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Purpose: To compare the effect of 12-weeks of cycling training and competition versus recreational cycling on successful aging across physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning domains in mid-aged adults. Methods: Recreational cyclists were randomly assigned to an intervention (n = 13, M age = 47.18 years) and comparison (n = 13, M age = 46.91 years) group. Analysis of Covariance was used on self-reported pre-post data to determine changes across time and differences between groups on outcomes. Results: The intervention group scored higher on the role limitation due to physical problems measure of physical functioning (p = 0.045) and the social activity measure of social functioning (p = 0.008) with large effect sizes ([eta][subscript p][superscript 2] > 0.14). The remaining physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning measures were not significantly different (p > 0.05) between groups with small to medium effect sizes ([eta][subscript p][superscript 2] > 0.01 to [less than or equal to] 0.06). Conclusion: Cycling training and competition promotes better physical and social functioning than recreational cycling. This finding indicates that an intervention that incorporates the training and competition aspects of sport may promote positive outcomes that are above and beyond those that can be gained from participation in recreational physical activity. Objective measurements on larger samples across a broader range of sports are required to confirm and extend these findings.

Purpose: To test confirmatory factor analyses of successful aging composed of physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning factors in masters athletes (n = 764) and non-sporting adults (n = 404), and compare the physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning of masters athletes versus non-sporting adults. Method: Self-reported cross-sectional data were analyzed with confirmatory factor analyses. Results: Physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning latent factors significantly loaded onto a higher-order successful aging latent factor (p < 0.05). Masters athletes had higher physical and social functioning than non-sporting adults (p < 0.05). Psychological and cognitive functioning did not differ between groups. Conclusions: Successful aging should be considered as a multi-faceted construct consisting of different domains of functioning for both masters athletes and non-sporting adults. Masters athletes were aged successfully relative to the non-sporting adults across the physical and social functioning domains. Physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning domains constitute an appropriate model to use in future experimental research investigating the effect of masters sport for successful aging.

This qualitative study examined the sporting experiences of individuals of diverse sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) in rural and remote areas of Australia - contexts where marginalised groups can feel excluded based on gender or sexuality, and where physical activity options may be limited. Twelve participants (aged 29-73 years) identifying as female or gender fluid, and as queer, bisexual, gay, lesbian or pansexual, completed an online, qualitative survey. Thematic analysis and an integrative theory of belonging were used to interpret the experiences and feelings of belonging, exclusion and resistance to heteronormativity found in the data. The development of viable opportunities for sport participation and physical activities that foster a sense of belonging and health in rural or remote Australian communities requires strategies based on a deep understanding of the needs and identities of individuals of diverse SOGI, as well as the cultural and social contexts in which people live. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this qualitative study was to understand the psychological barriers that athletes returning to soccer (football) following anterior cruciate ligament knee reconstruction surgery faced and how they negotiated these barriers. Thematic analysis was used analyse online, open-ended survey data within the framework of self-determination theory. Two themes of 'Fear of Re-injury' and 'Self-Help' respectively represented what barriers athletes faced when returning to soccer and how they were reportedly managed. Novel findings included identifying connections between athlete demographics, individual circumstances, perceived psychological barriers and needs, and their self-derived mental strategy. It also highlighted the need for athletes, coaches, and sports personnel to be educated and trained on the benefits of sports psychology during the return to sport phase, particularly when injuries occur at the local, recreational, non-professional levels of soccer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We argue that gender issues in physical education (PE) remain in some schools, despite advances in PE research and curricula aimed at engaging females in PE. We interviewed five Australian PE teachers (1 male and 4 females) at a co-educational, regional high school about the factors affecting female participation in PE and the strategies they used to engage female students. The key strategies the teachers reported using, such as modified scoring in mixed gender activities, single gender classes, school policies and extra-curricular activities, were (a) shaped by their individual views on the factors affecting female participation, (b) primarily embedded in (and reproduced) stereotypes of gender and (c) generally not a reflection of what is being advocated in the literature. Therefore, our study highlights the need for policies and programs aimed at supporting PE teachers to implement gender-sensitive strategies in their daily practice.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the talk of older athletes, with particular focus on how the context of sport helps them negotiate the ageing process. It draws on personal stories provided by 44 World Masters Games competitors (23 women; 21 men; aged 56-90 years; "M" = 72). Four themes emerged: "There's no such thing as old" (a story of avoiding old age); "Keep moving" (a story of fighting the ageing process); "Fun, fitness, friendship... [and] competing" (a story of redefining self and "old age") and; "Making the most of your life... with the capabilities that you still have" (a story of adaptation and acceptance). Together, the four themes show how through sports participation older individuals can simultaneously resist, redefine and accept the ageing process. These stories of a "sporting later life" allow for alternative meanings to the dominant "declining body" narrative of ageing. Therefore, these narratives present the possibility for personal, pedagogical and social transformation.

