198 Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 2012, 20, 198-214 © 2012 Human Kinetics, Inc. Karinkanta, Nupponen, Pasanen, Sievänen, Uusi-Rasi, and Kannus are with the UKK Institute for Health Promotion Research, Tampere, Finland. Heinonen is with the Dept. of Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland. Fogelholm is with the Academy of Finland, Helsinki, Finland. Effects of Exercise on Health-Related Quality of Life and Fear of Falling in Home-Dwelling Older Women Saija Karinkanta, Ritva Nupponen, Ari Heinonen, Matti Pasanen, Harri Sievänen, Kirsti Uusi-Rasi, Mikael Fogelholm, and Pekka Kannus This randomized, controlled trial evaluated the effects of exercise on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and fear of falling (FoF) among 149 home-dwelling older women. The 12-mo exercise program was intended to reduce the risk of falls and fractures. HRQoL was assessed by the RAND-36 Survey, and FoF, with a visual analog scale, at baseline, 12 mo, and 24 mo. On all RAND-36 scales, the scores indicated better health and well-being. The exercise had hardly any effect on HRQoL; only the general health score improved slightly compared with controls at 12 mo (p = .019), but this gain was lost at 24 mo. FoF decreased in both groups during the intervention with no between-groups difference at 12 or 24 mo. In con- clusion, despite beneicial physiological changes, the exercise intervention showed rather limited effects on HRQoL and FoF among relatively high-functioning older women. This modest result may be partly because of insuficient responsiveness of the assessment instruments used. Keywords: HRQoL, aged, exercise intervention, well-being A number of observational studies have reported beneicial associations between exercise and well-being in both younger and older adults; more active older people feel better than their sedentary age-mates (e.g., Netz, Wu, Becker, & Tenenbaum, 2005; Wolin, Glynn, Colditz, Lee, & Kawachi, 2007). Regular exercise seems to be associated with enhanced global satisfaction, improved mood, and bodily or emotional well-being in late-middle-aged and older adults; objectively measured improvement in itness is not necessitated (Netz et al., 2005; Rejeski & Mihalko, 2001). Several studies also suggest that a perceived improvement in functioning or well-being may reinforce the adoption of regular exercise and serve as a personal incentive to continued activity (McAuley, Elavsky, Jerome, Konopack, & Marquez, 2005; Rejeski & Mihalko, 2001).