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Move Your body, Change Your Mind: Physical Activity in the Morning and its Implications for Work

Drawing upon the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions (Fredrickson, 2001), this study examines the links between morning physical activity, subsequent positive emotions, broadened thinking, and psychological resource accumulation at work. Fifty-two participants who worked full-time completed a daily diary for 10 workdays that included measures of their emotions and physical activity each morning and measures of broadened thinking each afternoon. Psychological resources were assessed at the beginning and end of the 10-day period. Data were analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM) with Mplus. Results did not support the mediating role of positive emotions and broadened thinking between morning physical activity and psychological resources, as would be predicted by the broaden-and-build theory. However, results did indicate that participants experienced more positive emotions on the days they engaged in morning physical activity. Additionally, participants who more frequently engaged in morning physical activity experienced positive emotions more often during the study period. There was also evidence to suggest that positive emotions promoted planning and active coping in response to workplace problems. In sum, these findings indicate morning physical activity may boost employees' emotional states and experiences of positive emotions may result in the use of broad-minded coping strategies at work. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:ucf.edu/oai:stars.library.ucf.edu:etd2020-1058
Date01 January 2020
CreatorsHolden, Charlotte
PublisherSTARS
Source SetsUniversity of Central Florida
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
SourceElectronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-

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