Mirko Wegner

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Professor (Full) at Hamburg University

Backround: Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses worldwide and is a major burden for those affected. As conventional therapies do not always work and are also associated with side effects, alternative treatment methods are urgently indicated. In the past, exercise has established itself as a seemingly good alternative treatment meth...

Objective Physical exercise interventions can cause neuroendocrine activation, which in turn increases salivary cortisol concentrations. Until now there have been mostly studies focusing on endurance as one possible mode of exercise. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of these different interventions with an intraindividual compar...

Motives are traits of people that influence the way they perceive their environment. Motives provide the long-term energy for action, for example, in the domains of sport, exercise, and health. In this chapter we differentiate between implicit (nonconscious) and explicit (conscious) motives and describe three important motive themes—achievement, af...

The introduction to this textbook gives an overview of the scientific field of the psychology of sport and exercise. It is explained that sport psychologists try to describe, explain, predict, and change human experience and behavior in the area of physical activity. We display how sport psychology is concerned with phenomena in competitive rule-go...

This chapter provides an overview on models that explain change processes in health behavior and change toward more physical activity. It is divided into four main parts. In the first section, models are introduced that focus on the motivational process of behavior change and how individuals' decision-making is influenced. The second section deals...

Positive Emotionen gelten als Schlüsselfaktor zur Steigerung des Wohlbefindens und der Arbeitsleistung. Die vorliegende Studie beleuchtet den Zusammenhang zwischen transformationalem Führungsverhalten der Schulleitung und dem Erleben positiver Emotionen von Lehrpersonen. Es wird untersucht, ob dabei (a) die erhaltene soziale Unterstützung aus dem T...

Many teachers report high levels of occupational stress. Teachers’ basic need satisfaction is essential for teachers’ well-being at work. Social support from school principals is assumed to play an important role for teachers’ basic need satisfaction. However, the underlying mechanisms of the relationship between social support from school principa...

Das Kapitel gibt einen Überblick über Theorien, die im sportbezogenen Handlungsverlauf Prozesse der Motivation und Volition (Selbstkontrolle) erklären. Für den Bereich der Motivation wird in Motivtheorien zur Energetisierung von Verhalten und Wahrnehmungsorientierung, Theorien zum Anreiz von Tätigkeiten, Ergebnissen oder Folgen im Sport (z. B. Ziel...

The satisfaction of teachers’ need for relatedness is an important pre-condition for teachers’ wellbeing. Receiving social support plays an important role in satisfying the need for relatedness. Following job crafting theory, the present study aims to examine (1) whether searching for social support results in an increase in the satisfaction of the...

Basic psychological need satisfaction is essential for the wellbeing of teachers and motivation at work. Transformational leadership contributes to the development and maintenance of a respectful, constructive atmosphere, a supportive working climate, and has been suggested to be a crucial factor for the satisfaction of the need for relatedness of...

Achievement incentives in sports are assumed to trigger achievement motivation, which in turn increases performance. We used a within-subject-design to test achievement motive arousal (using an A-B-A design) using video clips. We hypothesized that an ACH-video clip arouses the achievement motive (PSE) stronger, leads to better performance in a skip...

Many teachers experience high levels of work-related strain due to time pressure, which over time can lead to various health problems, such as emotional exhaustion. However, there is growing evidence that this could be a reciprocal effect. Moreover, it is known that perceived social support can buffer the negative effects of stress, such as time pr...

Objective: Research demonstrates a variety of cognitive benefits induced by different chronic physiological stressors (e.g. motor vs. cardiovascular exercise training) and acute exercise to affect steroid hormone secretion, the present study aims to investigate 1.) motor vs. cardiovascular exercise training and their impact on salivary Testosteron...

Motivation bedeutet sich oder andere zu etwas zu bewegen (lat. movere = bewegen): Was bewegt Sie dazu, dieses Buchkapitel zu lesen? Warum konsumieren Sie dabei einen Apfel und keinen Softdrink (oder umgekehrt)? Was planen Sie als nächstes? Mit der Analyse der Beweggründe für menschliches Verhalten bietet die Motivationspsychologie (wie auch andere...

Background Depression is a common threat to children and adolescents in terms of affecting psychosocial development and increasing their risk of suicide. Apart from conventional treatments for depression, physical exercise has become a promising alternative. This paper aims to systematically review the existing meta-analyses that focus on the impac...

