Motivating minority older adults to exercise

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Behavioral Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Older adults, particularly minority populations, face unique challenges in maintaining physical activity.
• Self-efficacy is a key determinant of health behaviors, including exercise.
• Culturally tailored interventions are needed to promote exercise in diverse older adult groups.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the experiences of minority older adults in the Senior Exercise Self-Efficacy Pilot Program (SESEP).
• To identify factors that facilitated and hindered exercise participation among participants.
• To inform the development of culturally specific interventions to increase exercise behavior.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study utilizing semi-structured interviews with 148 minority older adults (77% African American, 79% female, average age 72.9).
• Analysis of interview data to identify themes related to exercise engagement.
• Thematic analysis reduced 36 codes into 13 major themes.

Main Results:

• Eleven themes identified factors facilitating exercise participation.
• Two themes highlighted factors decreasing willingness to exercise.
• Findings support the role of self-efficacy in promoting exercise behavior among minority older adults.

Conclusions:

• The Senior Exercise Self-Efficacy Pilot Program (SESEP) provided insights into facilitators and barriers for exercise in minority older adults.
• Self-efficacy theory is relevant for behavior change in this population.
• Future research should focus on culturally specific interventions to enhance self-efficacy and exercise behavior.