Key Concepts in Physical Activity and Sport Psychology

Physical activity

The CDC defines this as 'any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that increases energy expenditure'

Therapeutic exercise

A physical therapist helping a patient walk post-stroke uses this type of exercise

Biomechanics

The subdiscipline studying forces acting on the body during movement

Goal-directed movement

This distinguishes physical activity from reflexes

Self-sufficiency

Sphere of physical activity that includes cooking or shopping

Health sphere

A runner's 'high' exemplifies this sphere

"To strive together"

The Latin root meaning of 'competition'

Overuse injuries

A risk associated with excessive training in the health sphere

Holism

Mind-body theory emphasizing 'overall wellness'

Deductive reasoning

Research method starting with broad premises to reach specific conclusions

Autotelic attitude

An athlete playing purely for joy demonstrates this

Sport ethics

'Rules are the foundation of sport' aligns with this

Modernization theory

Explains sport's shift during industrialization

NASSH

First sport history organization (founded 1972)

European contact

Pre-1840 Native American games were impacted by this

Golden Age of Sport

1920s era marked by sport's popularity surge

Racial integration

Jackie Robinson addressed this in MLB

Racial relations

Overrepresentation of African Americans in certain sports reflects this

Title IX

Legislation targeting gender inequity in education programs

Cultural expression

Favored lean bodies in society demonstrate this

Qualitative research

Interviewing athletes about coaching styles uses this method

Motor control

Studies neural aspects of movement

Learning transfer

Improved by practicing skills in varied contexts

Memory drum theory

Franklin Henry's contribution to motor behavior

Motor development

Babies learning to use utensils are studied in this

Cognitions

The 'C' in the ABCs of sport psychology (affect, behavior, ___)

Anxiety

Negative psychological response to stress

Arousal

The inverted-U model links this to performance

Mindfulness

'Present-moment focus' defines this mental skill

Burnout

Athletes feeling trapped in their sport may experience this

Sport psychology

Field studying mental imagery use in coaching

Dualism

'Sound mind in sound body' aligns with this philosophy

Motor programs

Precise surgical movements involve these memory mechanisms

Gender relations

Decline in women coaching women's teams reflects this

Primary sources

Diaries or letters used in historical research

Intrinsic feedback

Comes from within (e.g., 'I played well')

Dynamical systems

Theory that challenges motor program theory

Cohesion

Term for group harmony in sport psychology

Racial stereotypes

Deceptive media portrayals often involve these

Fair play ethics

'Winning at all costs' conflicts with this

Parental pressure

Common cause of youth sport dropout

Exploitation

NCAA recruiting policies address this issue

Ergonomic design

What workplace specialists improve to prevent injuries

Modern sport

Focus of Guttmann's From Ritual to Record

Skill level

'Flow state' requires balanced challenge and this

Aging

SOC model (selection, optimization, compensation) applies to this

Materialism

Holism contrasts with this and dualism