Exam-style questions by topic — AQA A-Level Physical Education
One verified question for each of 50 topics. These are written for this specification and checked by MasteryMind. They are not past-paper questions, and they are not from AQA.
Applied anatomy and physiology
Which change occurs in the body systems before exercise begins, as the performer anticipates the physical demand?
Practise Applied anatomy and physiologyCardio-respiratory system
Which change in the respiratory system occurs during exercise so that more oxygen can be taken into the body?
Practise Cardio-respiratory systemCardiovascular system
A performer follows a regular aerobic training programme for several months. Which change to the heart is a chronic cardiovascular adaptation to this training?
Practise Cardiovascular systemRespiratory system
A long-term smoker has developed chronic bronchitis. Which change best explains why this condition reduces the efficiency of gas exchange during exercise?
Practise Respiratory systemNeuromuscular system
Why does increasing the frequency of impulses from a motor neurone increase the force produced by a muscle fibre through wave summation?
Practise Neuromuscular systemThe musculo-skeletal system and analysis of movement in physical activities
During the upward phase of a bicep curl, the elbow joint moves so that the angle between the upper arm and forearm decreases. Which movement is occurring at the elbow?
Practise The musculo-skeletal system and analysis of movement in physical activitiesEnergy systems
Which measurement of energy expenditure is obtained by placing a performer in a sealed chamber and measuring the heat they release?
Practise Energy systemsSkill, skill continuums and transfer of skills
A hockey player receives a pass, dribbles the ball a short distance and then pushes it into the goal. The three actions are performed in a fixed order as one combined movement pattern. How should this combined movement pattern be classified on the discrete–serial–continuous continuum?
Practise Skill, skill continuums and transfer of skillsImpact of skill classification on structure of practice for learning
A swimming coach teaches the front crawl by first drilling the arm action alone, then the leg kick alone, and finally joining the two together into the full stroke. Which method of presenting practice is being used?
Practise Impact of skill classification on structure of practice for learningPrinciples and theories of learning and performance
A gymnastics coach first performs a vault demonstration while talking the performer through each phase, then gradually stops demonstrating and lets the gymnast attempt the vault with spoken reminders. Which Vygotskian process does this gradual withdrawal of support illustrate?
Practise Principles and theories of learning and performanceUse of guidance and feedback
A coach teaching a novice basketball player to shoot decides to use a combination of demonstration, spoken cues and hands-on positioning of the shooting arm. Which justification best explains why this mixed approach is appropriate for a beginner?
Practise Use of guidance and feedbackGeneral information processing model, to include:
A tennis player returns serve and, after detecting the ball, matches its flight and spin against memories of previous serves before identifying it as a sliced serve to the backhand. Which stage of the DCR process does the matching against memories represent?
Practise General information processing model, to include:Efficiency of information processing to include:
Which of the following best describes choice reaction time in a sporting context?
Practise Efficiency of information processing to include:Pre-industrial (pre-1780)
Life for most people in pre-industrial Britain (before 1780) was physically hard and working hours were long. What effect did this have on their recreations?
Practise Pre-industrial (pre-1780)Industrial and post-industrial (1780–1900)
In the period 1780–1900, which group of institutions is most closely associated with the development of codified team games and athletic sports in Britain?
Practise Industrial and post-industrial (1780–1900)Post World War II (1950 to present)
Which of the following was a defining characteristic of the development of tennis in the late 1960s?
Practise Post World War II (1950 to present)Sociological theory applied to equal opportunities
A local council funds a free weekly multi-sports session in an area with high unemployment. Which outcome best illustrates a social benefit of this provision for the participants?
Practise Sociological theory applied to equal opportunitiesExercise physiology
After several months of endurance training, a runner can sustain a higher speed before blood lactate begins to accumulate. Which adaptation best explains this improvement?
Practise Exercise physiologyDiet and nutrition and their effect on physical activity and performance
A sprinter takes a creatine supplement to support training. Which effect does creatine have on the performer?
Practise Diet and nutrition and their effect on physical activity and performancePreparation and training methods in relation to maintaining physical activity and performance
A rugby player has a six-week pre-season block before the first match. The coach plans three two-week blocks, each with a harder week followed by a lighter week, and each block slightly more intense than the last. Which combination of periodisation principles is being applied?
Practise Preparation and training methods in relation to maintaining physical activity and performanceInjury prevention and the rehabilitation of injury
A sports therapist must choose between cryotherapy and hyperbaric oxygen therapy for two different performers: one has just sprained an ankle and the other has a chronic, poorly healing muscle tear. Which decision best matches the physiological effects of the two methods?
Practise Injury prevention and the rehabilitation of injuryBiomechanical movement
Which SI unit is used to measure force in biomechanical calculations?
Practise Biomechanical movementBiomechanical principles
A gymnast completes a floor routine in 45 s and the routine is timed with a stopwatch. Which of the following gives the correct SI unit for the scalar quantity being measured?
