Master of Science (Exercise and Sport Studies)

The importance of psychological skills as mediating factors in athletic success have been well documented. In particular, research has generally supported the efficacy of mental imagery as an effective technique in enhancing physical skill and manipulating psychological skills, however the mechanisms for this have been equivocal (Driskell, Cooper & Moran, 1994). Hall, Mack, Paivio, & Hausenblas (1998) have identified five functions of imagery and have suggested specific outcomes are favoured by specific functions of imagery.

This investigation assessed the effectiveness of Cognitive Specific (CS), Motivational General - Arousal (MG-A), and Motivational General - Mastery (MG-M) imagery on physical performance, pre-competitive state anxiety, self -confidence, and imagery use. Participants were female high school volleyball players (n=13) and elite, national level, netball players (n=30). The dependent variables were measured using the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory - 2 (Martens, Burton, Vealey, Bump & Smith, 1990), Sports Imagery Questionnaire (Hall, Mack, Paivio & Hausenblas, 1998), and physical performance evaluations and tests. Multivariate analysis of covariance and follow up univariate analysis of covariance determined differences between the treatment and control groups on the dependent measures.

The results supported the efficacy of imagery as a mediating factor in enhancing physical performance, increasing state self-confidence, and reducing state anxiety levels. The participants reported significant increases in their use of the three functions of imagery included in the intervention, and both athletes and coaches were in general agreement as to the usefulness and effectiveness of the programme.

This research has contributed to the view that imagery functions relate to a specific outcome and that an effective intervention must take account of a range of important mediating factors. It was suggested that imagery interventions should include an education and development phase and be devised with the specific needs of the individual or team as a central tenet. Finally, generalizability of imagery efficacy has been enhanced as the investigation was conducted in Asia, using female team sport players in a non-contrived competitive setting.

Self-confidence has a dramatic influence on sport performance. In order to better understand what athletes do, or what helps to boost their self-confidence, Vealey, Hayashi, Garner-Holman, and Giacobbi (19998) developed the Sources of Sport-confidence Questionnaire (SSCQ). The subscales within the SSCQ represent nine sources of sport-confidence: mastery, demonstration of ability, mental and physical preparation, physical self-perception, social support, vicarious experience, environmental comfort, situational favourableness, and coaches' leadership.

This investigation sought to discover the differences in sources of sport-confidence across age, gender and sport-type for Singaporean student athletes using the SSCQ. To date, no investigation has examined such factors in detail. Apart from contributing to the current literature on sport-confidence, such knowledge will also help advance the relatively new field of applied sport psychology in Singapore.

The sample for this study was comprised of male (N=234) and female (N=219) student athletes from various secondary schools and junior colleges in Singapore. A multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA), with number of years of sport experience as the covariate, showed that there were significant main effects for age and sport-type on sources of sport-confidence. Younger athletes (14-15 years of age) rated mastery, mental & physical preparation, and coaches' leadership as being more important sources of sport-confidence than older athletes (17-18 years of age) to a significant extent. Team-sport athletes rated the SSCQ subscale of social support as a more important source of sport-confidence compared to individual-sport athletes to a significant extent.

This study suggests that certain sources of sport-confidence are deemed to be more important in contributing towards an athlete's sport related self-confidence. This underscores the importance of considering the sources of sport-confidence that different athletes use in different contexts so that the best intervention strategy for enhancing confidence and sustaining motivation can be applied.

