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This study compared the effects of three different types of cognitively challenging physical activity games on students' executive functions and situational interest. Participants were 140 students from four fourth-grade and four fifth-grade classes of four elementary schools. One fourth- and one fifth-grade class from each school were randomly assigned to the three experimental and the control group conditions. A group-randomized controlled trial design was used in this acute experiment including a single physical education session with pre- and post-test measures of executive functions and a post-test measure of situational interest. Students of each experimental group played physical activity games based on a different principle of mental engagement (i.e., contextual interference, mental control, or discovery). Control group students did not participate in physical education. The results showed positive effects of all types of cognitively challenging physical activity games on experimental group students' executive functions compared to control group students. No differences were found on executive functions and situational interest between the three experimental groups. These results provide supporting evidence regarding the utilization of cognitively challenging physical activity games for involving students in physical activity and triggering their executive functions.

Two studies were conducted to examine associations between undergraduate physical education students' calibration accuracy, assessed both at the local and global level, and their short and long-term achievement in two academic courses (developmental and sport psychology). Participants were 68 Greek senior and 112 first-year physical education students who completed knowledge tests and provided their judgments regarding their performance in these tests. Students' degree grade and time of graduation were also obtained in study two. Results showed that calibration accuracy could explain a small amount of variance of students' academic achievement measured both with short-term (i.e., knowledge tests in the middle and in the end of the semester) and long-term indicators (e.g., degree grade). Calibration at the local level was generally a better predictor of students' short and long-term academic achievement while results regarding differences in the accuracy of the judgments provided at the local and the global level were mixed. These finding are discussed with reference to the theoretical and practical implications for undergraduate students' academic achievement.

This study examined the effects of a self-regulated learning teaching unit on students' performance calibration, goal attainment, and attributions in physical education. Participants were 101 fifth- and sixth-grade students who were randomly assigned to an experimental (57 students) and a control group (44 students). Calibration indexes were calculated based on students' estimated and actual performance in a basketball shooting test. The intervention included four sessions based on Zimmerman's four-level model of self-regulated learning. Experimental group students estimated more accurately their performance after the intervention compared to control group students while associations between calibration, goal attainment, and attributions were found. Results are discussed with reference to calibration and self-regulated learning in physical education. Practical implications and directions for future research are also provided.

In this pilot study, we assessed the effectiveness and acceptability of an educational program designed to prevent alcohol-related behaviors among high school students. The program was rooted in the Theory of Planned Behavior principles (TPB) and supplemented with life-skills teaching. A total of 352 participants were involved, representing 10 secondary schools in central Greece. Among these, 257 students (Mage: 14.51 ± 1.34 years) constituted the experimental group, while 95 were assigned to the control group. The experimental group received a 10-session program, one per week. The results revealed that the experimental group had a significant improvement on knowledge about alcohol, perceived behavioral control (PBC), and alcohol-related behavior between pre- and post-intervention measurements. Additionally, students expressed high levels of satisfaction with the program. These findings offer substantial evidence for the practicality and effectiveness of an alcohol prevention initiative that is rooted in theory and supported by life-skills education when implemented within a school environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to examine students' performance calibration in physical education. One hundred fifth and sixth grade students provided estimations regarding their performance in a dribbling test after practicing dribbling for 16 minutes under different self-regulatory conditions (i.e., receiving feedback, setting goals, self-recording). Two calibration indices, calibration bias and calibration accuracy, were calculated. The results showed that students who practiced dribbling under different self-regulatory conditions (i.e., receiving feedback, setting goals) did not differ in calibration bias and accuracy. Regardless of the group, students were overconfident. Moreover, sixth grade students were more accurate compared to fifth grade students. These results were discussed with reference to the development of performance calibration and self-regulated learning in physical education.

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of the reciprocal and the self-check teaching styles on pupils' basketball chest pass performance and on related psychosocial variables in a single physical education session. Participants were 64 fifth and sixth grade pupils between 11 and 12 years of age who were randomly assigned to three experimental (reciprocal style, self-check style, sequential use of reciprocal and self-check style) and one control group. The results showed that the three experimental groups outperformed the control group in chest pass accuracy and form, but no differences among the experimental groups were found. Moreover, no differences among the four groups in self-efficacy, satisfaction, effort, and enjoyment were found. These results showed that the reciprocal and the self-check styles are effective in enhancing pupils' performance and are discussed with reference to self-regulated learning development in primary school physical education. (Contains 1 table and 2 figures.)

