The effects of exercise on appetite and feeding responses can be influenced by several factors. Research has demonstrated that exercise-induced changes in appetite can be affected by ambient temperature. Furthermore, exercise intensity has also been shown to affect appetite and post-exercise caloric intake. The aim of this thesis was to investigate the impact of exercise at different ambient temperatures on appetite and energy intake (EI) in overweight and obese individuals. Furthermore, this thesis also aimed to examine the effects of high intensity exercise on both peripheral and central appetite regulation in lean healthy males. The findings from this thesis demonstrated that exercise in a cold environment (8°C) stimulated post-exercise EI in overweight and obese men and women compared with exercise in a neutral environment (20°C). Exercise in the heat (32°C) caused an increase in desire to eat 5 hours post-exercise compared with rest in the heat in overweight and obese individuals, however no further differences in appetite sensations were observed between trials. Findings from this thesis have also demonstrated that an acute bout of intense running suppressed neural activation within the orbitofrontal cortex and hippocampus in response to images of high-calorie foods compared with rest. Furthermore, pictures of low-calorie foods enhanced activation within the insula and putamen post-exercise compared with rest. These central regions are associated with regulating the rewarding properties of food, therefore these findings showed that high intensity exercise is capable of suppressing the rewarding properties of high-calorie foods whilst enhancing the rewarding properties of low-calorie foods immediately post-exercise. However, an acute bout of intense running enhanced central reward system activation in response to food cues compared with rest several hours after exercise. Therefore, the appetite suppressing effects of an acute bout of high intensity exercise could be short-lived.

Protein and amino acid ingestion has been investigated as an aid in recovery from eccentric exercise induced muscle damage. However, the results of the studies are conflicting. There are two studies in this thesis that examine the effect of ingesting branched chain amino acids (BCAA) and protein following eccentric exercise in untrained males. Ingestion of BCAA resulted in a decrease in muscle soreness. However ingestion of whey protein isolate resulted in reduced muscle soreness and a reduction in the decrement of muscle function. These results suggest that ingestion of all amino acids are required to reduce decrements of muscle function associated with intense eccentric exercise. Ingestion of essential amino acids or intact protein sources during exercise recovery further stimulates muscle protein synthesis. The effect on muscle protein synthesis of ingesting only BCAA has not been investigated. Ingestion of BCAA increases phosphorylation status of signalling proteins associated with translation. This thesis demonstrates that following an acute bout of resistance exercise, ingestion of BCAA resulted in a 22% increase in muscle protein synthesis and 12% higher phosphorylation of S6K1THR389. These results suggest that only the ingestion of BCAA are required to augment the response muscle protein synthesis to exercise.

This study aims to reconceive the meaning of leisure in school using John Dewey’s theory of education. Though the English word “school” and the Greek word “scholé,” which means leisure, are etymologically related, it is almost impossible to find any relationship between them in contemporary schools. Posed differently, for modern people school is not a place of leisure any more. Modern people understand leisure as a time not to work, as an escape from work. However, for the ancients leisure was a very sacred activity through which they could find their true identity. Therefore, in considering the original meaning of the term leisure, reviving leisure in school means to make a classroom sacred. For Dewey, the necessity for the teacher to provide an appropriate educational environment for the development of a student’s potential is no less sacred than the duties of a priest. This kind of inquiry can help contemporary educators revitalize the deepest meanings in the project of education.

