Applied Exercise Psychology

Book excerpt: Applied Exercise Psychology emphasizes the application of evidence-based knowledge drawn from the fields of exercise psychology, health psychology, clinical and counseling psychology, and exercise physiology for physical activity behavior change. The book provides readers with: theoretical bases for understanding and promoting physical activity behavior; interventions to use for facilitating physical activity behavior change and the tools for measuring the effectiveness of these interventions; cross-cultural considerations for practitioners to ensure multicultural competency; considerations to guide best practices with special populations (e.g., persons with medical conditions and persons with mental health conditions); overall applied implications and future directions. The collection builds a bridge between up-to-date research findings, relevant field experiences, and applied implications. This is the first book to cover such breadth of topics in applied exercise psychology, with chapters bringing often overlooked issues to the attention of practitioners to promote not only evidence-based practice but also responsible ethics and referral.