Practise Biomechanical principlesLevers
A first-class lever has an effort arm of 0.60 m and a resistance arm of 0.20 m. What is its mechanical advantage?
Practise LeversLinear motion
A sprinter accelerates from the starting blocks along a straight, level track. Which statement correctly describes the horizontal forces acting on the sprinter?
Practise Linear motionAngular motion
Which of the following is the correct standard unit for angular velocity in biomechanics?
Practise Angular motionProjectile motion
A shot put and a tennis ball are launched with the same initial velocity and angle in still air. Which projectile follows a flight path closer to a true parabola?
Practise Projectile motionFluid mechanics
A skier crouches low and keeps her arms close to her body as she descends a slope. Explain why this technique reduces the drag force acting on her.
Practise Fluid mechanicsAspects of personality
Lewin's approach to personality is often summarised as B = f(P, E). A coach uses this idea to explain why a usually reliable penalty taker misses in a noisy away stadium. Which interpretation of the formula supports the coach's explanation?
Practise Aspects of personalityImportance of goal setting
A coach tells a gymnast that her target of learning a new vault must be recorded with a clear date by which it will be achieved. Which principle of effective goal setting is the coach applying?
Practise Importance of goal settingAttribution theory
A rugby coach wants a player who has just missed a conversion to keep taking kicks in future matches. Using Weiner's model, which feedback from the coach is most likely to support that aim?
Practise Attribution theorySelf-efficacy and confidence
In Bandura's model, which term describes a performer's belief in their own capability to organise and execute the actions required to reach a given level of performance?
Practise Self-efficacy and confidenceLeadership
A gymnastics coach working with a group of experienced national-level performers allows the gymnasts to design their own warm-up routines and choose their own apparatus sequences. Which leadership style is being used, and why is it appropriate in this situation?
Practise LeadershipStress management
How does a structured warm-up help a performer manage stress before a competition?
Practise Stress managementAttitudes
A rugby player believes that weight training improves tackling power, feels enthusiastic about gym sessions and attends them three times each week. Which option correctly matches each part of this attitude to the triadic model?
Practise AttitudesArousal
A tennis player with high cognitive anxiety is playing near her optimal arousal, but a single double fault raises her arousal further and her performance then falls apart rapidly. Which theory of arousal best explains this rapid deterioration?
Practise ArousalAnxiety
A rugby player who is usually calm before matches feels unusually tense in the changing room before a cup final, noticing both a churning stomach and racing thoughts about losing. Which type of anxiety best describes this experience?
Practise AnxietyAggression
Which theory proposes that aggression is an innate, biologically programmed drive that all humans possess from birth?
Practise AggressionMotivation
A county netball club offers players a cash bonus for every match they win. Which type of motivation is the club using?
Practise MotivationAchievement motivation theory
A tennis player with a high need to achieve (NAch) is offered a choice of three exhibition matches. According to the situational component of achievement motivation, which match will the player be most motivated to approach?
Practise Achievement motivation theorySocial facilitation
According to Zajonc's model of social facilitation, what happens to a performer's level of arousal when other people are present?
Practise Social facilitationGroup dynamics
A netball team trains hard and its players are close friends who socialise together, yet the team keeps losing because players argue about who should take which position during matches. Which type of cohesion is most clearly lacking?
Practise Group dynamicsConcepts of physical activity and sport
Which type of physical activity is organised by a school and normally takes place outside the timetabled curriculum?
Practise Concepts of physical activity and sportDevelopment of elite performers in sport
Which of the following is a key lifestyle support service provided by National Institutes of Sport to help talented athletes manage their development?
Practise Development of elite performers in sportEthics in sport
A tennis player argues aggressively with the umpire over several line calls and later smashes a racket. Using the concept of deviance in relation to the performer, which analysis best explains the implications of this behaviour?
Practise Ethics in sportViolence in sport
Which of the following best describes violence performed by a performer during a sporting contest?
Practise Violence in sportDrugs in sport
An elite athlete is banned for doping. Which scenario best describes the combined social and psychological repercussions they are likely to face?
Practise Drugs in sportSport and the law
A rugby referee allows a scrum to collapse repeatedly without penalising the offending players or stopping the game safely, leading to a severe spinal injury for a front-row forward. Why might the referee be found negligent in this situation?
Practise Sport and the lawImpact of commercialisation on physical activity and sport and the relationship between sport and the media
A broadcaster pays a large sum for exclusive rights to a popular league and then shows matches only on a premium subscription channel. Analyse the most likely effect of this arrangement on the league's audience.
Practise Impact of commercialisation on physical activity and sport and the relationship between sport and the mediaThe role of technology in physical activity and sport
Despite the widespread use of technology in talent identification, which of the following is a valid criticism of relying primarily on objective technological data to select young athletes?
Practise The role of technology in physical activity and sport
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