The Effectiveness of Affective Priming in Improving Affective Responses to Exercise: A Meta-Analysis

Promoting physical activity is one of the most important issues in improving global public health. While existing research emphasizes the role of cognitive factors, affective response is proven to be a key predictor of exercise behavior. Affective priming is an efficient intervention aiming at improving affective response during and after exercise, yet its effect on affective response to exercise remains unclear. The current study conducted a meta-analysis on the effect of affective priming on affective responses during and after exercise and tested several moderators of this relation using the Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Version 3 (CMA3.0) program. Data from four studies yielded 19 effect sizes from 124 participants. Analyses revealed a moderate and positive effect of affective priming on affective responses (d = 0.716). Moderation analyses indicated that this effect could be moderated by gender and the time of measuring affective responses. These results hold both theoretical and practical implications for future research on affective priming in the context of exercise and highlight the importance of considering affective processes in promoting exercise behavior.