Physical Activity in Older Adults: The Stages of Change

Abstract

Most older adults are not physically active and are stereotypically presumed to be relatively "set in their ways. " We measured stages of change among a sample of older adults and compared them between active and inactive subgroups. Participants (n = 59) aged 59-80 (M = 64.9) completed the Stages of Change scale about their levels of physical activity: 18 were exercise program participants; 20 were a matched group of retirees; 21 had particcpated in an Elderhostel program. We hypothesized that stage levels would be nonlinear and differ significantly and that the profiles of stages between groups would be nonparallel. Results support both hypotheses. For the total sample, action and maintenance subscale scores were higher than precontemplation subscale scores. Between groups, the exercise and Elderhostel groups scored higher on action and maintenance that the retiree group, while the retirees scored higher than the others on precontemplation. We present discussion and implications for intervention programming and future research.

Health behaviour models and patient preferences regarding nutrition and physical activity after breast or prostate cancer diagnosis

“…Hypothesis Two regarding associations between TTM variables and adherence was supported. Associations with stage of change were consistent with findings of other studies that have examined physical activity (Barké & Nicholas ; Fallon et al . ) or healthy eating (Campbell et al .…”

“…Hypothesis Two regarding associations between TTM variables and adherence was supported. Associations with stage of change were consistent with findings of other studies that have examined physical activity (Barké & Nicholas 1990;Fallon et al 2005) or healthy eating (Campbell et al 1994;Glanz et al 1998). Higher selfefficacy was also uniquely associated with higher physical activity and healthy eating in multivariate analyses.…”

Impact of Telephone Reinforcement and Negotiated Contracts on Behavioral Predictors of Exercise Maintenance in Older Adults with Osteoarthritis

“…Active seniors also classify themselves at higher stages than less active older adults. [31][32][33][34][35] Most studies demonstrate short-term benefits of stage-matched interventions, but results are not maintained over time. 36 Thus, PA maintenance strategies require further development, and their application also must be examined.…”

Stage Theory and Research on Tobacco, Alcohol, and other Drug Use

“…Recent literature has examined stage theory related to a broad range of health-related behavior including alcohol abuse [4], physical activity [5,6], weight loss [7,8], and general health behavior change and health promotion [9-111.…”