Media, government and public discourse in the UK associate young drinkers as mindless, hedonistic consumers of alcohol, resulting in young people epitomising ‘Binge Britain’. This preoccupation with ‘binge’ drinking amplifies moral panics surrounding youth alcohol consumption whereby consideration of the social and cultural nuances of pleasure that give meaning to young people’s excessive drinking practices and values has been given little priority. This sociological study explores how young drinkers regulate their drinking practices through levels of agency which is informed by values linked to the pursuit of pleasurable intoxication alongside friendship groups in a variety of drinking settings. Data informing this study comes from contextualised ethnographic fieldwork alongside heterogeneous groups of young people and community members in an area of South West London. Whilst encountering hundreds of participants in fieldwork, data informing this research stems from ninety main protagonists. Following a qualitative grounded theoretical approach, the study prioritises the voice and everyday experience of young drinkers and local community members to present theoretical descriptions of youth drinking cultures embedded in a historical, social, cultural and spatial context. Through the ethnographic data, this thesis argues that young drinkers show levels of agency in their pursuit of pleasurable drinking experiences through conscious forms of self-governance and regulation which are informed by learned experiences and interactions such as gender. Moreover, youth drinking is both enabled and restricted by constraints and complexities such as space and place; which form central points of analysis in this thesis. It is concluded that accounts derived directly from young people are not only central to understanding how and why young people engage in forms of excessive drinking, but can better inform national and local alcohol-related policies and strategies, as opposed to discourse preoccupied with UK ‘binge’ drinking that young people rarely identify with.

Consumer participation in the production of information, knowledge and culture has become increasingly popular in the last three decades. Although these participatory practices have been successfully incorporated into business models in many sectors, media and entertainment industries are still quite reluctant to invite audiences to create canonical content for their storyworlds. Media conglomerates hold a firm grip over their intellectual property and only allow selected parties to participate in the production of official content for their franchises. In contrast, participatory worlds are fictional worlds which allow audiences to contribute with canonical additions to their expansion. In participatory worlds, audience members are welcome to contribute to the content production chain and/or decision-making processes, having the chance to become contributors and co-authors of the texts. This thesis critically examines participatory worlds with the aim of understanding what they are and how they operate within the industrial context. This research introduces two models of participatory worlds, the ‘sandpit’ and ‘spin-off’ models, based on the location and medium where audience participation takes place, primary or ancillary works, and uses one case study to illustrate each of these: the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) Lord of the Craft (2011- ) and Grantville Gazette (2003- ), an e-zine rooted in the 1632 Universe. These case studies are compared with commodities produced and systems employed by media conglomerates in the management and canonical expansion of their fictional worlds in order to establish similarities and differences among them and determine where participatory worlds stand in respect to the media and entertainment industries. The concept of ‘intervention’ is introduced to define the capabilities that audience members are given to contribute canonically and make an impact in a storyworld. This thesis explores the factors which determine the degree of ‘intervention’ given to participants in participatory worlds by examining two further case studies, the web drama Beckinfield (2010-2013) and the TV show Bar Karma (2011), in addition to the aforementioned. The comparison of the four case studies reveals different approaches to audience participation within these practices.

Undertaking physical activity in the presence of a natural environment (termed green exercise) is good for health and wellbeing. Nevertheless, we need to understand more about what motivates people to perform green exercise. The literature suggests that beliefs may play a role in physical activity behaviours and outcomes. To expand on this, the aim of this thesis was to explore the role of beliefs on green exercise behaviours and outcomes. Specifically, the following research questions guided the experimental chapters: Do beliefs predict visiting local green space? Can beliefs be modified to encourage more green exercise, and improve outcomes? Chapter 2 found that subjective measures were stronger predictors of green exercise than quantity of local green space, showing initial support for subjective measures playing a role in green exercise behaviours. To explore this further, questionnaires to assess beliefs were developed (Chapter 3) and tested (Chapter 4). This was important because previous research has not explored what people think about green exercise. The evidence showed that beliefs about green exercise appear to predict intentions to perform green exercise and visit frequency to local green space. Chapter 5 used indoor vs outdoor methodology to assess the impact of a promotional video (attitude modification intervention) on the psychological outcomes of green exercise. This was important because assessment and/or modification of attitudes in a green exercise environment had not been previously examined. Chapter 6 used a promotional video in a four-week green exercise intervention. Overall, the evidence was mixed, however, there was some indication of expectancy effects. Regular green exercise can help with health and well-being. Evidence provided in this thesis highlights the importance of subjective measures (such as perceptions, beliefs, and intentions) on green exercise behaviours and acute psychological benefits.