Die Sportpsychologie ist vielfältig und differenziert. Mit diesem Einleitungskapitel möchten wir einen Rahmen für die folgenden Kapitel bieten. Nach einem Abschnitt zur definitorischen Klärung wichtiger Begriffe der Sportpsychologie und der Beschreibung ihres Gegenstandsbereiches werden die Teildisziplinen der Sportpsychologie und die hiermit verbu...

Dieses Lehrbuch richtet sich an Studierende der Psychologie und Sportwissenschaft sowie an Personen, die in der Sportpraxis tätig sind und Themen der Sportpsychologie genauer und tiefgehender verstehen möchten. Zahlreiche auflockernde didaktische Elemente ermöglichen Ihnen das leichtgängige und freudvolle Lernen komplexer Sachverhalte. Im ersten...

The study tested the hypothesis that the implicit power motive is positively associated with receptiveness to nonverbal cues related to submissiveness in sports. Participants’ (N = 156) implicit and explicit power motives were measured. Receptiveness to nonverbal dominance and submissiveness cues was measured using videos from sports competitions d...

Gesundheit und Krankheit werden durch das individuelle Verhalten von Menschen beeinflusst. Obwohl der präventive und gesundheitsförderliche Nutzen regelmäßiger körperlicher Aktivität nicht mehr infrage gestellt wird, sind viele Menschen nicht ausreichend körperlich aktiv. Im folgenden Kapitel werden Theorien und Modelle vorgestellt, die sich mit de...

Die Motivationspsychologie wies früh darauf hin, dass man Personen nicht direkt nach ihren Motiven befragen kann, um z. B. langfristige Verhaltenstendenzen im Leistungs- und Gesundheitssport abzuleiten. Dies eröffnet ein spannendes Forschungsfeld um das Thema „unbewusste Motive“, die unter anderem Handlungsenergie liefern und bei der Selektion von...

Self-control is associated with several positive outcomes such as high performance in different life domains. The exertion of self-control, however, is experienced as strenuous and aversive. Referring to theoretical approaches from motivation psychology, we assume that striving for performance goals can feel more or less strenuous, because the goal...

Context: Due to great variability of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis, research has to produce better-controlled findings to make a more meaningful statement regarding the effect of exercise training (ET) on the cortisol awakening response (CAR), especially in children. Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of...

Context: Due to great variability of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis, research has to produce better-controlled findings to make a more meaningful statement regarding the effect of exercise training (ET) on the cortisol awakening response (CAR), especially in children. Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of...

According to regulatory focus theory, two basic regulatory foci can be identified. In a promotion focus, athletes direct attention to accomplishments and positive task performance. In a prevention focus, athletes concentrate on safety, the fulfillment of duties, and avoiding negative performance. Previous research has shown that athletic performanc...

Initiating and maintaining sports and exercise behavior are usually discussed in terms of strategies for promoting health. In the present study, we analyzed a sample of extreme endurance sport athletes and set out to predict exercise addiction, which is a facet of a sport-related health risk. We therefore draw on self-determination theory (Deci and...

The Exercise Effect on Mental Health contains the most recent and thorough overview of the links between exercise and mental health, and the underlying mechanisms of the brain. The text will enhance interested clinicians’ and researchers’ understanding of the neurobiological effect of exercise on mental health. Editors Budde and Wegner have compile...

Autonomy support is considered as an important predictor of intrinsic motivation in sport environments. Referring to previous studies, which showed that the relationship between autonomy and motivation is influenced by an autonomy disposition, we aim to test the underlying fit hypothesis of intrinsic motivation in physical education classes. It is...

Activation of the hypothalamic–pituitary and hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axes have been associated with altered cognitive functioning in studies with children and adolescents. Findings suggest that acute high bouts of exercise (70–85% of HRmax, for at least 15–20 min) increase cortisol and testosterone levels in late puberty. During early pubert...

The human brain adapts to changing demands by altering its functional and structural properties (neuroplasticity) which results in learning and acquiring skills. Convergent evidence from both human and animal studies suggests that enhanced physical exercise facilitates neuroplasticity of certain brain structures and as a result cognitive functions...

Three studies investigated the relationship between the achievement motive and sport participation. It was expected that both the implicit and the explicit achievement motives are positively associated with how frequently people engage in sport activities. The implicit achievement motive was assessed with indirect motive measures; the explicit achi...

Autonomieförderung gilt als ein wichtiger Prädiktor für intrinsische Motivation im Sport. Anlehnend an bestehende Arbeiten, die zeigen, dass der Zusammenhang von Autonomie und Motivation durch Unterschiede in der dispositionellen Autonomieneigung moderiert wird, prüft die vorliegende Arbeit die zugrundeliegende Passungshypothese für intrinsische Mo...