Exercise adherence research has been largely inconclusive. Research into this important aspect of exercise behavior continues to gather insights as well as controversies, due to the lack of standardization in exercise adherence measurement and theoretical framework in the research design. Recent research suggests that anxiety pertaining to one's physique, or Social Physique Anxiety (SPA), a term coined by Hart, Leary and Rejeski (1989), may be a determinant to exercise adherence. The proposition is that SPA could be a diagnostic tool for physique conscious individuals in an exercise setting, in that SPA can be used to identify those who suffer from high physique anxiety. It is theorized that those who have high SPA will avoid an exercise environment which has potential evaluative others. However, the research into the relationship between SPA and exercise adherence is limited and equivocal: with findings showing a strong positive to negative to zero relationship.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between social physique anxiety and exercise adherence among aerobic dance class participants from Singapore Sports Council (SSC) regional fitness centers and the recreation center at a university campus. A total of one hundred and four female participants from six aerobic classes were surveyed using the Social Physique Anxiety Scale, developed by Hart and her associates (1989). Subjects' exercise attendance was carefully tracked over twelve aerobic classes in six or twelve weeks. A series of telephone follow-up interviews were conducted among non-adherers, namely, subjects who failed to attend more than 50% of the total number of classes. The Pearson correlation statistic analysis showed that there was no relationship between the subjects' exercise adherence and their social physique anxiety levels. However, the qualitative analysis validated some well-established exercise determinants as well as certain adherence models.

The study also revealed a unique demographic profile among the female aerobic participants in Singapore: they were generally young (mean age M=29.23) and thin (mean body mass index M=21.90). They appeared to be less disturbed about how others view their body, as indicated by their relatively lower SPA scores (M=25.72), as compared to their western counterparts (M=30).

This was the first exercise adherence study done among aerobic participants in Singapore. The implications of the findings will be special interest for cross-cultural comparison with previous research done in the West. Discussion on how social physique anxiety affects exercise behaviors and how it may impact in the design of aerobic rooms, fitness centers, exercise class format and design, and intervention strategies for high-risk individuals were reviewed. Possible reasons for the findings were presented and the implications of the results were discussed.

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the rationale and underlying principles behind the development of sport as a means of nation building in Singapore since 1959, using functional theory and logical interpretations. The dissertation is concerned with explaining the major factors for the development of sport in the country. Most of the local policies in sport in the early days performed functionalistic roles in providing healthy life, maintaining economic productivity and facilitating social unity among the people; all of which are rudimentary to nation building. Since the 1990s, due to the country's better economy and affluence, greater resources have been committed to elite competitive sport.

The PAP government having effectively fulfilled their leadership duties during periods of instability, played a crucial and dominant role in heading the development of sport in line with the overall national development plan. In summary, the dissertation shall explain and illustrate the rationale behind major sport policies and reasons for its development as well as the significant role Singapore sport has played in nation building.

Good hurdling involves running fast and having a good hurdle clearance technique. Running speed can be easily evaluated with a stop-watch. Evaluating good hurdle clearance technique is more complex. It may require a kinematic analysis. The purpose of this biomechanical investigation is to provide a kinematic analysis of the hurdle clearance technique of two junior women hurdlers.

This study could provide local track and field coaches with a procedure to evaluate hurdle clearance technique. It is hoped that such an evaluation could assist in improvement of the hurdling performance.

The hurdle clearance performances of two junior women hurdlers were video recorded. Kinematic performance variables were obtained using the Peak Motus Motion Analysis System. In order to evaluate the standard of the two junior hurdlers and to identify technique efficiency, their hurdling performance variables were analysed and compared with those of elite hurdlers.

