Most people in developed countries are not physically active enough to reap optimal health benefits so effective promotion strategies are warranted. Theories of behaviour change are essential to ...understand physical activity and provide an organizing framework for effective intervention. The purpose of this paper was to provide a narrative historical overview of four key theoretical frameworks (social cognitive, humanistic, dual process, socioecological) that have been applied to understand and change physical activity over the last three decades.
Our synthesis of research included the brief history, basic efficacy, strengths, and potential weaknesses of these approaches when applied to physical activity.
The dominant framework for understanding physical activity has been in the social cognitive tradition, and it has provided valuable information on key constructs linked to physical activity. The humanistic framework for understanding physical activity has seen a surge in research in the last decade and has demonstrated initial effectiveness in both explaining and intervening on behaviour. The most recent and understudied framework for understanding physical activity is dual process models, which may have promise to provide a broader perspective of motivation by considering non-conscious and hedonic determinants of physical activity. Finally, the individual-level focus of all three of these approaches is contrasted by the socioecological framework, which has seen considerable research attention in the last 15 years and has been instrumental in understanding the role of the built environment in physical activity behaviour and critical to shaping public health policy in government.
Despite the strengths of all four frameworks, we noted several weaknesses of each approach at present and highlight several newer applications of integrated models and dynamic models that may serve to improve our understanding and promotion of physical activity over the next decade.
•Provides a narrative historical overview of four key theoretical frameworks applied to understand physical activity over the last three decades.•Brief history, basic efficacy, strengths, and potential weaknesses of these approaches are addressed.•Highlights applications of integrated and dynamic models that may serve to improve our promotion of physical activity over the next decade.
Physical inactivity, sitting behaviour, and mental health problems are detrimental to health-related quality of life but typically are considered as independent determinants. This study tested how ...these factors clustered together as profiles of subgroups of people and whether the clusters differed as a function of physical and mental health-related quality of life.
In 2012, Australian adults (N =1,014) self-reported their physical and mental health-related quality of life, physical activity, sitting time, depression, anxiety, and stress using a web-based survey. Cluster analysis was used to identify subgroups of health behaviour and mental health profiles, and ANOVA was used to test for between-cluster differences in health-related quality of life.
Three subgroups were identified: people with higher psychological stress (n =13%), people with higher amounts of sitting time (n =45%), and people with lower amounts of sitting time (n =42%). There were no differences in mental health-related quality of life between subgroups; however people represented by the subgroup of higher amounts of sitting time had significantly lower physical health-related quality of life than the other two subgroups, F(2, 1011) =10.04, p < .01.
Interventions should consider that (1) physical activity, sitting time, and psychological distress are aspects of multifaceted behavioural-psychological profiles, and (2) reductions of sitting time may have major impacts for physical health-related quality of life.
Action planning is a common approach used in physical activity interventions. The aim of this study was to assess the association of frequency, consistency and content of action planning with ...physical activity behaviour, intention strength and habit strength.
Within a 3-month web-based, computer-tailored physical activity intervention, participants (
= 115; 68.7% female,
age =43.9; range = 22-73 years) could create 6 rounds of action plans for 4 activities each (24 total).
Consistency of action planning during the intervention was associated with change in physical activity at 9-months, and intention and habit strength at 3-months and 9-months. Frequency of action planning was negatively associated with intention at 3-months and 9-months. The effect of action planning consistency on physical activity behaviour was no longer significant when accounting for change in intention and habit strength.
Consistency of how, where, when and with whom people plan their physical activity may translate into stronger physical activity habits. Interventions should avoid encouraging making many distinct action plans, but rather encourage stable contexts through consistent action planning.
To identify subgroups of Australian adults likely to receive physical activity advice from their general practitioner and to evaluate the content of the advice provided.
Participants (n=1,799), ...recruited from the Australian Health and Social Science panel, completed an online survey. Signal Detection Analysis was used to identify subgroups that were more/less likely to have received physical activity recommendations.
