This investigation was designed to determine if attitudinal differences toward involvement of females in athletic competitions existed between males when age, education, and sport backgrounds were considered. Subjects were 186 male employees of Air Products and Chemicals, Incorporated and the City of De Soto, Texas, and students at North Texas State University. A fifty-one item attitude inventory developed by the investigator was the instrument utilized in the study. Data were analyzed by a three-way analysis of variance. Conclusions of the study were that males of various ages, educational levels, and sport backgrounds do not differ in their attitudes and possess favorable opinions toward female sport participation, Males with nonactive sport backgrounds were more favorable than males with active-semiactive backgrounds when spectators at female sport events.

The testimonios of three Canadian women athletes and the 1980 Olympic boycott are presented. The Latin American method of testimonio is adapted as a framework for understanding personal stories. Testimonios written in a series of interpretive narratives and poems--poetic testimonios--represent three women's voices. This study includes three journeys: the research journey, a journey of self-discovery, and the journeys of three women athletes. Distinct and collective voices are highlighted. An analysis of writing forms used is offered. A traditional literature review and a section linking the study's findings to the literature are available in the appendices. Testimonios are methods of resistance, and, thus, imply an appeal to matters of social justice. Therefore, "a call to action" invites researchers, counselors, and sport professionals to take a closer look at the oppressive system of high-performance sport and contemplate structural change. Beyond this, the ultimate worth of the project is for readers to decide. / Graduation date: 2002

Graduation date: 1998

Thesis (M.Sc.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2005. / Bibliography: leaves 119-134.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego and San Diego State University, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 266-274).

Thesis (M.S.)--Florida State University, 2004. / Advisor: Dr. David Pargman, Florida State University, College of Education, Dept. of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed June 29, 2004). Includes bibliographical references.

This thesis considers the perceived athleticism of synchronized swimming by looking at the implications of representations of Esther Williams and "pretty swimming" in popular culture, the allocation of space for women's sport in a local public swimming pool, and an inaugural championship event. Focusing on the first British Columbia (BC) synchronized swimming championships, which were held on February 5, 1949 at Crystal Pool in Vancouver, it shows that images of synchronized swimming as "entertainment" facilitated the development of a new arena of competition for BC women, but that this was accompanied, in effect, by a trivialization of the accomplishments of organizers and athletes. Chapter One examines the construction of a "global" mermaid by analysing Esther Williams' first film, Bathing Beauty (1944), as a typical example of the Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer (MGM) aquamusical, a genre that produced images of synchronized swimming as frivolous entertainment. Chapter Two considers how these sorts of images affected the allocation of physical space at Crystal Pool, Vancouver's only indoor public swimming pool at the time, for women's sport. Chapter Three introduces two women who were involved in the 1949 BC synchronized swimming championships: May Brown, who at the time was a University of British Columbia (UBC) Physical Education instructor and synchronized swimming judge, and Maureen Bray (Hibberson), a UBC student who won the individual championship event. Their recollections provide an important corrective to the "pretty swimming" stereotype by demonstrating that these women used the cultural and physical space allotted to them to create a new sport for local women. The final chapter also includes episodes from my personal experiences as a synchronized swimmer in BC during the 1980s to underscore the complicated and conflicted heritage for synchronized swimmers in BC represented by the legacy of the 1949 championships and the MGM aquamusical.

The purpose of this study was to examine power output and fatigue from power-time curves of cycle ergometer and isokinetic dynamometer tests. Fifteen physically active female university athletes performed a 45 s cycle ergometer test at resistances of 0.075, 0.085, and 0.095 kp/kg bw, as well as a 45 s and a 3 repetition isokinetic flexion and extension test at velocities of 60, 180, and 300$ sp circ$/s. Results revealed that peak power, mean power (W and W/kg), and fatigue (W/kg) were highest at the 0.095 kp/kg bw resistance and lowest at the 0.075 kp/kg bw resistance. Significant differences among the three cycle ergometer conditions existed for peak power, mean power, and fatigue. Peak power and mean power (W and W/kg) were highest at 300$ sp circ$/s and lowest at 60$ sp circ$/s. Results revealed significant differences among the isokinetic dynamometer conditions for peak and mean power. Mean power output (W) was significantly correlated (range of r = 0.56 to r = 0.74) for the cycle ergometer and the isokinetic dynamometer test conditions.