It was found that the two junior women hurdlers lacked horizontal takeoff velocity. Their horizontal takeoff velocities (4.78m/s to 5.77m/s) were lower than the elite standard of 8.66m/s. The analysis also indicated that they were not efficient in their hurdle clearance technique. Their hurdle clearance times (0.44s to 0.50s) were longer than the elite standard of 0.30s. This may be due to their hurdle clearance takeoff angles which were higher (19.6^o to 24.1^o) than the elite standard of 10.3^o. It could also be that they have adopted high vertical takeoff velocities of 2.05m/s to 2.31m/s, which were higher than the elite standard of 1.58m/s.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the reliability and sensitivity of the Stair-Climb Test (SCT) to detect changes in cardiorespiratory fitness following 10 weeks of aerobic training in healthy male Singaporean adults. Thirty men (mean age 37 ± 9 years) underwent two Stair-Climb Tests (SCT1 & SCT2) at a Housing and Development Board (HDB) block and one maximal oxygen uptake (VO_2max test on the treadmill (TMl), with at least 24 hours separating each test, during Phase 1. The predicted VO_2max (PV0_2max) obtained from SCTl and SCT2 were 46.7 ± 4.5 and 47.3 ± 4.3 nL.kg^-1.min^-1 respectively. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was r = 0.95, coefficient of variation (CV) was 2.1% and change in the mean was 1.2%. During Phase 2, the participants were stratified and randomized into an exercise (E) or control (C) group based on the criterion measured VO_2max (MVO_2max) obtained from TM1. The training prescription for the E group consisted of thrice weekly 30-min sessions of aerobic exercises, at a target intensity ranging from 60% to 90% of maximum heart rate. The physical activity pattern of the C group remained unchanged. Following the intervention period, all participants underwent one SCT (SCT3) and one treadmill V0_2max test (TM2) during Phase 3. Pre-training MV0_2max (E: 43.9 ± 6.9; C: 43.6 ± 7.0 nL.kg^-1.min^-1, p > 0.05) and PV0_2max (E: 48.4 ± 4.3; C: 46.1 ± 4.2 nL.kg^-1.min^-1, p < 0.05) from TMl and SCT2 were compared with post-training MVO_2max (E: 48.5 ± 7.3; C: 39.5 ± 6.8 mL.kg^-1 < 0.05) and PVO_2max (E: 49.7 ± 4.4; C: 46.0 ± 4.1 rnL.kg^-1 min^-1,~ < 0.05) from TM2 and SCT3 respectively, using paired sample t-tests. The results showed that MV0_2max increased significantly by 10.5% (SD 3.5 nL.kg^-1.min^-1) in the E group and decreased significantly by 9.4% (SD 4.2 nL.kg^-1.min^-1) in the C group. The SCT underestimated the difference of changes in V0_2max (3.3 ml.kg^-1 min^-1) for the E group and overestimated the difference (3.9 ml.kg^-1 min^-1) for the C group. The Spearman rank coefficients for the PVO_2max and MVO_2max before (r; = 0.66) and after (r, = 0.60) the training intervention were significant (p < 0.05), indicating that the PV0_2max were similarly ranked as the MVO_2max. The results showed a moderately positive relationship between the PVO_2max and MVO_2max. Based on the results of the present study, we can conclude that the SCT is a very reliable field test of cardiorespiratory fitness. However, the SCT (I) over-predicted the MVO_2max prior to training; (2) did not accurately monitor the change in MVO_2max after 10 weeks of aerobic training; (3) but can acceptably rank and categorize participants' MVO_2max into broad categories, before and after training. The SCT may serve as a simple, self-administered procedure that encourages sedentary individuals to engage in moderate aerobic exercise. It should not be used to yield a precise indication of cardiorespiratory fitness, but rather to create an interest in exercise by providing a broad categorization of fitness, thereby motivating individuals to greater physical activity. It may serve as a motivational tool to encourage Singaporeans to use the stairs for exercise.

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to systematically examine and identify the successes, as well as the challenges, in the implementation process of Olympic Education (OE) in a Singapore government primary school : Banyan Primary School. The early planning stages from January 2000, as well as developmental steps thereafter, were evaluated and the endpoint of the process was delineated as being December 2001.

A case study was used to provide a greater in-depth understanding of all pertinent information on the issue of OE from the school's point of view. In order to provide a multiple and balanced representation of perspective of this case study, an attempt was made to include subjects from different levels of the school's organisational structure. Therefore one-to-one interviews were arranged with the principal, vice-principal, head of department (Physical Education and Co-Curricular Activities), one OE Committee member, and one classroom teacher involved in the OE programme (N=5).

The data collected and analysed was based on separate semi-structured interview responses. The findings were organised and presented under eight broad categories: objectives, organisation, programme design, implementation, personnel, facilities and equipment, financial factors, and evaluation. Analysis of the data showed that the subjects in this study shared common goals and viewed their OE programme as the basis of character development programme in their school. They also felt that the forming of, and work by, the OE Committee did not challenge the existing organisational structure in Banyan Primary School.