The aim of this investigation was to examine the influence different types of exercise exert on primary school children’s working memory. Participants (N = 71, 9.4 years, 39 girls) were randomly assigned to a cardiovascular exercise (CE), a motor exercise (ME), or a control group (CON). They underwent a letter digit span task (working memory) befor...

Implicit motive research has shown that implicit motives are important predictors of behavior and well-being. However, little is known about the interrelationship between the different implicit motives measures frequently applied. We aimed to shed light on the convergent validity of three implicit motive measures and wanted to test their assumed st...

The purpose of this research was to compare the effects of drug therapy, perceptual motor training and a combination of drug therapy and perceptual motor training on gross and fine motor skills of 6 to 12 year-old Iranian attention deficit hyperactivity disorder children. Thirty-six attention deficit hyperactivity disorder children currently under...

Exercise promotes several health benefits, such as cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and cardiorespiratory improvements. It is believed that the practice of exercise in individuals with psychiatric disorders, e.g. schizophrenia, can cause significant changes. Schizophrenic patients have problematic lifestyle habits compared with general population; t...

In the present study we examined the moderating effect of the power motive on salivary cortisol responses to acute psychosocial stress and exercise in adolescents. Fifty-seven high school students aged M = 14.8 years participated in the study. The Operant Motive Test (OMT) was applied to measure the implicit power motive and the Personality Researc...

Mental practice is an internal reproduction of a motor act (whose intention is to promote learning and improving motor skills). Some studies have shown that other cognitive strategies also increase the strength and muscular resistance in healthy people by the enhancement of the performance during dynamic tasks. Mental training sessions may be primo...

Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric disorders observed currently. It is a normal adaptive response to stress that allows coping with adverse situations. Nevertheless, when anxiety becomes excessive or disproportional in relation to the situation that evokes it or when there is not any special object directed at it, such as an irration...

Cognitive deficits are observed in a variety of domains in patients with bipolar disorder (BD). These deficits are attributed to neurobiological, functional and structural brain factors, particularly in prefrontal cortex. Furthermore, cortical alterations in each phase (mania/hypomania, euthymia and depression) are also present. A growing basis of...

The pathophysiology of depression is related to neurobiological changes that occur in the monoamine system, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, neurogenesis system and the neuroimmune system. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the research of the effects of exercise on brain function, with a special focus on its effects on brain...

Depression is a common and disabling disease that affects over 100 million people worldwide and can have a significant impact on physical and mental health, reducing their quality of life. Thus, the aim of this article was to provide information on research results and key chains related to the therapeutic effects of chronic aerobic exercise compar...

Competitions in sports like tennis or karate are characterized by a direct interaction of opponents with one athlete trying to dominate the other. The importance of the implicit power motive – the need to have impact on others – has previously been pointed out for elite sport performances in these interactive sports. We hypothesized that the implic...

The purpose of this research was to compare the effects of drug therapy, perceptual motor training and a combination of drug therapy and perceptual motor training on gross and fine motor skills of 6 to 12 year-old Iranian ADHD children. Thirty-six ADHD children aged 6 to 12 years currently under treatment in three Iranian psychological-neurological...

Nach Krug und Kuhl (2006) sollten die Motivprofile von Leistungssportlern eine Passung zu den Anforderungen der jeweiligen Sportart aufweisen. Diesen Annahmen zufolge sollten bei Leistungssporttreibenden insbesondere das Leistungs- und Machtmotiv dominant sein. Im Rahmen zweier Studien wurde die Starke des Macht-, Leistungs- und Anschlussmotivs von...

Um Befinden und Motivation im Sport vorherzusagen, wird in der vorliegenden Arbeit eine Motiv-Ziel-Passungsannahme gepruft. Zwei Studien testen die Hypothese, dass das Verfolgen sportbezogener Ziele, die zu den impliziten Motiven (Leistungs- und Anschlussmotiv) der Sporttreibenden passen, zu positivem Befinden im Sport und hoher geplanter Sportakti...

, unter denen affektive und nicht sprachlich reprasentierte Praferenzen einer Person fur bestimmte Klassen von Anreizen, die Verhalten ener-getisieren, orientieren und selegieren (McClelland et al., 1989), verstanden werden. Eine zentrale Annahme der impliziten Motivforschung ist, dass sich Menschen in diesen Praferenzen voneinander unterscheiden,...

