Unravelling the relationship between exercise-induced affective responses and daily physical activity in people with chronic diseases: Spillover or confounding effect?
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Exercise-induced affective responses (ARs) may encourage people with chronic diseases (PCD) to engage in future physical activity (PA). This study examined whether AR timing during exercise predicts daily moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) in PCD and explored two mediating pathways: the reflective affect processing pathway (via remembered pleasure, forecasted pleasure and affective attitudes) and the self-efficacy pathway (via self-efficacy towards exercise and PA). DESIGN: Prospective correlational design. METHODS: A total of 109 adults (M(age) = 66.6 years, 79% women) with chronic diseases reported ARs and perceived exertion four times during an exercise session. Post-exercise measures included remembered and forecasted pleasure, BMI, affective attitudes and self-efficacy. Daily MVPA was measured using accelerometers over eight days. Total PA (light-intensity PA and MVPA) was examined as a secondary outcome. RESULTS: The last AR predicted daily MVPA (β = .24, p = .041), but this association became non-significant after adjusting for confounders (BMI, perceived exertion). In contrast, the last AR predicted total PA independently of confounders (β = .30, p = .008). Exploratory mediation analyses partially supported the reflective affect processing pathway: ARs predicted affective attitudes via remembered and forecasted pleasure, though affective attitudes did not predict either PA outcome. The self-efficacy pathway was supported for MVPA only, albeit with a modest indirect effect (β = .05). CONCLUSIONS: The last AR did not predict daily MVPA after adjusting for confounders, questioning a spillover effect from exercise sessions to MVPA. Secondary analyses suggest the last AR may predict total PA regardless of confounders, hinting at an intensity-specific spillover. Findings should be interpreted cautiously given the limited sample size and the exploratory nature of secondary analyses.
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BibTeX
@article{fessler2026unravelling,
title = {{Unravelling the relationship between exercise-induced affective responses and daily physical activity in people with chronic diseases: Spillover or confounding effect?}},
author = {Layan Fessler and Dan Orsholits and Alexis Le Faucheur and Ryan E Rhodes and Boris Cheval and Philippe Sarrazin},
journal = {British Journal of Health Psychology},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1111/bjhp.70097},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05771991v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Unravelling the relationship between exercise-induced affective responses and daily physical activity in people with chronic diseases: Spillover or confounding effect?
AU - Layan Fessler
AU - Dan Orsholits
AU - Alexis Le Faucheur
AU - Ryan E Rhodes
AU - Boris Cheval
AU - Philippe Sarrazin
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/30
JO - British Journal of Health Psychology
DO - 10.1111/bjhp.70097
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05771991v1
AB - OBJECTIVES: Exercise-induced affective responses (ARs) may encourage people with chronic diseases (PCD) to engage in future physical activity (PA). This study examined whether AR timing during exercise predicts daily moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) in PCD and explored two mediating pathways: the reflective affect processing pathway (via remembered pleasure, forecasted pleasure and affective attitudes) and the self-efficacy pathway (via self-efficacy towards exercise and PA). DESIGN: Prospective correlational design. METHODS: A total of 109 adults (M(age) = 66.6 years, 79% women) with chronic diseases reported ARs and perceived exertion four times during an exercise session. Post-exercise measures included remembered and forecasted pleasure, BMI, affective attitudes and self-efficacy. Daily MVPA was measured using accelerometers over eight days. Total PA (light-intensity PA and MVPA) was examined as a secondary outcome. RESULTS: The last AR predicted daily MVPA (β = .24, p = .041), but this association became non-significant after adjusting for confounders (BMI, perceived exertion). In contrast, the last AR predicted total PA independently of confounders (β = .30, p = .008). Exploratory mediation analyses partially supported the reflective affect processing pathway: ARs predicted affective attitudes via remembered and forecasted pleasure, though affective attitudes did not predict either PA outcome. The self-efficacy pathway was supported for MVPA only, albeit with a modest indirect effect (β = .05). CONCLUSIONS: The last AR did not predict daily MVPA after adjusting for confounders, questioning a spillover effect from exercise sessions to MVPA. Secondary analyses suggest the last AR may predict total PA regardless of confounders, hinting at an intensity-specific spillover. Findings should be interpreted cautiously given the limited sample size and the exploratory nature of secondary analyses.
SN - 1359-107X
SN - 2044-8287
ER -