Psychological strategies for maximum health and enjoyment during moderate intensity and vigorous physical exercise. This project will change the way people think during physical exercise. It will show adults of all ages and levels of experience how to get more out of moderate intensity and vigorous exercise by reducing perceived effort and making it more enjoyable.
Health-related physical activity: Psychological determinants, consequences, and experimental interventions. Increasingly sedentary lifestyles and physical inactivity constitute a worldwide health problem. Despite well-known benefits of physical activity, preventive-medicine interventions have had limited success. Instead, we propose an innovative psychological approach, emphasising quality of subjective experience (flow), motivation, physical self-concept, and the transtheoretical model of beha ....Health-related physical activity: Psychological determinants, consequences, and experimental interventions. Increasingly sedentary lifestyles and physical inactivity constitute a worldwide health problem. Despite well-known benefits of physical activity, preventive-medicine interventions have had limited success. Instead, we propose an innovative psychological approach, emphasising quality of subjective experience (flow), motivation, physical self-concept, and the transtheoretical model of behavioural change. We propose psychological determinants of physical activity and a new experimental intervention to significantly enhance health-related physical activity. The research breaks new theoretical ground, extending and integrating different theoretical perspectives, offering a synergy between qualitative and quantitative research traditions, and providing practical benefits to mental and physical health and to quality of life.Read moreRead less
Furthering Positive Futures for Children with Intellectual Disabilities: A Longitudinal Investigation. This project will address the paucity of empirical research on drivers of psychosocial and physical well-being (PPW; for example self-concept, depression, behavioural problems, physical fitness, weight) of children with Intellectual Disabilities (ID). This proposal presents an extensive research program aimed at understanding the effects of school life and Physical Activity (PA) on PPW for Aust ....Furthering Positive Futures for Children with Intellectual Disabilities: A Longitudinal Investigation. This project will address the paucity of empirical research on drivers of psychosocial and physical well-being (PPW; for example self-concept, depression, behavioural problems, physical fitness, weight) of children with Intellectual Disabilities (ID). This proposal presents an extensive research program aimed at understanding the effects of school life and Physical Activity (PA) on PPW for Australian children with ID. This program examines: the relations between school life and PPW; the benefits, barriers and predictors of PA; moderators (personal characteristics, educational settings). The overarching objective is to advance theory and research in this area, and to inform intervention strategies furthering more positive futures for children with ID.Read moreRead less
Psychological determinants of physical activity across the life span and critical life-stage transitions: Cross-sectional, longitudinal causal modelling, and experimental interventions. Increasingly, sedentary lifestyles and physical inactivity are major worldwide health problems. Despite well-established health benefits of physical activity, existing medical-oriented interventions have had limited effects on increasing population-levels of activity. We propose a psychological approach, emphasiz ....Psychological determinants of physical activity across the life span and critical life-stage transitions: Cross-sectional, longitudinal causal modelling, and experimental interventions. Increasingly, sedentary lifestyles and physical inactivity are major worldwide health problems. Despite well-established health benefits of physical activity, existing medical-oriented interventions have had limited effects on increasing population-levels of activity. We propose a psychological approach, emphasizing quality of subjective experience (flow), motivation, physical self-concept, and the transtheoretical model of change. We will evaluate psychological determinants of health-related physical activity and implement experimental physical activity enhancing interventions at two critical life stages: for late-adolescents and older Australians. The proposal advances theory and methodology in a National Research Priority area, providing practical solutions to important societal problems with socioeconomic benefits for Australia.Read moreRead less
Optimising Performance Under Pressure: Testing and Developing Athletes' Attentional Focus Strategies. Sport has long played a significant role in Australia's cultural identity, but the economic value of this industry must also be recognised. Australia has invested heavily in supporting our athletes, teams and coaches, who have achieved high levels of success in international sports. In using innovative technology to optimise performance, the research has the potential to enhance Australia's inte ....Optimising Performance Under Pressure: Testing and Developing Athletes' Attentional Focus Strategies. Sport has long played a significant role in Australia's cultural identity, but the economic value of this industry must also be recognised. Australia has invested heavily in supporting our athletes, teams and coaches, who have achieved high levels of success in international sports. In using innovative technology to optimise performance, the research has the potential to enhance Australia's international reputation in the sport sciences, and may well prove essential to our future competitiveness. In promoting innovative, evidence-based coaching and psychological skills training that develop and foster human talent, the project will also assist strategic initiatives to increase community participation in sport.Read moreRead less
The articulate brain. Language is essential to human interaction, yet we know comparatively little about the mental processes involved and how they are represented in the brain, how genetic and environmental factors contribute to the development of language, or how effective treatments of language disorders work. The significance of this program of research lies in its capacity to enhance our understanding of a range of mechanisms responsible for a fundamentally human ability, and provide inform ....The articulate brain. Language is essential to human interaction, yet we know comparatively little about the mental processes involved and how they are represented in the brain, how genetic and environmental factors contribute to the development of language, or how effective treatments of language disorders work. The significance of this program of research lies in its capacity to enhance our understanding of a range of mechanisms responsible for a fundamentally human ability, and provide information that will ultimately inform clinical practice. In particular, new knowledge about the brain mechanisms involved in language processing and recovery will inform clinicians about the optimal choice of treatment to maximise outcomes for the individual patient. Read moreRead less
How does dopamine modulate adult new word learning? Stroke is a chronic disease of increasing prevalence with increasing age. There is a critical need to develop more effective treatments of communication disorders in this population. One way of achieving this is to combine certain drugs with language therapy. Through studying how these drugs influence language, this research will provide vital knowledge for developing effective forms of pharmacotherapy for adults with language disorders after b ....How does dopamine modulate adult new word learning? Stroke is a chronic disease of increasing prevalence with increasing age. There is a critical need to develop more effective treatments of communication disorders in this population. One way of achieving this is to combine certain drugs with language therapy. Through studying how these drugs influence language, this research will provide vital knowledge for developing effective forms of pharmacotherapy for adults with language disorders after brain injury. More effective language rehabilitation can have direct positive consequences on the ability to regain and maintain employment and social relationships after stroke or brain injury and will address the large and growing social and economic cost to the nation.Read moreRead less
A functional imaging study of semantic processing modulated by dopamine. The role of dopamine in language processing is largely unknown, despite emerging evidence that dopaminergic alterations can modulate language in schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, and healthy individuals. The research aims to reveal the neural and behavioural correlates of dopaminergic modulation of semantic processing using neuroimaging in healthy individuals who have ingested levodopa. It is hypothesised that levodopa wi ....A functional imaging study of semantic processing modulated by dopamine. The role of dopamine in language processing is largely unknown, despite emerging evidence that dopaminergic alterations can modulate language in schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, and healthy individuals. The research aims to reveal the neural and behavioural correlates of dopaminergic modulation of semantic processing using neuroimaging in healthy individuals who have ingested levodopa. It is hypothesised that levodopa will modulate brain activity under circumstances where there is heightened semantic competition, consistent with a contemporary theory of dopaminergic cognitive control. The expected outcome of the research is an increased understanding of the interactions between dopamine, the language faculty, and associated neural systems.Read moreRead less