Biobehavioral Science Concentration

Biomechanics is the scientific study of humans and objects as they move and interact with the environment. It is a multi-disciplinary field drawing from exercise science, engineering, medicine and manufacturing.

Biomechanics is a high-technology field that applies this expertise to athletic, clinical, legal and commercial areas. The coursework offered within this concentration allows the student to experience a wide variety of biomechanical studies or focus on specific areas such as sports or clinical applications to best meet the individual interests of the student.

The mission of the specialization in Biomechanics is to prepare individuals for doctoral study in Biomechanics or to obtain private sector employment in human movement evaluation. The program emphasizes research, and laboratory experiences and demands mastery of advanced technology to solve movement-based problems.

Coursework will include the study of the kinematics and kinetics of animal movement. Classroom experiences will include, but not be limited to, study in anatomy/kinesiology, biomechanics, engineering, medicine, physical therapy, and statistics. Additional areas of study will focus on developing research and laboratory skills, understanding motor performance and controlling motor actions.

Historically, the study of Biomechanics in colleges such as HHP has focused on its application to sports to increase performance and decrease injuries. Our goal is to expand that traditional view to include exposure to biomechanical applications in the medical and industrial arenas.

This expansion will provide students with a wider range of opportunities to prepare them for their future studies or provide additional employment opportunities after completing their M.S. degree.

Motor learning is concerned with the processes and variables that influence skill acquisition. Studies involve manipulating a process or variable that typically directly affects the rate at which a motor skill is acquired and how it is retained over time.

Learning is examined in various situations with various movement tasks and diverse groups of participants for our research. For example, we have investigated the ability of the elderly to learn a force production task in which the movements were similar to picking up a glass of water from the table.

Currently, a funded project is devoted to helping stroke patients re-acquire voluntary arm movements. These and many other studies relate motor learning concepts and principles to acquiring a movement capability.

Motor control concerns the mechanisms involved in performing coordinated movements. Studies on coordination raise leading questions, and explanations arise from these studies. Understanding how people are able to move their arms through space to be at the right place at the right time to execute a coordinated action is still limited.

Topics studied in our laboratory include bimanual movements, problems associated with initiating movements in those with Parkinson’s disease, and the force production and fractionated reaction times of stroke patients.

Exercise and Performance Psychology provides the basis for understanding and influencing the underlying thought processes and attitudes that will ultimately determine the performance of individuals involved in sports, exercise and other achievement-oriented activities.

The emphasis of the Exercise and Performance Psychology concentration of the M.S. degree is to prepare students for doctoral study. Consequently, the primary focus is to develop the scientific background and skills necessary for doctoral training and research. However, teachers, coaches, athletes, athletic trainers and recreational sports leaders will acquire relevant expertise. as will those who wish to work in health clubs and fitness programs.

Major topics related to Exercise Psychology include describing and understanding the precursors to exercise, motivational aspects associated with maintaining exercise, and the psychological benefits that occur due to participation in exercise programs.

Research themes in the exercise area include understanding the acute and chronic mood changes associated with exercise participation, the anxiolytic effects of exercise, exercise adherence issues, and the problems associated with body image distortion, eating disorders and exercise dependence.

Major topics related to Performance Psychology include a cognitive emphasis on understanding the development of the attention, anticipation, decision-making and reacting skills necessary for expert performance in self-paced as well as unpredictable rapidly occurring events. Determining the role of emotions in altering attentional allocation and the movement parameters that underlie coordinated motor actions is of paramount interest.

Research in these areas has been facilitated by the recent laboratory additions of technologically advanced instrumentation used for psychophysiological assessment of brain wave activity and visual search patterns. The social-cognitive influence is also prevalent as exemplified by studies of achievement motivation, emotional reactivity and regulation, individual differences, and personality.

Given the development of Exercise and Performance Psychology as fields that emphasize science and practice, courses are offered that are relevant to developing proficiency in both areas. Our approach tends to be weighted to the science aspect of the discipline, with the notion that understanding the scientific basis for intervention will enable practitioners to impart beneficial information to performers more effectively.