The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of mindfulness and task-relevant attentional focus on running performance. WKU psychology undergraduate students were assigned to one of two conditions: task-relevant attentional focus experimental training and no training control. Participants in the experimental condition received training designed to optimize the use of attentional focus strategies in a running context. Trait level mindfulness was examined as a covariate. Participants were compared on two mile run times and the use of attentional focus strategies. Differences were expected to reveal the effectiveness of the training by showing faster running times in the experimental group, and higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies. Only higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies, specifically focus on bodily sensation was supported by the data. Explanations of the results as well as exploratory analyses are provided in addition to suggestions for future research.
","abstract_html":"<p>The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of mindfulness and task-relevant attentional focus on running performance. WKU psychology undergraduate students were assigned to one of two conditions: task-relevant attentional focus experimental training and no training control. Participants in the experimental condition received training designed to optimize the use of attentional focus strategies in a running context. Trait level mindfulness was examined as a covariate. Participants were compared on two mile run times and the use of attentional focus strategies. Differences were expected to reveal the effectiveness of the training by showing faster running times in the experimental group, and higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies. Only higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies, specifically focus on bodily sensation was supported by the data. Explanations of the results as well as exploratory analyses are provided in addition to suggestions for future research.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Atchley, Anthony R."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts in Experimental Psychology","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Department of Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Steven Wininger (Director), Dr. Anthony Paquin, Dr. Andrew Mienaltowski"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2011,"date_issued":"2011-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2011-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:08:09Z","subjects":["self-management","self-control","sports performance","Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills (KIMS)","athletic performance","Clinical Psychology","Cognition and Perception"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1069","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Steven Wininger (Director), Dr. Anthony Paquin, Dr. Andrew Mienaltowski"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Atchley, Anthony R."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Department of Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts in Experimental Psychology"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["self-management","self-control","sports performance","Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills (KIMS)","athletic performance","Clinical Psychology","Cognition and Perception"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1069"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of mindfulness and task-relevant attentional focus on running performance. WKU psychology undergraduate students were assigned to one of two conditions: task-relevant attentional focus experimental training and no training control. Participants in the experimental condition received training designed to optimize the use of attentional focus strategies in a running context. Trait level mindfulness was examined as a covariate. Participants were compared on two mile run times and the use of attentional focus strategies. Differences were expected to reveal the effectiveness of the training by showing faster running times in the experimental group, and higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies. Only higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies, specifically focus on bodily sensation was supported by the data. Explanations of the results as well as exploratory analyses are provided in addition to suggestions for future research.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["An Examination of the Effects of Mindfulness and Task-Relevant Attentional Focus on Running Performance"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Steven Wininger (Director), Dr. Anthony Paquin, Dr. Andrew Mienaltowski"],"dc:creator":["Atchley, Anthony R."],"dc:description.abstract":["The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of mindfulness and task-relevant attentional focus on running performance. WKU psychology undergraduate students were assigned to one of two conditions: task-relevant attentional focus experimental training and no training control. Participants in the experimental condition received training designed to optimize the use of attentional focus strategies in a running context. Trait level mindfulness was examined as a covariate. Participants were compared on two mile run times and the use of attentional focus strategies. Differences were expected to reveal the effectiveness of the training by showing faster running times in the experimental group, and higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies. Only higher use of task-relevant attentional focus strategies, specifically focus on bodily sensation was supported by the data. Explanations of the results as well as exploratory analyses are provided in addition to suggestions for future research.
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