Motivational interviewing and self-determination theory in a web-based computer tailored physical activity...

Area of Science:

• Health Behavior Change
• Digital Health Interventions
• Exercise Science

Background:

• Web-based physical activity (PA) interventions are increasingly utilized to promote health.
• Self-determination theory (SDT) and motivational interviewing (MI) are psychological frameworks that can enhance behavior change.
• Traditional web-based PA interventions may lack motivational components.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the effectiveness and user appreciation of a novel web-based PA intervention (I Move) grounded in SDT and MI against a traditional web-based PA intervention (Active Plus).
• To evaluate the impact of these interventions on moderate-to-vigorous PA minutes and days with at least 30 minutes of PA.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial involving three groups: I Move (SDT/MI-based), Active Plus (traditional web-based), and a waiting list control.
• Participants' self-reported weekly minutes of moderate to vigorous PA and weekly days with ≥30 min PA were assessed at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months.

Main Results:

• The I Move intervention resulted in a small, significant increase in weekly moderate to vigorous PA minutes, while Active Plus did not show a significant effect on this measure.
• Both I Move and Active Plus significantly increased weekly days with ≥30 min PA, with Active Plus demonstrating a greater effect on this specific outcome.
• User appreciation data was not detailed in the provided abstract.

Conclusions:

• The web-based PA intervention incorporating SDT and MI did not demonstrate superior effectiveness compared to the traditional web-based PA intervention.
• The findings suggest that while both interventions can increase PA frequency, the added theoretical components did not yield greater benefits in this study.
• Further investigation is warranted to determine the potential of SDT and MI-based interventions for long-term physical activity maintenance.