This study examined the relationship between the three facets of subjective meaning—personal incentives, sense of self, and perceived behavioral options—and adherence behaviors in the athletic injury rehabilitation setting. Subjects were 40 intercollegiate athletes who had sustained a sport related injury; all completed a questionnaire assessing the three components of meaning specific to sport and injury rehabilitation. Adherence was defined as a composite of attendance at the prescribed sessions, degree of completion of the prescribed exercise protocol, and the athlete's intensity or effort exerted in performing the prescribed exercise. Multiple-regression analyses indicated that each dimension significantly predicted adherence behaviors. Athletes who demonstrated greater adherence believed in the efficacy of the treatment, perceived more social support for their rehabilitation, were more goal directed or self-motivated, and placed more emphasis on mastery or task-involved goals in sport.

In this study, the authors identify differences in barriers to exercise among high school students (n = 236) according to gender and self-reported levels of physical activity. Major barriers to exercise were "time constraints," "unsuitable weather," "school and schoolwork," and "lack of interest or desire." Univariate ANOVAs revealed adolescent males had significantly higher scores than females for "use of alcohol and drugs" and "having a girlfriend," while "time constraints" was a significantly greater barrier to exercise among females. Discriminant analyses indicated the barriers of "having a girlfriend" and "use of alcohol and drugs" also distinguished highly active males from highly active females. Results are discussed and suggestions are offered concerning how to reduce perceived barriers to exercise among adolescents.

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This article discusses the relationship between health literacy and advocacy for health and health education, cites achievement of advocacy as a critical outcome of health education, and identifies health advocacy competencies for both students and health educators. The paper also delineates a role for health education in developing health-literate citizens and in training health educators to advocate for health and health education. The article draws on recent initiatives in comprehensive school health education and coordinated school health programs to identify content and strategies for developing health advocacy skills among elementary, middle, and senior high school students. The article provides a variety of approaches and strategies for developing advocacy skills among preservice and inservice health educators.

Advocacy for the public's health and for the profession are widely recognized as responsibilities of health educators. Increasing emphasis on advocacy by professional organizations has peaked the interest of health educators, yet knowing where to begin as an advocate is, to many, a mystifying process. This article provides basic advocacy terminology, dispels concerns about participating in advocacy activities, and provides a practical and stepped approach to becoming an effective advocate. A tiered approach is used in relation to the advocacy strategies of voting behavior, electioneering, direct lobbying, grassroots lobbying, Internet use, and media advocacy to help individuals in their quest to begin or enhance their engagement in advocacy. A compendium of highly accessible resources is also provided. Finally, this article provides motivation for the beginning advocate.