Body image is considered to be an obscure, mental representation of body shape, size and form which is influenced by a variety of factors that operate over varying time spans. Research has shown that professional female dancers may face preoccupations with their body image and weight. The present study aimed to investigate how body image was affected as a result of women dancers exercising in a professional and amateur level. The subjects were 115 female professional dance students and 85 females enrolled at amateur dance schools aged between 15 and 30 years old. The participants completed the 69 items of the Multidimentional Body Self Relations Questionnaire (MBSRQ). According to the results, dance status was found to be significantly associated with three out of the ten MBSRQ subscales with professional dancers having higher mean scores on fitness orientation (F=10.095, p less than 0.05) and body areas dissatisfaction (F=16.455, p less than 0,05) and lower mean scores on overweight preoccupation (F=9.83, p less than 0,05). Future research on dancers could: (1) examine both the body image concerns and their relevant eating attitudes; (2) focus on body image concerns that occur as the females get older; (3) compare professional dancers with non-dancers, since this might provide for data at each end of the spectrum. (Contains 1 table.)

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention program aimed to develop fair play behaviours in a school Olympic Education program. One hundred and twenty six, 5th-grade students from 4 elementary schools participated in this study, 66 of which were in the experimental group and 60 in the control group. The results revealed significant improvement in the reported fair play behaviours, classroom support and autonomy, orientation toward play and intrinsic motivation of the intervention group. Follow-up assessment revealed that the effects were maintained two months after the end of the program. Overall, it appears that the fair play intervention had immediate and sustained effects on students. The results suggest that programs based on sound theoretical principles can be effective in promoting students' sociomoral development. (Contains 4 tables.)

This study examined 10–11-year-old students' perceptions regarding three different types of physical activity games based on different principles of mental engagement (contextual interference, mental control, or discovery). A total of 156 students (84 girls) from five fourth-grade (75 students) and five fifth-grade (81 students) classes of five elementary schools located in a middle-sized city in central Greece participated in the study. These students participated in a larger project consisting of a series of acute experiments aiming to examine the effectiveness of cognitively challenging physical activity games in elementary physical education. Students responded to open-ended questions regarding their perceptions of the physical activity games. Their responses were analyzed through a thematic analysis. A total number of 706 quotes were identified and categorized into the lower-order themes which were organized into four higher-order themes: (a) characteristics of the games, (b) effects of the games, (c) areas for improvement, and (d) preferences for specific games. Students' views provided supporting evidence regarding the employment of cognitively challenging physical activity games in physical education. Useful insights regarding the characteristics of the games, their effects, and their areas for improvement were also gained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Differences were examined in Theory of Planned Behaviour determinants of students’ intention to smoke including parents’ attitudes towards smoking and parents’ current cigarette use among Greek students of different school grade levels. Students (N = 763) aged 10–18 years reported their attitudes towards smoking, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, self-identity and intention to smoke while their parents (N = 525) reported their attitudes towards smoking and their current cigarette use. All the TPB variables increased from lower to higher school grade level. Multi-sample path analyses showed that parent's attitudes towards smoking positively predicted students’ intention to smoke only for elementary school children. Parents’ current cigarette use did not contribute significantly. Students’ attitudes, perceived behavioural control and self-identity predicted systematically intention to smoke in contrast to the subjective norm that did not contribute at all. Perceived behavioural control contributed to a higher degree in intention to smoke for senior high school students compared to the junior high school and elementary students. Self-identity contributed to a higher degree in intention to smoke for elementary compared to the junior high school students. The results of this study suggests that the determinants of smoking vary between early and late adolescence. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The aim of this study was to adapt the Multisource Assessment of Social Competence Scale to the Greek language. The validity and reliability of the scale were examined in three studies with 209, 192, and 147 sixth-grade students, respectively. The subscale structure of the Multisource Assessment of Social Competence Scale was supported through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The hypothesized two main dimensions, Prosocial and Antisocial behavior, were divided into two factors, Cooperating skills and Empathy for Prosocial behavior and Quick-temperedness and Disruptiveness for Antisocial behavior. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were high. Additionally, correlations between each factor and social desirability scores were nonsignificant. The resultant model of the present study is a behavior rating scale that should be considered a reliable choice for assessing Greek middle school students' social skills.

A three-wave study over one year with 882 adolescents, aged 10 to 16 years at the initial testing, examined psychosocial variables regarding four health-related behaviors: exercise, eating fruit, smoking, and drug use. Analysis showed that during the stages of the study, high school students' exercise behavior decreased and their smoking behavior increased as well as their willingness to use drugs. It seems that study of physical education and health education during adolescence must take into account the possible differences in psychosocial variables associated with health-related behaviors as well as the different stages of adolescence.