Furthermore, subjects mentioned that the school's allotment of resources were capable to supply needed materials to teachers and staff in various disciplines for effective OE results. Subjects commented that this particular OE programme was integrated into their existing school curriculum and subsequent school activities. Other than subjects like Physical Education, the OE Committee also incorporated numerous OE values in subjects like English, Mathematics, Art and Crafts, and Music. Subjects mentioned that it was important that OE was not seen as an add-on (additional workload) in order for it to be successfully implemented.

To conclude, phase-by-phase schedules with a detailed chronology are also presented for: planning, infusing Olympic values, and programming for two years. They provide a valuable resource tool for future personnel who are considering implementing OE in their school. It is foreseen that possibilities of implementing other OE programmes (or even larger-scale programmes) in Singapore primary schools are a reasonable goal in years to come.

The purpose of the study was to identify the motivational profiles underlying sport participation among young Singapore athletes, as well as to examine the relationship between the motivational profiles identified and a range of cognitive, behavioural and affective indices. A total of 139 boys and 164 girls from 4 junior colleges participated in the current study. They were aged between 16 to 19 years (M = 17.64, SD = .60) and had represented at national inter-school or higher level competitions. Using contemporary motivational approaches in the sports domain, such as achievement goal orientations, self-determination theory, nature of athletic ability beliefs and perceived competence, four meaningful clusters were identified. They reflected one less well motivated, one highly motivated, one less competent and one clearly amotivated cluster. Differences in perceived motivational climates and intrinsic interest were used to determine the predictive validity of the clusters. One-way MANOVA confirmed that all the motivational variables that were included in the cluster analysis showed significant contributions to cluster group profiles. Hence, the use of cluster analysis in the present study proved helpful in identifying subgroups of athletes with different motivational patterns. Consequently, the information obtained could assist coaches in designing intervention programs that are targeted toward the athletes' motivational needs.

The high attrition of seven elite professional athletes from the Singapore Amateur Athletic Association (SAAA) over a short period of four years between 1997 and 2000, created a very unhealthy image for the leadership of SAAA. This state of affairs is a cause for concern for the future of Singapore athletics. The purpose of this study was to examine athletes' perceptions of leadership behaviours and to determine whether these perceptions contributed significantly to their dropping out of the sport.

Following the phenomenological interview research approach as postulated by Dale (1996), two ex-elite athletes shared their experiences and perceptions. For the purpose of triangulation, a national coach, a senior official from the SAAA and an official from the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) were invited to share their experiences.

The results, indicating athletes' decisions to drop out from the sport full-time, were clustered under one general them, perceived poor leadership behaviours of the SAAA. This them covered five higher order themes that included the athletes' perceptions of poor management skills, autocratic leadership style, poor communication skills, biased decision-making and selection and lack ok empathy.

Contemporary leadership theories (e.g. Anshel and Straub, 1991; Branch, 1990) suggest that misperceptions lead to miscommunication. This may be addressed by leaders who may adjust their leadership behaviours to meet the needs of their athletes, not just from the funding point of view but also from the development of good interpersonal relationships with their subordinates.

The findings suggest that there is theoretical support for a correlation between the perceptions of leadership behaviours by administrators, sports officials and the attrition of athletes.

It is evident that young athletes experience difficulty with the glide phase in the O'Brien technique as the technique requires good coordination. It is debatable whether such sophistication is important to the vast majority with the difficulty faced in exploiting the O'Brien technique.

It is the purpose of this study to examine the kinematic variables of the O'Brien technique and standing throw used by school aged throwers. Release parameters of the shot put consisting of the angle, height and velocity of release and kinematic variables namely, the trunk and knee angles at power position were examined. The implications of the study are of significance to coaching as the present study can provide insight into differences in kinematic variables of the power position between the two techniques so that empirical feedback can be provided for coaches to identify a good power position, as well as, the interaction of release parameters of the shot for the two techniques.