To implement cooperative learning successfully in practice, teachers require knowledge of cooperative learning, its features and terms, and how it functions in classrooms. This qualitative study examined 12 Australian generalist primary teachers', understandings of cooperative learning and perceived factors affecting its implementation. Using Johnson and Johnson's (1994) features of cooperative learning and Bain, Lancaster and Zundans' (2009) list of cooperative learning terms as a framework for analysis, we found that teachers' level of cooperative learning knowledge shaped their perceptions of the factors affecting its implementation in the classroom. The study supports the need for a deep embedding of cooperative learning pattern language in teacher training and professional development courses, and highlights the ongoing challenge of translating educational theory into effective practice on a larger scale in schools.

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived factors affecting workers' participation in an exercise intervention and interpret the findings within self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000a; 2007). Research examining the impact of psychological need satisfaction on exercise outcomes is not well established (McDonough & Crocker, 2007; Ryan & Deci, 2007). Even less is known about the processes through which workers negotiate a range of individual, group and context-based factors to fulfill these basic needs in exercise settings. To provide such insight, focus group interviews were conducted with 10 factory workers to discuss their involvement in a 7-week exercise intervention. Results indicated that a negotiation of complementary and competing factors (i.e., skill acquisition and regaining physical capabilities, a sense of camaraderie, characteristics of the trainer, exercise context, a sense of obligation, scheduling) affected workers' need fulfillment, which ultimately affected their exercise adherence. The implications for health practitioners aiming to meet the psychological needs of workers involved in exercise interventions are discussed. (Contains 3 tables.)

Using Sonstroem, Harlow, and Josephs' (1994) expanded version of the Exercise and Self-Esteem Model (EXSEM; Sonstroem & Morgan, 1989), we explored how 9 older adults (6 women and 3 men, aged 65-72 years) involved in a resistance training program experienced and perceived changes in physical self-worth (i.e., improved strength, functional competency, physical condition, and body satisfaction). We conducted three in-depth interviews with each participant over the course of the program. In individual log books, participants recorded the weight lifted and the number of repetitions for each exercise. Our findings showed the course of changes in physical self-perceptions in these older adults and how actual individual changes in strength performance related to perceived changes in important psychological outcomes.

Due to their high physical functioning, masters athletes are regularly proposed to exemplify successful aging. However, successful aging research on masters athletes has never been undertaken using a multidimensional successful aging model. To determine the best model for future successful aging research on masters athletes, we had masters swimmers (N = 169, M age = 57.4 years, 61% women) self-report subjective successful aging, and physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning. Using this data we tested one hypothesized and three alternative successful aging models. The hypothesized model fit the data best (-2LL = 2052.32, AIC = 1717) with physical (β = 0.31, SE = 0.11), psychological (β = 0.25, SE = 0.11), and social (β = 1.20, SE = 0.63) functioning factors significantly loading onto a higher order successful aging latent factor. Successful aging should be conceptualized as a multidimensional phenomenon in future masters athlete research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the use of performance discourses by Masters Athletes to define their participation in competitive sport. Findings suggest that such performance discourses are complex and contradictory in changing the common notions of an older athlete.

