Team Building in an Exercise Setting

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine if cohesion could be enhanced in fitness classes through a psychological intervention program focusing on team-building concepts. University aerobics classes were randomly assigned to an experimental (n=8) or a control (n=9) condition. The instructors in the experimental condition were brought to a workshop where the potential benefits of cohesiveness for exercise classes were outlined and a conceptual model for team building was presented. Using the conceptual model as a frame of reference, the instructors established the specific interventions to be used in team building in their classes. Each class met three times a week for 13 weeks; the team-building strategies were implemented in classes in the experimental condition. Discriminant function analysis showed that the experimental (team-building) and control conditions could be differentiated on the basis of their cohesiveness, χ2(1) = 12.39, p<.001. Participants in the experimental condition expressed more individual attractions to the group task (ATG-Task) than participants in the control condition. A t test also showed that the team-building program significantly enhanced individual satisfaction, t(192) = 6.01, p<.001.