In the last decades, children’s and adolescents’ obesity and overweight have increased in European Countries. Unhealthy eating habits and sedentary lifestyle have been recognized to determine such an epidemic. Schools represent an ideal setting to modify harmful behaviors, and physical activity could be regarded as a potential way to avoid the meta...

Background: In the last decades, children’s and adolescents’ obesity and overweight have increased in European Countries. Unhealthy eating habits and sedentary lifestyle have been recognized to determine such an epidemic. Schools represent an ideal setting to modify harmful behaviors, and physical activity could be regarded as a potential way to av...

Stroke is one of the most common conditions requiring rehabilitation, and its motor impairments are a major cause of permanent disability. Hemiparesis is observed by 80% of the patients after acute stroke. Neuroimaging studies showed that real and imagined movements have similarities regarding brain activation, supplying evidence that those similar...

This chapter aims to review physiological mechanisms and psychological associations of testosterone in the field of sport and exercise science with due regard to an adolescent age group. The chapter will start with an introduction to the biosynthesis and regulation of testosterone. Following, we will have a look at the regulation of testosterone in...

Research on performance and participation in (elite) sports has predominantly focused on variables relating to the achievement motive. However, some authors describe that athletes in interactive sports (e.g., tennis) are assumed to exhibit a strong power motive in order to win competitive matches, usually resulting in the demonstration of dominance...

Motivational research over the past decade has provided ample evidence for the existence of two distinct motivational systems. Implicit motives are affect-based needs and have been found to predict spontaneous behavioral trends over time. Explicit motives, in contrast, represent cognitively based self-attributes and are preferably linked to choices...

Both, psychosocial stress and exercise in the past have been used as stressors to elevate saliva cortisol and change state anxiety levels. In the present study, high-school students at the age of 14 were randomly assigned to three experimental groups: (1) an exercise group (n = 18), that was running 15 minutes at a medium intensity level of 65-75%...

Anxiety and depression are the most frequently diagnosed psychological diseases showing a high co-morbidity. They have a severe impact on the lives of the persons concerned. Many meta-analytical studies suggested a positive anxiolytic and depression-reducing effect of exercise programs. The aim of the present article is to synthesize meta-analyses...

Previous research has shown that the effects of basic psychological needs on the flow experience in sports are moderated by implicit motives. However, so far only leisure and health-oriented sports have been analysed. In a pilot study and a main study (N = 29, 93), we tested whether the implicit achievement and affiliation motives interact with the...

Little is known about the influence of different stressors on fine motor skills, the concentration of testosterone (T), and their interaction in adolescents. Therefore, 62 high school students aged 14-15 years were randomly assigned to two experimental groups (exercise, psychosocial stress) and a control group. Exercise stress was induced at 65-75%...

Motivational research over the past decade has provided ample evidence for the existence of two distinct motivational systems. Implicit motives are affect-based needs and have been found to predict spontaneous behavioral trends over time. Explicit motives, in contrast, represent cognitively based self-attributes and are preferably linked to choices...

Background : We investigated whether the habitual physical activity (PA) level had an impact on the acute effects of a short bout of 12 minutes of intensive exercise on cognitive performance and testosterone (T) concentration in primary school children. We further looked for associations between the T concentration and cognitive performance. Method...

Duale Prozessmodelle unterscheiden implizite und explizite Formen der Informations-verarbeitung (Strack & Deutsch, 2004). Implizite Verarbeitung erfolgt schnell und un-bewusst und basiert auf affektiv-assoziativen Netzwerken. Explizite Verarbeitung geschieht überlegt und langsam und beinhaltet bewusste, kognitive Entscheidungsprozesse. In dualen Pr...

Acute bouts of physical activity can influence the secretory processes of the adrenal cortex releasing cortisol (C) in adolescents (Budde et al., 2010). After 12 minutes of exercise and an adequate workload of > 70% of the HFmax adolescents revealed increased salivary C levels (Budde et al., 2010). The aim of our study was to assess to what extent...

Testosterone as an anabolic steroid is the final product of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. Endogenous stimuli such as biological rhythms or other hormones as well as external stimuli such as physical exercise and other forms of stress (mental, psychosocial) activate the HPG axis. In addition to reviewing determination and measuremen...

Akute körperliche Belastung im mittleren Intensitätsbereich kann kognitive Leistungen verbessern. Dies ist ein weiteres Argument, Sport und Bewegung vermehrt in den Schulalltag zu integrieren. Wenig ist jedoch über den zugrunde liegenden Wirkmechanismus bekannt. Die zentrale Annahme dieses Überblicksartikels ist, dass durch akute körperliche Belast...