Return to work following an aquafitness and muscle strengthening program for the low back injured.

Our purpose, in this prospective clinical study, was to identify the best predictors of 2-month return to work or retraining for a group of low back injured subjects (n = 40) who completed at least 8 weeks of a community-based rehabilitation program that combined aerobic and flexibility exercise conducted in the water (aquafitness) with muscle strength and endurance training. Baseline demographic characteristics and changes in physical fitness, pain, disability, and psychological well-being during the course of program participation were compared between two groups of low back injured subjects: those who returned to work (RTW) [n = 24], and those who did not (N-RTW) [n = 16]. Subjects in both groups showed comparable improvement in measures of physical fitness at 8 weeks. However, multivariate analyses showed significant between-group differences in self-report measures. The RTW group showed significant improvement in measures of pain, disability, anxiety, and vigor while self-esteem and affect remained stable. The N-RTW group displayed no change in pain and disability variables and had significant deterioration in mean overall psychological well-being over time. The best predictors of return to work using logistic regression analyses were a first injury rather than a repeat injury to the lower back, and stability in self-esteem. Suggestions are offered for further research to examine the benefits of aquafit exercise for the low back injured, for additional interventions for those with a reinjury, and for maintaining or enhancing self-esteem as a treatment goal.

Age, activity, and physical performance: an evaluation of performance models.

Two performance models relating age, physical activity, and physical performance were evaluated on 5 age cohorts involving more than 6,000 persons ranging in age from 20 to 69 years. Significant age and activity main effects, without 1 Age X Activity interaction, were obtained on 5 fitness measures and 2 activity indexes. These results are inconsistent with predictions from the moderation model, but they fit predictions from a recently formulated tonic and overpractice model of physical performance.

Effects on mood of a life-styles program for the rehabilitation of injured workers.

This study reports an examination into the effects on daily mood of participation in a life-styles program by injured workers. In the current prospective study, 14 participants completed the Memorial University Mood Scale (MUMS) prior to starting the program, at 1 month, 2 months, and at 3 months. They also completed the Memorial University Scale of Happiness (MUNSH) prior to entry and after three months. There were significant improvements on the MUMS subscales of positive mood and vigor as well as overall mood. There were no changes in negative mood. Neither the positive nor the negative dispositional subscales of the MUNSH revealed any change. The results were interpreted as indicating strong psychologic benefits of the life-styles program for injured workers and are also consistent with a recently proposed two-factor state/trait model of well-being.

Hardiness and health behavior: the role of health concern as a moderator variable.

The present paper reports an investigation of the relationship between psychological hardiness and health behavior. It was posited that one mechanism by which hardiness may buffer the stress-illness relationship is through its effect on health behavior. Those high in hardiness may engage in more health-protective behaviors than those low in hardiness, so that when under stress they are less likely to become ill. Given the disparity of findings in the research literature, however, it is possible that this relationship may be moderated by other variables. One such variable is health concern. Ninety-six university undergraduates completed a set of questionnaires that included a measure of current health behavior, psychological hardiness, and health as a personal life concern. A multiple regression analysis revealed that health behavior overall was unrelated to hardiness. However, the Hardiness X Health Concern interaction was significant. This was interpreted to mean that for those individuals with a high concern for health, as opposed to those low in health concern, hardiness was significantly related to health behavior. The findings, in general, illustrate the need to consider moderator variables when investigating the determinants of complex behaviors such as health behavior and, in particular, point to the necessity of including such variables in the analysis of the hardiness-health-behavior relationship.