Physical Activity and Perceived Self-Efficacy in Older Adults

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine predictors of seyeficacy in older adults, with physical activity, age, and sex as the predictor variables. Regression analyses revealed physical activity to be the only statistically signi$cant predictor of seyeficacy. Thesejndings may be of interest t o counselors who work with olderpeople.The population of the United States is rapidly aging. Life expectancies for men and women are increasing (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1997), and the over-65 age group is projected to double in size by 2020 (Bokovoy & Blair, 1994). Within the population of older Americans, the number of individuals over 85 is expected to quadruple (Zedlewski, Barnes, Burt, McBride, & Meyer, 1990). From a social perspective, individuals in the 8th and 9th decades of life are expected to be involved in the health care system to an unprecedented degree if population growth continues as projected (U.S.Bureau of the Census, 1992). National cross-sectional surveys of physical activity consistently report that physical activity declines with age and that older adults participate in less physical exercise than d o younger adults (Stephens & Caspersen, 1994). Physical activity refers to "any bodily movement produced by the contraction of skeletal muscle that increases energy expenditure above the basal level" (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1996a, p. 20). This definition includes all physical activities, as well as structured physical exercise. T h e relationships between health and activity and between sedentary living and disease are well documented (Cousins & Keating, 1995; Paffenbarger & Lee, 1996). The U.S.Department of Health and Human Services (1996b) reports that "as many as 250,000 deaths per year in the United States have been attributed to a lack of regular physical activity" (p. 24). If the health care system is to be responsive to the needs of an increasingly older population, preventive measures to maximize independence will have to be explored and developed. Moving the older population from a sedentary to an active lifestyle is a challenge for health and mental health practitioners. Intuitively, we propose that the developmental tasks associated with independence and autonomy of the young-old, meaning those near 65 years of age, would differ from those of the old-old, meaning those 75 years and older. Yet, most research considers older adults to be a homogeneous group. This study looks at the relationship between physical activity and perceptions of selfefficacy in older adults, considering the group to be heterogeneous and not homogeneous. Bandura (1989) asserted that people who believe they are capable of controlling their lives are more likely to be able to do so. Self-efficacy expectations are not concerned with the skills individuals possess but what they think they can do with whatever skills they possess (Bandura, 1986). Individuals with a strong sense of self-efficacy are able to adapt emotionally to life's challenges and difficult situations without becoming overanxious (Ma...

A qualitative study examining everyday frailty management strategies adopted by Polish stakeholders

“…This, in turn, may help generate an individual’s confidence to do something about their health status. However, physical activity should be personalized preventing people from becoming discouraged [26]. Thus, interventions to support resilience building in older adults should be framed within a model of fostering self-efficacy.…”

There's More than Meets the Eye: Complex Associations of Daily Pain, Physical Symptoms, and Self-Efficacy with Activity in Middle and Older Adulthood

“…Individuals with higher self-efficacy may therefore choose to participate in a greater range of activities, including more difficult or unfamiliar activities, and may show greater persistence and employ strategies to overcome barriers to activity. Supporting this conjecture, cross-sectional research has shown that general and domain-specific self-efficacy are positively related to older adults' physical and social activity [5,14,15] . In addition, longitudinal studies have shown that higher baseline exercise self-efficacy is associated with greater exercise frequency at 6-month [16] and 12-month follow-ups [17] .…”

“…Associations of between-person general selfefficacy with activity have been shown [14,15] ; however, most previous cross-sectional [e.g., 5 , 17 ] and microlongitudinal [20,21] research has used activity-specific measures of self-efficacy. The finding that higher within-person general self-efficacy predicts greater activity is particularly notable because self-efficacy is most predictive of outcomes when measurement items are specifically related to the behavior or goal [13] .…”

Factors Influencing Walking and Exercise Adherence in Healthy Older Adults Using Monitoring and Interfacing Technology: Preliminary Evidence

“…Exercise self-efficacy (ESE) was measured using Bandura’s ESE scale [ 30 , 44 ]. Bandura [ 30 ] developed a tool to purposely quantify self-efficacy, and this has been deployed in older adults finding that PA predicted self-efficacy, although not as much as age and gender [ 45 ]. Finally, the Short Questionnaire to Assess Health Enhancing Physical Activity (SQUASH) was provided to the participants to evaluate their self-reported PA level [ 44 , 46 ].…”