Participants comprised three female school athletes. The athletes have been involved in competitions for the past three years, ranging in age from 15 to 16 years. Three-dimensional (3D) analysis technique was used to record the performance of the athletes. Maximal effort was stressed. Selected anatomical landmarks were digitised. Two warm up throws, four standing throws and four throws using the O'Brien technique for each subject were manually digitised and analysed using the Peak Motus 2000 software.

The distances thrown using the standing throw by all three subjects were further than the O'Brien technique. The angle of release for the standing throw is smaller than the O'Brien technique. However, this variation is small between the two techniques. Height of release is the same for both the standing throw and O'Brien technique for Subject 1 and 3. However, Subject 2 recorded a lower height of release for the standing throw. The trunk and knee angle at power position for the standing throw is less than that of the O'Brien technique for all three subjects. The horizontal velocity of the shot at power position for the O'Brien technique was greater than that for the standing throw for all three subjects. Except for Subject 1, Subject 2 and 3 were better able to use the O'Brien technique to generate greater vertical velocity at power position. Despite the biomechanical advantages that O'Brien technique has over the standing throw, there is a short fall in distance thrown. This may possibly be due to different release points between the two techniques.

Training emphasis could focus on the coordination of the glide and the thrusting motion from the power position for school athletes so as to facilitate an increase in velocity of the shot put from power position until release. Coaches should also focus on designing drills to generate greater velocity of release. Optimum angle and height of release should be determined so that interaction of release parameters can enable athletes to capitalize on the O'Brien technique. Strength training could be incorporated as the execution of the O'Brien technique requires power and strength.

The situation of PE departments in Singapore government secondary schools that consist of all their PE teachers teaching only PE is generally non-existent. The purpose of this study was to understand how a government secondary school in Singapore managed the factors and related issues that arose during the change process of deploying all PE teachers to teach only PE in the school. Understanding the change process yielded potential solutions for other government secondary schools intending to initiate and implement a similar change. No study has previously been done to highlight the issues encountered and the decisions and actions taken to allow schools to handle such a change.

The review of available literature revealed groups of factors that were pertinent to the context of an internally initiated change. These groups of factors cut across the three change phases (initiation, implementation, and continuation) as suggested by Fullan (2001). The three phases of change together with the groups of factors were used to guide this study's data collection and analysis on the network of issues that were related to the factors in each change phase.

Members of staff of the school who were significantly involved in the change process were identified as key participants to be interviewed. Request was made for access to official school documents regarding the change and any other records that could be a source for comparison of data and/or would help validate information provided by participants. The transcripts of interviews and contents from documents were interpreted and analyzed via the "constant comparison" strategy devised by Glaser and Strauss (1967). Trustworthiness was established through triangulation of data collected and accuracy checks by participants on interview transcripts.

The results of this study may have an impact on existing policies by the Ministry of Education in Singapore on the deployment of curriculum responsibilities for government secondary school PE teachers.

The purpose of the present study is to evaluate a mental skills training programme by examining the perceptions of a group of female gymnasts on the cognitive development, the importance, and use of mental skills. In a preceding study, Gould, Petlichkoff, Hodge, and Simons (1990) examined elite wrestler's responses to psychological skills training (PST) programmes by using a quantitative approach to evaluate the degree to which the programmes changed their knowledge, perceived importance and use of mental skills. Though significant results were shown in their study that the PST programme was effective in changing the athletes' knowledge, perceived importance, and use of mental skills, what remains lacking is the knowledge on the athletes' perceptions of the processes of mental skills development, the reasons why they consider mental skills to be important or not important, and the rationale for any changes in the planned and actual use of the mental skills.

Through content analysis of the qualitative data gathered at the pre-programme, post-programme, and one-month follow-up interviews, this study seeks to gain insights from the gymnasts with regards to the cognitive development of mental skills in the MST programme, understand the reasons why they consider mental skills to be important or not important, and examine the reasons for any changes in the planned and actual use of the mental skills. In addition, to take up Weinberg and Williams' (2001) call for a well thought out intervention programme, a six-week mental skills training programme was designed and implemented following the guidelines recommended in the multiphasic approach by Boutcher and Rotella (1987).

