The coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) pandemic forced fitness centers to close due pandemic restrictions. Online and virtual exercise training provided a manner of addressing physical fitness needs in a guided format. Using an online survey, the studies in this dissertation provided an overview of what motivated people to participate in online and virtual…

The benefits of physical activity to individual physical and mental health, as well as wider society, are well established. Yet, the physical activity participation levels of many remain insufficient, and considerable disparities (inequities) exist. Physical activity inequities tend to mirror those in associated health outcomes. Thus, identifying…

Parkinson's disease is a progressive movement condition and, after Alzheimer's disease, the second most common neurodegenerative disease. Parkinson's disease has no proven cure. However, efforts are being made to improve the quality of life of people with Parkinson's. Quality of life encompasses a variety of domains, including nutritional health.…

Challenges in peer interaction are commonly associated with autism, both within research literature and through first-person accounts. Related intervention studies have tended toward a skills-based approach that emphasizes remediating perceived social deficits in the autistic individual, with most of the literature focusing on children who are…