Research on Exercise and Wellness Colloquium Series
Consider this an open invitation to the next colloquium on
Friday, April 28, 2017
From 2:00—3:30 p.m. in Simmons Hall, Room 138
The presenter will be
Austin Baldwin, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology, SMU
Title: Affective Factors in Exercise
Talk Abstract: Regular exercise affords many positive effects on health, longevity, and well-being. Despite its
many benefits, the majority of adults in the United States do not engage in sufficient levels of regular exercise,
and most people who initiate a routine of regular exercise fail to maintain it over time. One intriguing
explanation for the widespread lack of regular exercise is that many people experience exercise to be affectively
unpleasant, and as a result are less likely to engage in it regularly. In this talk, I will discuss findings across
various studies we have conducted that focus on understanding the affective factors that are relevant to exercise
and how they might be targeted for intervention. I will also discuss the implications of these findings for the
maintenance of regular exercise and for theoretical models of health behavior.
Brief Bio: Dr. Austin Baldwin completed a B.S. in psychology at Brigham Young University (2000), and a Ph.D.
in social psychology at the University of Minnesota (2006). He spent two years as a post-doctoral fellow at the
Iowa City VA Medical Center and the University of Iowa. He has been on the faculty in the Psychology
Department at SMU since 2008 where he directs the Health Behavior Lab. In his research, he and his students
address theoretically-guided questions about how different psychosocial factors influence (a) decisions to engage
in and maintain health behaviors and (b) health outcomes. This work cuts across different health domains,
including questions that are specific to the initiation and maintenance of regular exercise.
For more information, email Dr. Lynn Romejko Jacobs at [email protected].