Global population aging has raised academic interest in successful aging to a public policy priority. Currently there is no consensus regarding the definition of successful aging. However, a synthesis of research shows successful aging can be defined as a late-life process of change characterized by high physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning. Masters athletes systematically train for, and compete in, organized forms of team and individual sport specifically designed for older adults. Masters athletes are often proposed as exemplars of successful aging. However, their aging status has never been examined using a comprehensive multidimensional successful aging definition. Here, we examine the successful aging literature, propose a successful aging definition based on this literature, present evidence which suggests masters athletes could be considered exemplars of successful aging according to the proposed definition, and list future experimental research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To test confirmatory factor analyses of successful aging composed of physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning factors in masters athletes (n = 764) and non-sporting adults (n = 404), and compare the physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning of masters athletes versus non-sporting adults. Method: Self-reported cross-sectional data were analyzed with confirmatory factor analyses. Results: Physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning latent factors significantly loaded onto a higher-order successful aging latent factor (p < .05). Masters athletes had higher physical and social functioning than non-sporting adults (p < .05). Psychological and cognitive functioning did not differ between groups. Conclusions: Successful aging should be considered as a multi-faceted construct consisting of different domains of functioning for both masters athletes and non-sporting adults. Masters athletes were aged successfully relative to the non-sporting adults across the physical and social functioning domains. Physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning domains constitute an appropriate model to use in future experimental research investigating the effect of masters sport for successful aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To compare the effect of 12-weeks of cycling training and competition versus recreational cycling on successful aging across physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning domains in mid-aged adults. Methods: Recreational cyclists were randomly assigned to an intervention (n = 13, M age = 47.18 years) and comparison (n = 13, M age = 46.91 years) group. Analysis of Covariance was used on self-reported pre-post data to determine changes across time and differences between groups on outcomes. Results: The intervention group scored higher on the role limitation due to physical problems measure of physical functioning (p = .045) and the social activity measure of social functioning (p = .008) with large effect sizes (ηp² > .14). The remaining physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning measures were not significantly different (p > .05) between groups with small to medium effect sizes (p² > .01 to ≤ .06). Conclusion: Cycling training and competition promotes better physical and social functioning than recreational cycling. This finding indicates that an intervention that incorporates the training and competition aspects of sport may promote positive outcomes that are above and beyond those that can be gained from participation in recreational physical activity. Objective measurements on larger samples across a broader range of sports are required to confirm and extend these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aims of this qualitative study were to understand how athletes (a) defined psychological readiness and (b) knew when they were ready to return to soccer following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction surgery. Data were collected from a group of 21 (male and female) athletes who had undergone ACL reconstruction surgery and returned to playing soccer. An open-ended, in-depth online survey was created to gather data on athlete understandings of psychological readiness, their experiences of overcoming psychological barriers when returning to sport, and any emotions or complications associated with their return to sport. Two main themes were uncovered in this study: 'Having Confidence' and 'Love of the Game'. This research offers a greater understanding of how psychological readiness is defined from the perspective of soccer players, (particularly those returning to lower levels of competition, such as local and regional amateur clubs), than has been found in previous research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceived psychological benefits and explore the mechanisms underlying the link between exercise and psychological well-being for a group of older adults (65-72 years; 6 women; 4 men) who participated in a 12-week program of moderate-to-high intensity resistance training. They were interviewed in-depth at 1 week preintervention, 1 month after commencement, and 1 week after completion. The participants believed that resistance training enhanced their well-being, and they gave various physical, mental, and social reasons to explain this link. In particular, self-efficacy and social interaction were found to be key mechanisms underlying this relationship. This study exposed meaningful perceived improvements in psychological wellbeing that have not been uncovered in quantitative studies of healthy older people undertaking resistance training. The findings highlight the importance of using qualitative methods to enrich understandings of the positive effect of exercise on psychological well-being. The findings also have implications for designing effective resistance training interventions for older people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of older athletes is growing with the aging of populations across the developed world. This article reviews studies from a variety of disciplines that focus specifically on the motives and experiences of older adults competing in physically demanding sports at events such as masters and veterans competitions in Australia or the Senior Olympics in North America. It is shown that the majority of research into this phenomenon has taken a quantitative approach or failed to consider older athletes' experiences in the context of broader sociocultural discourses. Therefore, using the author's research into the experiences of older Australian masters athletes as a catalyst, the need for and strength of sociological qualitative research in this area is discussed. The use of qualitative methods, such as in-depth interviews and observations, and interpretive analysis provided alternative ways of making sense of older adults and their relationship with competitive sport to what is typically found in the sport and aging literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]