Validation of a stages of exercise change questionnaire

The purpose of this study was to examine evidence for the validity of a stages of change measure of the Transtheoretical Model for exercise behavior. Participants were 152 university students (53.3% women, 71.6% Caucasian, M age = 19.18 years) who completed processes of change, self-efficacy, decisional balance, stages of change, and exercise behavior questionnaires as well as a maximal treadmill test. Participants in the action and maintenance stages had the highest strenuous (PC/C/P < A/M) and moderate (PC/C < A/M) self-reported exercise behavior. Those in the maintenance stage had the highest estimated aerobic fitness (PC/P < MA). The differences between the early stages (PC, C, and P) and the later stages (A and M) as described by the first function were primarily due to the behavioral process of change. The differences between the extreme stages (PC and M) and the middle stages (C, P, and A) were due to the experiential processes of change and the pros of decisional balance. The hypothesized patterns of stage differences were partially supported. Failure to obtain full support may have been due to methodological issues or inherent difficulties in detecting evidence for the validity of stages of change measures.     

Linking at the US National Library of Medicine

The development of services provided by the National Library of Medicine (NLM), which dates back to 1836, is described. MEDLINE, a database of 10-plus million references and abstracts to the world's biomedical literature, was put on the World Wide Web for free searching in 1997 as a system called PubMed, whose use has grown to over 250 million searches per year. PubMed features a variety of links between MEDLINE references and related information – full-text journal articles, DNA sequence data, medical knowledge bases, etc. – at websites within and outside NLM. PubMed is a major component of a larger NLM system, Entrez, which integrates access to a number of genome-related databases with linking features similar to those of PubMed. The newest linked service, which became a reality in February 2000, is PubMed Central, the National Institutes of Health's free repository for primary research reports in all the life sciences.     

Impact forces and neck muscle activity in heading by collegiate female soccer players

Three soccer header types (shooting, clearing and passing) and two heading approaches (standing and jumping) were manipulated to quantify impact forces and neck muscle activity in elite female soccer players. The 15 participants were Division I intercollegiate soccer players. Impact forces were measured by a 15-sensor pressure array secured on the forehead. The electromyographic (EMG) activity of the left and right sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles was recorded using surface electrodes. Maximum impact forces and impulses as well as the EMG data were analysed with separate repeated-measures analyses of variance. Impact forces and impulses did not differ among the header types or approaches. Higher values were found for jumping versus standing headers in the mean normalized EMG for the right sternocleidomastoid. In addition, the integrated EMG was greater for the right sternocleidomastoid and right and left trapezius (P < 0.05). The sternocleidomastoid became active earlier than the trapezius and showed greater activity before ball contact. The trapezius became active just before ball contact and showed greater activity after ball contact. The increased muscle activity observed in the neck during the jumping approach appears to stabilize the connection between the head and body, thereby increasing the stability of the head-neck complex.     

Research methods in sport and exercise psychology: quantitative and qualitative issues

Contemporary aspects of research methods in sport and exercise psychology are discussed in this wide-ranging review. After an introduction centred on trends in sport and exercise psychology methods, the review is organized around the major themes of quantitative and qualitative research. Our aim is to highlight areas that may be problematic or controversial (e.g. stepwise statistical procedures), underused (e.g. discriminant analysis), increasingly used (e.g. meta-analysis, structural equation modelling, qualitative content analysis) and emergent (e.g. realist tales of writing). Perspectives range from the technical and speculative to the controversial and critical. While deliberately not providing a 'cookbook' approach to research methods, we hope to provide enough material to help researchers to appreciate the diversity of potential methods and to adopt a more critical perspective in their own research consumption and production.     

Methodological considerations for researchers and practitioners using pedometers to measure physical (ambulatory) activity

Researchers and practitioners require guidelines for using electronic pedometers to objectively quantify physical activity (specifically ambulatory activity) for research and surveillance as well as clinical and program applications. Methodological considerations include choice of metric and length of monitoring frame as well as different data recording and collection procedures. A systematic review of 32 empirical studies suggests we can expect 12,000-16,000 steps/day for 8-10-year-old children (lower for girls than boys); 7,000-13,000 steps/day for relatively healthy, younger adults (lower for women than men); 6,000-8,500 steps/day for healthy older adults; and 3,500-5,500 steps/day for individuals living with disabilities and chronic illnesses. These preliminary recommendations should be modified and refined, as evidence and experience using pedometers accumulates.     

Through the years: a longitudinal study of physical education teachers from a research-based preparation program

This study investigated factors that enhanced and constrained the career development of six teachers, who had graduated from the same university teacher education program, in their induction years (Woods & Earls, 1995) and again later in their career cycles. Three participants were physical education teachers (PETs), and three were former physical education teachers (FPETs). Fessler's (1985) Teacher Career Stage Model provided the theoretical framework. Data sources were: interviews with teachers and their teacher educators and direct observations of lessons. Results indicated that the PETs continued to have skill development as their primary teaching objective. The teachers maintained many of their teaching skills, and shifted between the career cycles of "competency building" and "enthusiastic and growing." All three FPETs left their physical education positions during the career frustration stage and at the time of publication were in the career exit stage.