Full Description
Physical activity is vital for good health. It has an established strong evidence base for its positive effects on functional capacity, reducing the risk of many chronic diseases, and promoting physical, mental and social well-being. Furthermore, these benefits are evident across a diversity of ages, groups and populations. The need for these benefits in current societies means that exercise practitioners, professional bodies, institutions, health authorities and governments require high quality evidence to establish appropriate exercise guidelines, implementation strategies and effective exercise prescription at individual, group and population levels. Research Methods in Physical Activity and Health is the first book to comprehensively present the issues associated with physical activity and health research and outline methods available along with considerations of the issues associated with these methods and working with particular groups.
The book outlines the historical and scientific context of physical activity and health research before working through the full research process, from generating literature reviews and devising a research proposal, through selecting a research methodology and quantifying physical activity and outcome measures, to disseminating findings. Including a full section on conducting research studies with special populations, the book includes chapters on:
Observational and cross-sectional studies;
Interviews, questionnaires and focus groups;
Qualitative and quantitative research methods;
Epidemiological research methods;
Physical activity interventions and sedentary behaviour; and
Working with children, older people, indigenous groups, LGBTI groups, and those with physical and mental health issues.
Research Methods in Physical Activity and Health is the only book to approach the full range of physical activity research methods from a health perspective. It is essential reading for any undergraduate student conducting a research project or taking applied research modules in physical activity and health, graduate students of epidemiology, public health, exercise psychology or exercise physiology with a physical activity and health focus, or practicing researchers in the area.
Contents
1. Why Research into Health and Physical Activity?
2.The Historical and Current Context for Research into Health and Physical Activity
3. Health Concepts
4. Nurture vs Nature: The Genetics and Epigenetics of Exercise
5. Systematically Searching and Reviewing the Literature
6. Producing the Research Proposal
7. Ethical Issues in Health and Physical Activity Research
8. Observational (Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal) Studies
9. Interviews and Focus Groups
10. Questionnaires
11. Notes and Tips on Surveys
12. Qualitative Research in Physical Activity and Health
13. Intervention studies, training studies and determining the acute responses to bouts of exercise
14. An Introduction to Research Methods in the Epidemiology of Health and Physical Activity
15. Research into Sedentary Behaviour
16. Ensuring Quality Data: Validity, Reliability and Error
17. Quantitative Data Analyses
18. Measurement of Physical Behaviours in Free-Living Populations
19. Measurements of Physical Health and Functional Capacity
20. Physical activity and the "feel-good" effect: challenges in researching the pleasure and
displeasure people feel when they exercise
21. Studying the Risks of Exercise and Its Negative Impacts
22. Research Studies with Children
23. Research Studies with Older People
24. Working with Indigenous and Other Cultural Groups
25. Research Methods in Physical Activity and Health: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
26. Conducting Physical Activity Research Within Chronic Disease Populations
29. Using Health Equity to Guide Future Physical Activity Research Involving People Living
with Serious Mental Illness
30. Disseminating the Research Findings
31. Translating Research Findings into Community Interventions. Considerations for Design and Implementation: A Case Based Approach.
32. Translating Research Findings Into Community Interventions. Considerations for Design and Implementation: A Case Based Approach
