Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trial

Single physical activity (PA) bouts may have an immediate positive effect on perceived stress. Overall, acute psychological benefits of PA may be enhanced by manipulating expectations but it is unclear, whether this also applies to acute stress. This study aimed to investigate whether a brief workou...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: B. Hösl, M. Niedermeier, M. Kopp
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2024-12-01
Series:Cogent Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2024.2429896
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850163491592208384
author B. Hösl
M. Niedermeier
M. Kopp
author_facet B. Hösl
M. Niedermeier
M. Kopp
author_sort B. Hösl
collection DOAJ
description Single physical activity (PA) bouts may have an immediate positive effect on perceived stress. Overall, acute psychological benefits of PA may be enhanced by manipulating expectations but it is unclear, whether this also applies to acute stress. This study aimed to investigate whether a brief workout can reduce acute stress and whether manipulating expectations can enhance this effect in a student sample. Furthermore, associated factors with the stress‑reduction of PA were analyzed. In an online trial with randomized group allocation, 121 participants completed a ten‑minute workout (PA), a ten‑minute workout following expectation manipulation (PA+EM), or a control intervention (CG). Data on acute perceived stress, student burnout, longer‑term stress experience, and habitual PA were collected via questionnaires before and after the intervention. Analysis of covariance indicated that after the intervention, PA+EM (d=‑1.15) and PA (d=‑0.91) showed significantly lower values in acute perceived stress than CG, while PA groups did not differ (d=‑0.24). Exploratory analyses revealed that students with lower burnout efficacy scores benefited more from the workout than those with higher scores. Although the manipulation had no additional effect, the results suggest that a brief workout can strongly reduce perceived stress and may therefore be a suitable coping strategy for students.
format Article
id doaj-art-66463d4e66eb44e68aab2d08f1854e6a
institution OA Journals
issn 2331-1908
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
record_format Article
series Cogent Psychology
spelling doaj-art-66463d4e66eb44e68aab2d08f1854e6a2025-08-20T02:22:15ZengTaylor & Francis GroupCogent Psychology2331-19082024-12-0111110.1080/23311908.2024.2429896Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trialB. Hösl0M. Niedermeier1M. Kopp2Department of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, AustriaDepartment of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, AustriaDepartment of Sport Science, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, AustriaSingle physical activity (PA) bouts may have an immediate positive effect on perceived stress. Overall, acute psychological benefits of PA may be enhanced by manipulating expectations but it is unclear, whether this also applies to acute stress. This study aimed to investigate whether a brief workout can reduce acute stress and whether manipulating expectations can enhance this effect in a student sample. Furthermore, associated factors with the stress‑reduction of PA were analyzed. In an online trial with randomized group allocation, 121 participants completed a ten‑minute workout (PA), a ten‑minute workout following expectation manipulation (PA+EM), or a control intervention (CG). Data on acute perceived stress, student burnout, longer‑term stress experience, and habitual PA were collected via questionnaires before and after the intervention. Analysis of covariance indicated that after the intervention, PA+EM (d=‑1.15) and PA (d=‑0.91) showed significantly lower values in acute perceived stress than CG, while PA groups did not differ (d=‑0.24). Exploratory analyses revealed that students with lower burnout efficacy scores benefited more from the workout than those with higher scores. Although the manipulation had no additional effect, the results suggest that a brief workout can strongly reduce perceived stress and may therefore be a suitable coping strategy for students.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2024.2429896Physical activityexpectancy effectspsychological stresscopingpreventionStress in Adults
spellingShingle B. Hösl
M. Niedermeier
M. Kopp
Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trial
Cogent Psychology
Physical activity
expectancy effects
psychological stress
coping
prevention
Stress in Adults
title Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trial
title_full Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trial
title_fullStr Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trial
title_full_unstemmed Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trial
title_short Expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students’ post-exercise stress perception – a randomized controlled online trial
title_sort expectation manipulation shows no additional benefit on students post exercise stress perception a randomized controlled online trial
topic Physical activity
expectancy effects
psychological stress
coping
prevention
Stress in Adults
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2024.2429896
work_keys_str_mv AT bhosl expectationmanipulationshowsnoadditionalbenefitonstudentspostexercisestressperceptionarandomizedcontrolledonlinetrial
AT mniedermeier expectationmanipulationshowsnoadditionalbenefitonstudentspostexercisestressperceptionarandomizedcontrolledonlinetrial
AT mkopp expectationmanipulationshowsnoadditionalbenefitonstudentspostexercisestressperceptionarandomizedcontrolledonlinetrial