Aesthetics of sport motivates exercise intention

We investigated the effect of aesthetics in sport on exercise intention and revealed factors influencing the judgment of aesthetics via an open-ended survey. Participants were 75 university students who watched sports video clips and rated the influence of each clip on their exercise intention. Results showed there was a stronger exercise intention after watching clips with high compared to low aesthetic value. Movement, music, and clothing were the three factors that were mentioned most often by participants in regard to aesthetic judgments. Our study highlights the importance of the aesthetic value of sports and provides a method for selection of video materials to utilize these aesthetics to promote public health.