason for British global expansion, their sport idealism and eventually the socio-political impact on Malaysia. A subsequent chapter was constructed discussing the independent government's attempt to redress the ethnic groups imbalance in economy, education and sport, as a result of the colonial legacy, in order to develop a just and harmonic society. Sport was found to be both the `enhancing' and `deterring' factors for a genuine national unity to materialise. Issues on power politics, economy, education and sport were found to be very much entangled and intertwined with the ethnic phenomenon. The research concluded that Malaysia's short history as an independent nation with very distinguished multi-ethnic and multicultural society provided an unsettled and unstable platform for a suitable environment for sport to develop successfully. Universal sport sociological theories related to the main issues investigated were compared and tested on the Malaysian sport scene to identify the `grounded theory'. Finally several `grounded theories' were presented as closure of the thesis.

The main goal of this study was to improve the contribution of higher education to sustainable development in Vietnam, specifically in the area of engineering education. The study mapped the current scenario of sustainable development and engineering in higher education in Vietnam as well as investigated how a cultural perspective may influence change strategies in higher education for sustainable development. This study addressed the need for empirical research on the education for sustainable development experience in Vietnam. It argued for and contributed to an emerging international dialogue about how to accelerate progress towards engineering curriculum transformation for sustainable development in different cultural contexts. Located in the interpretivist tradition, the study utilised a wide range of qualitative research techniques to collect and validate data including open-ended questionnaires, interviews, group discussions, participant observation and documentary review. Empirical data was generated between May 2010 and August 2012 in both Vietnam and the UK through three research stages. The first stage was informed by a qualitative survey which captured baseline data collected through a large group of stakeholders from different sectors and various levels of governance. The study mapped the current responses to sustainable development in Vietnam, and confirmed the need and expectation for change in Vietnamese engineering education towards sustainable development. Case study research was carried out at three Vietnamese engineering universities during stage two. The focus was on understanding the current processes and opportunities for curriculum change for sustainable development, as well as investigating how the specific contextual and cultural factors might influence the desired change. The study found evidence of issues which hampered the current efforts in education for sustainable development in the engineering universities in Vietnam. The analysis also provided insights into the Vietnamese values, attitudes and expectancies, and behavioural preferences which contributed to explaining why these issues existed.

Der Gesundheitszustand vieler Kinder hat sich in den letzten Jahren bedenklich verschlechtert. Als ursächliche Krankheitsfaktoren gelten Fehlernährung und Bewegungsmangel. Die Schulung eines gesunden Ernährungs- und Bewegungsverhaltens muss deshalb bereits im Kindergarten und in der Grundschule erfolgen, um dauerhaft in die Eigenverantwortung der Kinder überzugehen. Kinder, Familie und Schule müssen dabei miteinander vernetzt werden. Aufgrund dessen wurde ein sehr praxisnahes Konzept für die Grundschule entwickelt (abgestimmt auf die zweite Jahrgangstufe), mit dessen Anregungen und Materialien sich die Kinder handlungsorientiert auseinandersetzten. Im Zentrum standen dabei Ernährung, Bewegung, Bewusstseinsentwicklung für Veränderungen im Körper und Sensibilisierung für die eigene Gesundheit. Die Schüler sollten ganzheitlich angesprochen werden. Dabei müssen Körper und Geist in enger Verbindung stehen. Gesteuert wurde das Projekt im Sinne der Aktionsforschung. Ein ausführlicher Theorieblock führt in die Arbeit ein, indem er terminologische Grundlagen und wichtige Inhalte der Gesundheitsförderung darlegt. Der praktische Teil liefert dem interessierten Grundschullehrer die nötigen Sachinformationen und Hintergründe, die Zuordnung zu den Lernzielen, anschauliches, konkretes Material für die beteiligten Unterrichtsfächer (Sporterziehung, Heimat- und Sachunterricht, Deutsch), Anleitung für gesundheitsorientiertes Ausdauertraining, methodisch-didaktische Aspekte, vorbereitete Elternabende etc. Die Schüler und die Eltern wurden zu Beginn, während und am Ende des Projekts schriftlich befragt. Die Effektivität des Projekts sollte damit überprüft und Verhaltensveränderungen herausgefunden werden. Zur Datenanalyse wurden Operationen der deskriptiven und der analytischen Statistik verwendet. Die Untersuchung aus dem Bereich der empirischen Sozialforschung lässt keine allgemeingültigen Aussagen zu, da die zwei ausgewählten Klassen nur eine Stichprobe darstellen. / The state of health of many children has critically worsened within the last few years. Malnutrition and lack of exercise are considered to be causative factors of disease. So the training of healthy nutrition and physical exercise already has to take place in kindergarten and elementary school to permanently become part of the children’s individual responsibility. Children, families and schools thereby have to be linked. Hence a very practical concept for elementary school has been developed (matching Year 2) and the children dealt with its suggestions and materials in an action-oriented way. The focus was put on nutrition, exercise, getting a sense of (consciousness development concerning) physical changes and sensitisation for the own health. The aim was to approach the pupils holistically. Thereby body and soul have to be closely connected. The project was operated according to action research. A detailed theoretical part is introducing the thesis by explaining basic principles and important aspects of health promotion. The practical part is providing the interested elementary school teacher with the necessary factual information and background facts, the assignment to the educational objectives, vivid and practical material for the subjects involved (physical education, social studies, German), a guide to health-oriented endurance training, methodic-didactical aspects, models for parent-teacher conferences etc. Pupils and parents were questioned in written form at the beginning, during and at the end of the project. The aim war to test the effectiveness of the project and find out possible behaviour modifications. Operations of descriptive and analytical statistics were employed for data analysis. Examinations in the field of empirical social research did not allow any generally accepted conclusions as the two selected forms just represent a random sample.

Aim: To undertake exploratory work examining the relationship between menopausal symptoms, body image, exercise and wellbeing. Method: A mixed methods approach was used, including a systematic scoping review, the development of a synchronous text-based online interviewing tool; a qualitative Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis study, and mixed methods study. Results: The review showed that women’s experiences of the menopause and body image can be both positive and negative simultaneously, which has implications for the way these concepts are quantitatively measured. A synchronous online interviewing tool is an additional method to be added to the researchers’ tool kit, especially if the topic is sensitive and an extra level of anonymity is needed. The IPA study focused on experiences of body image concerns and identified a range of ways menopausal women cope with such changes. Through Structural Equation Modelling and interviews, we identified that menopausal symptoms may act as a barrier to exercise participation by decreasing a woman’s subjective vitality, and reducing perceptions of attractiveness, life satisfaction and self-esteem. Conclusion: Health psychology of the menopausal transition is in its infancy. It is not only important to consider methods to reduce symptoms, but also the impact symptoms have on health behaviour, body image and wellbeing.