| ubjects who volunteered for this investigation were full- or part-time students between the ages of 19 and 25. They lacked exercise and sport experiences, other than those associated with required physical education classes, and had established a lifestyle void of habitual patterns of exercise and/or sport participation. Twenty-four male and 66 female college-age students were randomly assigned to one of the following five groups: control group, individual exercise group, group exercisers, rotating sport group, and permanent sport group. Mood state data were collected before, during, and after participating in moderate exercise regimes, modified sport activities, or abstaining from physical activity during the three-week treatment period. Psychological trait and physiological measurements were assessed before and after the treatment period. Data analysis included descriptive statistics computed for all data and tests for significance of a priori contrasts. Potential group differences for mood state data were analyzed using a general univariate and multivariate ANOVA, specifically a trend analysis. All other data were analyzed using one- or two-way ANOVA's. The.05 alpha level was selected and, in cases of a significant F-value, the Bonferonni analysis was applied to identify group differences. Improved mood state and self-concept was associated with significant (p... |