Open Gardens are those in private homes that have been opened as visitor attractions, where a proportion of money charged for entry is given to charity. Whilst there is a body of literature on garden visiting, there is little empirical research into garden opening. In addition, the existing studies, which were largely based on quantitative methods, do not differentiate between the roles and perspectives of the various agents who produce garden openings. This research investigates how Open Gardens, under the auspices of the charitable organisation Scotland’s Gardens, are collaboratively produced by garden openers, their helpers, volunteers and salaried staff of the organisation. The principal method of data collection was fieldwork that included participant observations from 39 site visits and 41 semi-structured interviews with the four kinds of producers. Supplementary data were generated from archival documents that record the historical development of Open Gardens. Data collected from fieldwork were analysed and categorised according to themes emerging by means of domain analysis. Each theme was carefully defined and described by creating thematic codes. After the preliminary data analysis, ongoing reading of various social theory literatures drew me towards using concepts of power to more deeply understand the nuanced ways in which the four kinds of producers work together. Hearn’s (2012) theoretical framework was employed to examine how power which differs in perception between the various agents in a given social situation operates in the production of Scottish Open Gardens. The data suggest that the meaning of legitimate power exercised by the producers of Scottish Open Gardens is often highly subjective. Some volunteers were reluctant to fully exercise their power to instruct garden openers because they assumed their request would not be accepted or that it would lead to unwanted conflict. Some garden openers concealed their intentions to show off their horticultural achievements through engagement with Scottish Open Gardens, because they perceived that others would regard pursuing such personal interests to be egocentric. The data also suggest that the production of Scottish Open Gardens is partly dependent on non-human forces such as nature or materials. The quality of gardens, the number of visitors and the amount raised for charity were determined by weather conditions, public transportation and even the refreshments on offer. The findings highlight the role of such non-human elements in the production of Scottish Open Gardens, and challenges the conventional premise that human-intentionality alone defines agency. The thesis concludes that the production of Scottish Open Gardens can be more deeply understood by considering the highly fluid, subjective and non-human ways in which power operates. There is no definitively powerful agent present, as the locus of power is continually contested between a rich and complex mixture of human and non-human agents. An implication for practice is that Scotland’s Gardens should clarify which agents may be more or less empowered in given aspects of Open Garden production, and the ways in which his or her power can and should be legitimised. The thesis also offers a broad theoretical framework which may help to more deeply understand the subtle power operations present in the co-production of outdoor leisure and tourism pursuits.

Using people actively involved in mountain climbing, this thesis explores people's motivations to participate in mountain climbing, an activity frequently characterised in terms of risk. Moreover, using a variety of both quantitative and qualitative methods the assessment of the role of risk as a motivation for mountain climbing is central to the thesis. The first study (N = 232) employed a theory of planned behaviour framework that incorporated beliefs about risk, together with other behavioural beliefs, as a means to investigate the motivations of mountain climbers. Although risk emerged as significant positive predictor of attitudes towards mountain climbing, it was the weakest of the four predictor variables. Study Two (N = 207) presents a psychometric analysis which mapped perceptions of eight types of climbing onto a three component (Challenge, Risk, and Enjoyment) representation of the characteristics associated with mountain climbing. The position of each type of climbing revealed some clear differences between these types in relation to each of the three dimensions. The results presented provide a useful insight into which particular types of climbing should be studied further to build upon the current understanding of the role and importance of risk to participation in mountain climbing. Study Three (N = 205) used a laddering methodology in order to identify the hierarchical relationship between motives reported by climbers who participate in three types of climbing. Individual cognitive maps were created for each type of mountain climbing. Inspection of both the cognitive maps and indices designed to reflect the importance of individual motives seem to suggest that the importance of risk to people's participation may be less than originally thought. Study Four (N = 37) was an on-line qualitative study which addressed mountain climbers‟ views concerning the popular yet controversial opinion that climbers are motivated by risk. Overall, risk appeared to acquire motivational status as a result of its instrumental relationship with other factors explicitly labelled as motivations for mountain climbing. Together, these findings suggest that, while risk occupies an important position within people's motivations to participate in mountain climbing, it is not risk per se that is key to people‟s participation. Moreover, the results presented hint at risk acting as a facilitator, something necessary to the fulfilment of other important motivations for mountain climbing.

