Active vs. passive attentional manipulation and multidimensional perceptions of exercise intensity.
The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether active (arithmetic problems) or passive (asynchronous music) attention demanding tasks affected undifferentiated ratings of exertion during work of varying intensities. Also, an effort was made to determine which aspect of perceived exertion, (i.e., Fatigue, Task Aversion, and Motivation) as measured by the Physical Activity Questionnaire (PAQ), the attentional manipulation affected most. Twenty-six female subjects performed 5 minutes of work at either 60 or 90% of predicted VO2 Max. During work they were required to solve a constant flow of arithmetic problems, listen to music, or work in an unfilled control condition. Following activity they completed the PAQ and Borg's Scale. A repeated measures MANOVA followed by step-down F tests revealed that the Fatigue factor of the PAQ was the only component significantly (p less than .01) affected by attentional manipulation. A Scheffé test showed that both active and passive manipulation differed from the control (p less than .01), with active manipulation more potent at 90% VO2 Max.
D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010465:Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D013177:Sports