Affective response to discrepancy in fitness testing: Awareness versus saliency.

摘要

The purpose of this study was to expand upon the current self-regulation theory and determine if all discrepancies produced an affective response or merely discrepancies valued as salient. Sixty-four female participants were asked to indicate their importance and perceived rating for four fitness tests; body fat percentage, body mass index, biceps strength, and flexibility. Upon completion of the fitness tests, participants' discrepancies were revealed and affective response was measured. Significant differences were found (at the 0.05 level) in mean importance between fitness categories and between the type of discrepancy and the resulting affective response. Negative discrepancies consistently yielded negative responses throughout all tests, but were consistently higher in the salient tests. Results showed that only certain discrepancies are salient and that positive, negative, or the lack of a discrepancy can elicit affective responses if the participant finds it to be important. This research could potentially provide a more accurate insight into why people are aware of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle (particularly exercise), yet do not always possess or act on the motivation to pursue it.