The purpose of this study was to examine the vertical component of the American College of Sports Medicine (A.C.S.M.) Guidelines equation to predict the oxygen cost of grade running. The A.C.S.M. Guidelines equation is: VO$ sb2$(ml/kg.min) = 3.5 + 0.2 speed(m/min) + 0.9 (speed(m/min) * grade(frac)). Twenty-three female runners (20 to 33 years) participated in (1) a VO$ sb2$max test, (2) five 6 min running economy (RE) tests at 133 m/min, (3) five 6 min RE tests at 160 m/min, and (4) three 6 min RE tests at 186 m/min. The RE tests at 133 and 160 m/min were performed at the following grades: 0, 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, and 10.0%. The RE tests at 186 m/min were performed at 0, 2.5, and 5.0% grade. The RE tests were administered in random order. There was a linear relationship between VO$ sb2$ and horizontal running velocity with a slope of 0.20 ml/kg.m (r = 0.996; p $<$.01). There was a linear relationship between VO$ sb2$ and percent grade when running on a treadmill. The correlations for the regression equations at speeds of 133, 160, and 186 m/min were 0.90 (p $<$.01), 0.86 (p $<$.01), and 0.73 (p $<$.01), respectively. Inclusion of a grade component in the regression analysis equation increased the accuracy for predicting the VO$ sb2$ of grade running. VO$ sb2$ consumption for grade running can be predicted using the following equation: VO$ sb2$ (ml/kg.min) = 3.5 + 0.198(speed in m/min + 0.932 grade(%)) + 0.006(speed(m/min) * grade(%)). The new equation explained 99.5% of the variance (R$ sp2$) compared to the 78.0% of the variance (R$ sp2$) that was explained by the A.C.S.M. Guidelines equation.

Despite the many benefits associated with women’s participation in sport, women athletes are often exposed to potential challenges that can negatively affect their athletic experience. The root of many challenges in sport comes from the level of performance expectations and the frequency of evaluations that women face. Self-compassion is a construct informed by positive psychology that can help people manage self-judgment, rumination, and feelings of isolation while promoting a kind and understanding perspective of the self. Further, self-compassion promotes positive self-attitude without the drawbacks associated with self-esteem; however, past research on the role of self-compassion in women athletes’ well-being is limited. This research applies a mixed methods approach to address the role of self-compassion in women athletes’ body appreciation and intuitive eating. The first phase was quantitative and expands on past research by examining how self-compassion relates to, and explains unique variance beyond self-esteem, in women athletes’ body appreciation, intuitive eating, disordered eating, compulsive exercise, and state self-criticism. Participants were 90 women athletes aged between 18 and 27 years, who participated in a variety of sports and competitive levels and completed an online survey. Self-compassion was positively related to women athletes’ body appreciation (r=.68, p< .01) and intuitive eating (r=.53, p< .01), while being negatively related to disordered eating (r=-.59, p< .01), compulsive exercise (r=-.37, p< .01), and state self-criticism (r=-.45, p< .01). Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that self-compassion contributed significant unique variance beyond self-esteem, after controlling for age and BMI (calculated from self-reported weight and height), in women athletes’ body appreciation (4.1%, p<.01), intuitive eating (8.7%, p<.01), disordered eating (9.4%, p<.001), compulsive exercise (8.3%, p<.01), and state self-criticism (7.5%, p<.01). This study supports past research suggesting that self-compassion may be a useful tool for women athletes to manage challenging or difficult experiences in sport, while adding to the literature by highlighting that self-compassion might also play a role in positive sport experiences related to body appreciation and intuitive eating. Six women athletes completed the qualitative phase. Interviews were conducted to explore how self-compassion contributes to women athletes’ experiences of body appreciation and intuitive eating. Three main themes arose from the collective case study. Self-compassion plays a role in body appreciation and intuitive eating by helping women athletes to recognize the uniqueness of sport contexts, through the promotion of awareness, and by helping them to set personalized expectations and standards. Together the quantitative and qualitative phases forward the study of women athletes’ self-compassion, body image, and eating behaviour with a particular focus on positive constructs. As such, the current study provides a foundation to explore other positive psychological constructs and constructs informed by positive psychology and to examine the impact of a self-compassion intervention on women athletes’ body appreciation and intuitive eating.