Experiencing flow in a workplace physical activity intervention for female health care workers: A longitudinal comparison between football and zumba

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

  • Anne-Marie Elbe
  • Svein Barene
  • Katharina Strahler
  • Peter Krustrup
  • Andreas Holtermann
Flow is a rewarding psychological state that motivates individuals to repeat activities. This study explored healthcare workers’ flow experiences during a workplace exercise intervention. Seventy-nine females were assigned to either a 12-week football or Zumba exercise intervention and their flow experiences were assessed at the beginning, midway and at the end of the intervention. The results showed that both intervention groups experienced medium levels of flow and an increase in flow values over time. A significant positive correlation between experiencing flow midway through the intervention and adherence to regular physical activity 18 weeks after the end of the intervention was found. Furthermore, repeated measures throughout the intervention period showed a significantly different development of flow values over time for the adherers and nonadherers. Flow therefore may be of importance for adherence to regular workplace physical activity. Future research needs to investigate the importance of flow in other physical activity settings, especially also for male participants.
Original languageEnglish
JournalWomen in Sport and Physical Activity Journal (Online)
Volume24
Issue number1
Pages (from-to)70-77
Number of pages8
ISSN1938-1581
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2016

ID: 161000027