Overall, 18% of participants received a physical activity recommendation from their general practitioner in the past 12 months and eight unique subgroups were identified. The subgroup with the highest proportion (54%) of participants reporting that they received a physical activity recommendation was those with poor physical and mental health‐related quality of life and an average daily sitting time of <11 hours. Other subgroups with high proportions of individuals receiving recommendations were characterised by higher weight and/or the presence of co‐morbidities. The most commonly prescribed physical activity type was aerobic activity. Few participants received specific physical activity advice.
General practitioners are incorporating physical activity promotion into their practice, but primarily as a disease management tool and with limited specificity.
Strategies to assist Australian general practitioners to effectively promote physical activity are needed.
Issue addressed
Sedentary behaviours, in particular sitting, increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity and poorer mental health status. In Australia, 70% of adults sit ...for more than 8 h per day. The use of social media applications (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) is on the rise; however, no studies have explored the association of social media use with sitting time and body mass index (BMI).
Methods
Cross‐sectional self‐report data on demographics, BMI and sitting time were collected from 1140 participants in the 2013 Queensland Social Survey. Generalised linear models were used to estimate associations of a social media score calculated from social media use, perceived importance of social media, and number of social media contacts with sitting time and BMI.
Results
Participants with a high social media score had significantly greater sitting times while using a computer in leisure time and significantly greater total sitting time on non‐workdays. However, no associations were found between social media score and sitting to view TV, use motorised transport, work or participate in other leisure activities; or total workday, total sitting time or BMI.
Conclusions
These results indicate that social media use is associated with increased sitting time while using a computer, and total sitting time on non‐workdays.
So what?
The rise in social media use may have a negative impact on health by contributing to computer sitting and total sitting time on non‐workdays. Future longitudinal research with a representative sample and objective sitting measures is needed to confirm findings.
Social media use is on the rise, but we have little understanding of its impact on sitting time and body mass index (BMI). Our findings demonstrate that computer sitting in leisure time and total sitting on non‐workdays increase with social media use. Social media use may therefore be negatively affecting health.
Purpose: To test confirmatory factor analyses of successful aging composed of physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning factors in masters athletes (n = 764) and non-sporting adults ...(n = 404), and compare the physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning of masters athletes versus non-sporting adults. Method: Self-reported cross-sectional data were analyzed with confirmatory factor analyses. Results: Physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning latent factors significantly loaded onto a higher-order successful aging latent factor (p < .05). Masters athletes had higher physical and social functioning than non-sporting adults (p < .05). Psychological and cognitive functioning did not differ between groups. Conclusions: Successful aging should be considered as a multi-faceted construct consisting of different domains of functioning for both masters athletes and non-sporting adults. Masters athletes were aged successfully relative to the non-sporting adults across the physical and social functioning domains. Physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning domains constitute an appropriate model to use in future experimental research investigating the effect of masters sport for successful aging.
The overarching objective of the study is to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the salient factors predicting changes in physical activity (PA) during adolescents' transition into emerging ...adulthood. Using the Multi-Process Action Control model as our guiding framework, we will examine how implicit and explicit psychological processes along with regulatory practices impact PA change during this major life transition. Additionally, we will use a real-time data capture method called Ecological Momentary Assessment to further investigate how environmental and contextual factors, and momentary psychosocial influences effect PA patterns across this dynamic life stage.
The ADAPT study is a 4-year project comprised of two interrelated studies. Study I is a large prospective cohort study that will invite all grade 11 students across one large school board (a total of seven secondary schools) to participate by completing an online questionnaire. Using a cluster randomization approach, a subset of students from each school will be invited to participate in Study II, whereby participants will wear an accelerometer and complete Ecological Momentary Assessments 5 times a day over a 7-day study period. For both studies, following baseline assessments, there will be three annual follow-up assessments approximately 12 months apart.
The current study represents one of the largest longitudinal cohort studies examining PA and its determinants and associated consequences among adolescents transitioning out of high school into emerging adulthood. Findings from this study will provide a much more in-depth understanding of how and why changes in PA behaviour occur across this first major life transition.
