Exercise programs as determinants of well-being : a holistic view

Abstract

This field study is about well-being. It examines the proposition that exercise is a pathway to well-being. Participants in two "keep fit" groups at the Australian National University Sports Union and members of Lifestyle health and fitness club in Woden, Canberra, A.C.T. provided the population for the study. A critical review of the literature on well-being suggests that a number of differing perspectives exist and that these should be clarified before commencing such a study. The existence of multidimensional indices of well-being points to the use of a holistic model of well-being but did not provide an existing methodology. Therefore an experimental method was attempted using established and open-ended questionnaires. In addition, a short participant observation study of exercise programming in the A.N.U. groups was carried out. Implications for future studies of well-being are drawn, particularly suggesting that existing tools designed for special unidimensional examinations are inherently unsuitable. The development of new research tools to evaluate the different dimensions of well-being which together form the whole are foreshadowed.

Date of Award	1982
Original language	English