文希甄. / "2011年6月". / "2011 nian 6 yue". / Thesis (M.Div.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 55-58). / Abstract in Chinese and English. / Wen Xizhen. / 前言 --- p.3 / 摘要 --- p.4 / Abstract --- p.5 / Chapter 第一章 --- 引言：探討「美好人生」的方法視野 --- p.6 / Chapter I. --- 從閒暇說起 --- p.6 / Chapter II. --- 工具理性思維 --- p.8 / Chapter III. --- 重提意義價値 --- p.11 / Chapter IV. --- 透過宗教靈性去建構意義價値 --- p.14 / Chapter 第二章 --- 閒暇，邁向「美好人生」的基礎 --- p.19 / Chapter I. --- 社會需要閒暇 --- p.19 / Chapter II. --- 閒暇是文化的基礎 --- p.20 / Chapter i. --- 閒暇是探索意義價値的傳統 --- p.21 / Chapter ii. --- 現代理性難以作爲文化的基礎 --- p.24 / Chapter iii. --- 以道家無爲來理解閒暇現象 --- p.25 / Chapter III. --- 閒暇是生活的重心 --- p.27 / Chapter i. --- 閒暇作爲人類的理想生活 --- p.27 / Chapter ii. --- 拒絶將工具理性、經濟效益價値體系神聖 --- p.29 / Chapter iii. --- 閒暇不是茶餘飯後的生活附加品 --- p.33 / Chapter IV --- 閒暇植根於崇拜慶典 --- p.34 / Chapter V --- 小結：閒暇對我們社會文化的提醒 --- p.36 / Chapter 第三章 --- 安息，展現.「美好人生」的另類實踐 --- p.38 / Chapter I --- 對世界的創造及參與 --- p.40 / Chapter II. --- 對世界的救贖及改造 --- p.41 / Chapter III. --- 記念生命的痕跡 --- p.43 / Chapter IV --- 在社群中的慶賀及歡樂 --- p.44 / Chapter V --- 懷有盼望、繼續向前 --- p.46 / Chapter VI. --- 安息所展現靈性 --- p.47 / Chapter VII. --- 小結：安息對閒暇的意義 --- p.48 / Chapter 第四章： --- 總結 --- p.51 / 參考書目及資料： --- p.55

Underpinned by Bandura’s social-cognitive theory (SCT), this thesis examined the perceptions of physical activity (PA) in healthy and unhealthy older adults, and examined imagery as a potential strategy to promote PA. Focus groups with healthy older adults (Chapter 2) and those diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (Chapter 3) examined how PA is incorporated into daily living, and the unique barriers and enablers of PA in older adults. The subsequent chapters focus on the role of imagery as a strategy to increase PA. Using the revised applied model of deliberate imagery use as a framework, Chapter 4 explored where, when, what, and why older adults image PA. Based on Chapter 2 and 3’s finding that older adults use a range of imagery types and functions, and the importance of self-regulation, Chapter 5 investigated how self-regulatory imagery (i.e., images of goals and planning) related with social-cognitive variables, enjoyment, and PA. Overall, the thesis recognises the importance of SCT in explaining the unique challenges older adults face in relation to PA while accounting for contextual factors including PA level, disease severity, and employment status. The thesis also demonstrates imagery as a potential strategy for promoting PA in older adults.