Due to their high physical functioning, masters athletes are regularly proposed to exemplify successful aging. However, successful aging research on masters athletes has never been undertaken using a ...multidimensional successful aging model. To determine the best model for future successful aging research on masters athletes, we had masters swimmers (N = 169, M age = 57.4 years, 61% women) self-report subjective successful aging, and physical, psychological, cognitive, and social functioning. Using this data we tested one hypothesized and three alternative successful aging models. The hypothesized model fit the data best (-2LL = 2052.32, AIC = 1717) with physical (β = 0.31, SE = 0.11), psychological (β = 0.25, SE = 0.11), and social (β = 1.20, SE = 0.63) functioning factors significantly loading onto a higher order successful aging latent factor. Successful aging should be conceptualized as a multidimensional phenomenon in future masters athlete research.
Heeding recent calls to capture dynamic variability of physical activity (PA) motivation within a self-determination theory framework, this study examined the extent to which psychological needs ...satisfaction in PA predicted subsequent PA, disaggregating within-person and between-persons data. University students (N = 89) wore an ActiGraph GT3X accelerometer for 6 days and reported basic psychological needs satisfaction daily. Multilevel models examined whether competence, autonomy, and relatedness for the previous day's PA (>2,020 counts per minute) predicted the following day's minutes of PA (>2,020 counts per minute), controlling for previous-day PA. Participants who, on average, reported greater feelings of autonomy and competence tended to engage in more minutes of PA the following day. When participants reported feeling greater relatedness than what was typical for them, they tended to engage in more PA the following day. Psychological needs vary day to day, but how and to what extent they predict PA depends on the specific need.
(1) Background: Interventions using activity trackers and smartphone apps have demonstrated their ability to increase physical activity in children and adults. However, they have not been tested in ...whole families. Further, few family-centered interventions have actively involved both parents and assessed physical activity effects separately for children, mothers and fathers. Objective: To examine the feasibility and short-term effects of an activity tracker and app intervention to increase physical activity in the whole family (children, mothers and fathers). (2) Methods: This was a single-arm feasibility study with pre-post intervention measures. Between 2017-2018, 40 families (58 children aged 6-10 years, 39 mothers, 33 fathers) participated in the 6-week
program in Queensland, Australia. Using commercial activity trackers combined with apps (Garmin Vivofit Jr for children, Vivofit 3 for adults; Garmin Australasia Pty Ltd., Sydney, Australia), the intervention included individual and family-level goal-setting, self-monitoring, performance feedback, family step challenges, family social support and modelling, weekly motivational text messages and an introductory session. Parent surveys were used to assess physical activity effects measured as pre-post intervention changes in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in children, mothers and fathers. Objective Garmin activity tracker data was recorded to assess physical activity levels (steps, active minutes) during the intervention. (3) Results: Thirty-eight families completed the post intervention survey (95% retention). At post intervention, MVPA had increased in children by 58 min/day (boys: 54 min/day, girls: 62 min/day; all
< 0.001). In mothers, MVPA increased by 27 min/day (
< 0.001) and in fathers, it increased by 31 min/day (
< 0.001). The percentage of children meeting Australia's physical activity guidelines for children (≥60 MVPA min/day) increased from 34% to 89% (
< 0.001). The percentage of mothers and fathers meeting Australia's physical activity guidelines for adults (≥150 MVPA min/week) increased from 8% to 57% (
< 0.001) in mothers and from 21% to 68% (
< 0.001) in fathers. The percentage of families with 'at least one child and both parents' meeting the physical activity guidelines increased from 0% to 41% (
< 0.001). Objective activity tracker data recorded during the intervention showed that the mean (
) number of active minutes per day in children was 82.1 (17.1). Further, the mean (
) steps per day was 9590.7 (2425.3) in children, 7397.5 (1954.2) in mothers and 8161.7 (3370.3) in fathers. (4) Conclusions: Acknowledging the uncontrolled study design, the large pre-post changes in MVPA and rather high step counts recorded during the intervention suggest that an activity tracker and app intervention can increase physical activity in whole families. The
program warrants further efficacy testing in a larger, randomized controlled trial.
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