Overall, the results show changes in the process of cognitive development of mental skills. Factors such as experience, goal orientation, and learning approaches are found to influence the process of mental skills development. The results also reveal reasons for the perceived importance of mental skills. Participants seem to hold high regards for mental skills for performance enhancement and to gain control over their behavioural and emotional responses. In addition, adherence-related issues such as situations for practice and barriers to use of mental skills were discussed. Responses from the interviews led to an important finding on how the gymnasts used mental skills in other aspects of their life.

With the study's insights into the perceptions of the gymnasts with regards to the cognitive development of mental skills, their reasons for the perceived level of importance of mental skills, and the rationale for their adherence level in the use of mental skills, it is hoped that the results would encourage more practitioners to evaluate psychological interventions from other perspectives rather than for the sole purpose of enhancing sport performance.

Studies of sport in Singapore rarely examine the development of individual sports associations, or attempt to identify how the members successfully coordinate their actions to create a viable organization. To become a well-managed and vibrant women's sports association necessitate its leaders' ability to deal with contextual issues as they emerged.

This study examined the development of netball in Singapore. It focused on the years after 1962, when the body organizing the sport was officially registered as an association. Netball's rise to the pre-eminent women's sport in Singapore has been based on the decision-making skills of the women in the sport.

The scarcity on research and the limited availability of written documents pertaining to netball in Singapore constrained the method of inquiry. The context necessitated an approach that relied on analysis of existing and newly generated information. Using criterion sampling, the researcher initially identified three officials as key participants, who served the netball association over the 40 years history. These women were in decision-making positions for the programmes and events for the sport in that period.

This study suggests that the key factors in successfully expanding the local interest in a women's team sport are competent leadership competent leadership skill, namely recognizing, seizing and creating opportunities to enhance the sport's image and to develop an accurate sense of timing of the appropriate actions.

If physical education (PE) embodies character development and is the edification of moral values, are PE teachers teaching values and character in their PE classes? This descriptive study aimed to determine the current status, support and level of character development in the PE classes of PE teachers who believe in the importance of such development. It aimed to establish how these PE teachers facilitate the teaching processes, the difficulties they face and the contributing success factors. It also intended to elicit the beliefs, values, perspectives, and challenges that PE teachers have regarding the teaching of values in their PE classes, and to identify a common set of core values that they desire in their students. A total of five PE teachers participated in the study by completing a questionnaire and having at least one of their PE lessons videotaped and analysed. The results indicated that the respondents tried to teach character education during their PE classes but the majority did not have a structured Physical Education-Character Development Programme (PECDP). The respondents believed that it was their moral responsibility to inculcate values and build character in their students. They generally would like to have resources, guidelines, training and more curriculum time to teach character and promote values in their PE classes. They believed that PE was a good channel to teach moral values to students because PE is holistic in its nature, philosophy and aims. The respondents felt that by integrating character development into PE, it would be a fun out-of-classroom environment to teach values and character. PE was able to offer the experiential learning environment for moral issues to be discussed and addressed. The seven common core values that PE teachers desired in their students were integrity, determination, discipline, cooperation, sportsmanship, perseverance, and excellence.

