Can Stereotype Threat and Lift Visual Messages Affect Subsequent Physical Activity? Evidence from a Controlled Experiment Using Accelerometers

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study investigated how visual messages conveying stereotype threat or lift influenced physical activity performance. Participants (N = 380) were exposed to a stereotype threat, lift, or control condition image and then engaged in a running task. Accelerometers recorded forward-backward movement, upward-downward movement, and sideways balance. Stereotype threat exposure increased state anxiety relative to the control condition. In addition, forward-backward movement was linked to state anxiety and participants’ sex. Moreover, women exposed to stereotype threat who experienced increased state anxiety showed reduced forward-backward movement. Men exposed to stereotype lift displayed higher forward-backward movement. Additionally, stereotype threat visual message exposure increased sideways balance activity for women but not for men. Upward-downward movement was unaffected by stereotype threat or lift. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of how exposure to visual stereotypes can influence physical activity performance.