Despite its increasing popularity, there is a paucity of information on the Yurchenko layout compared to other families of vaults. More specifically, little is known if the characteristics of the pre-flight phase of the vault are different between gymnasts from different levels of performance. The purpose of the study is to analyse the characteristics of the pre-flight phase of the Yurchenko layout vault performed by a local National gymnast who competed in the recently concluded 2003 South East Asian Games and to compare the data with that of Olympic level gymnasts. This study seeks to determine if differences exist in the following parameters: a) pre-flight trajectory of the body center of mass (CM), b) shoulder flexion angle and c) the body angle of attack at the end of pre-flight. In addition, the study also seeks to determine if the CM linear velocities at initial horse impact, at end of horse impact, as well as the duration of impact, differ between the levels of performance. Video recording, at 200 Hz, of a female gymnast performing the Yurchenko layout vault was used in the two-dimensional (2D) kinematic analysis. Digitizing was carried out using the PEAK-Motus software to obtain the mechanical variables during the pre-flight and impact phase. In this study, the mean shoulder flexion angles recorded was 160.5 (±9.6) degrees, and this was consistent with those of Olympic gymnasts. The CM trajectory was also observed to be rising during preflight, a pathway required for good vaults. The largest body angle of attack for the local gymnast was only 27.3 degrees which was low compared to Olympic level gymnasts. At initial horse impact subject had a mean CM horizontal velocity of 3.4 (±1.24) m/s. This was reduced by 2.5 m/s to 0. 9 (±0.26) m/s at the end of horse impact. This is low compared to Olympic gymnasts reported in previous studies. The mean vertical velocity at initial horse impact was 1.4 (±0.56) m/s. At horse take-off, the vertical velocity increased by 1.0 m/sto 2.4 (±0.43) m/s. This is comparable to the published data on Olympic gymnasts. The results of the study will provide specific mechanical variables of the pre-flight phase of the Yurchenko vault for coaches to look out for during training. Additionally, the provision of empirical data will enable the coach to use it as the basis for future objective intervention programmes. Specifically, the subject needs to improve on her pre-flight body angle of attack and also to prevent the loss of CM horizontal velocity during horse impact.

This study looked at 3 groups (exercise, parental and TAF) of 11 overweight primary school children. The exercise and parental groups were given 8 weeks of games and exercise sessions while the TAF group underwent the normal Trim and Fit programme of rope jumping and aerobics in school. The parental group received an added element of counselling sessions for the children's parents before and after the 8 weeks of training. Those in the parental involvement group had to furnish daily dietary data during the training period. The parents of this group then received weekly phone calls and were updated on the progress of their children. Children's body composition and fitness indices were taken before and after the 8 weeks. There were significant differences within the groups (p < 0.01). The exercise group showed reduction in weight, bodyfat as measured by skinfold and Body Mass Index (BMI). This group also showed significant differences in peak aerobic power and time on treadmill. The parental group showed reduction in weight, bodyfat as measured both by skinfold and Dual x-ray absorptionmetry (DEXA) and BMI. However, they did not show any significant differences in any of the peak power and performance variables. The TAF group showed significant increase in weight, bodyfat measured by DEXA and BMI. They also did not show any significant difference in of the peak aerobic and performance variables. When comparing between the groups, there were no significant differences between the groups. The skinfold values showed strong and significant correlations (pre-training r = 0.946, post-training r = 0.877, p < 0.01) with the DEXA values of bodyfat percentage. The results suggest that the 2-site skinfold technique is a feasible tool of body composition assessment for moderately obese or moderately overweight individuals.

This qualitative study investigated students' perceptions towards a Games Concept Approach (GCA) during a 7-lesson unit in Physical Education (PE). The analysis employed an interpretative framework, specifically, bellweather case sampling, to address two research questions: (a) What comparisons do students make between GCA unit and their prior PE experiences? and (b) What are students' perceptions towards a GCA unit?

Data collected through ongoing videography and interviews with the GCA teacher and 40 students captured the teacher's lesson reflections and the students' perceptions.

Findings indicated that students perceived GCA lessons positively during games play where they found it enjoyable and meaningful. On the other hand, students perceived GCA lessons negatively during direct teaching where they found it disruptive and similar to their other academic subjects. Several themes also evolved as a result of the data analysis: (1) Desire to play, (2) Teamwork (3) Learning Motor Skills and (4) Challenge. Suggestions are included for planning, teaching and structuring the PE curriculum in order to constitute the GCA as an effective model in Singapore schools.

This study examined the differences in memory performance, a component of cognitive performance, between obese and normal-weight adolescents in a junior college in Singapore. Previous studies have indicated that there is negative association between obesity and cognitive performance. Specifically, obesity is linked to poorer educational attainment, intelligence test performance and neuropsychological test performance. Evaluating the memory component of cognitive performance was the focus in this study as memory capacity is often a key determinant of academic development.

Thirty-four normal-weight and thirty obese adolescent participants were recruited from a junior college. Their memory performance was tested using the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, which is the first time this test is being used to assess the memory of adolescents. This test conventionally involves reading out of words by the tester for the participants to recall later in each trial. The aim of this memory test was to assess the verbal memory performance of these participants at eight different word recall trials. This study also achieved a milestone in creating a computerised version of Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, which was used to automate the instructional process and facilitate a consistent pace of verbalising of words to be recalled to the participants. Body mass index, waist circumference and General Certificate of Education Ordinary Level (GCE 'O' Level score) score of the participants were analysed via t tests and their socioeconomic status (i.e., father's / mother's educational level, and type of housing) was compared using Mann Whitney U tests. Repeated ANOVA statistical analysis was conducted to examine the main effect of body composition across trials. A series of univariate ANOVA analysis were conducted to examine the mean differences in word recall performance at the eight trials of memory scores in different scoring categories between obese and normal-weight participants.

Educational attainment of the obese group revealed slightly poorer GCE 'O' Levels results upon entry to the GCE 'A' Level course in the junior college than their normal-weight counterparts. There was no significant difference between normal-weight and obese participants on the indicators of housing category, mother's education and overall socioeconomic status. However father's education of the obese group was significantly higher than the normal-weight group. As the main effect for body composition, F (1, 62) = 11.30, p < .005 was significant, this indicated that obese participants recalled significantly lesser words in all trials and memory scores categories than normal-weight participants.

In this study, obese participants had poorer verbal memory performance as compared to the normal-weight participants. The role of socioeconomic status of the participants could not adequately account for the money difference between both groups. The lower GCE 'O' Level results of the obese group is unlikely to explain its poorer memory performance as both obese and normal-weight participants represented the top 11% of academic achievers at entry into the GCE 'A' Level course in this junior college in Singapore. This study recommends future research examining the influence of obesity on memory performance to explore the possibility of the subnormal dopaminergic system, particularly in the striatum region of the brain, as it was postulated to be a possible causative agent that might play a role in both obesity and memory deficit. This study also suggests looking into weight loss strategies such as exercise as a possible intervention measure to manage memory deficit in obesity.

Introduction :Coronary heart disease is one of the top three diseases in Singapore and physical inactivity is one of the contributing risk factors for the development of the disease. The 1998 National Health Survey shows that more than 50% of Singaporeans do not participate in any form of physical activity. Physical activity is shown to reduce the mortality risk and re-infarction of post cardiac event patients through regression of arterial stenosis (decrease in artery narrowing). Therefore, cardiac rehabilitation stresses the importance of maintaining a physically active lifestyle after a cardiac event to prevent a recurrence of heart attack.

Aim : This study evaluated the effect of cardiac rehabilitation on the physical activity status of male cardiac patients 6 months after a cardiac event.

Method : The measurement tool was the Minnesota Leisure Time Physical Activity Questionnaire. Face to face questionnaire administration was conducted pre and post cardiac rehabilitation program on 30 male patients who were non retirees. A one month recall (four week history) on their leisure time physical activities was used.

Analysis ; Paired sample t test (p < 0.05) was used to compare the change in physical activity status pre and post cardiac rehabilitation and one way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) (p < 0.05) was used to compare the change in physical activity level among different age groups, races, Body Mass Index (BMI) groups and job groups.

Conclusion : It was found that there was a significant increase in leisure time physical activity of cardiac patients 6 months after the cardiac event (p < 0.05), but the average weekly leisure time energy expenditure was insufficient to meet the American College of Sports Medicine's (ACSM) guidelines on exercise prescription for cardiovascular health. BMI, age and race did not have any effect on the change in leisure time physical activity pre and post cardiac rehabilitation program. Patients who returned to jobs requiring walking, lifting and carrying were found to have significantly lower change in leisure time physical activity compared to those whose jobs were sedentary and desk bound (p < 0.05).

Recommendation : The findings of the study are useful for improving the existing cardiac rehabilitation program, and the approach taken to improve cardiac patients' adherence to regular leisure time physical activity, to the level that is beneficial to the cardiovascular system, after the completion of a cardiac rehabilitation program.