Affective mental contrasting to enhance physical activity: A randomized controlled trial

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Science
• Health Psychology
• Exercise Science

Background:

• University transition is a critical period for physical activity decline.
• This decline impacts students' physical and psychological well-being.
• Cost-effective interventions are needed to support physical activity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficacy of mental contrasting interventions targeting different judgment types.
• To assess affective vs. instrumental vs. standard mental contrasting for physical activity.
• To identify optimal strategies for promoting physical activity in university students.

Main Methods:

• A 3-arm parallel randomized controlled trial.
• 110 insufficiently active female university students participated.
• Interventions included affective, instrumental, or standard mental contrasting.

Main Results:

• Affective mental contrasting significantly increased moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.
• This was compared to instrumental and standard mental contrasting conditions.
• Effect size (ηp2 = 0.065) indicated a small to moderate effect.

Conclusions:

• Affective mental contrasting is a promising intervention for increasing physical activity.
• It offers a low-cost, time-efficient approach for female students.
• This strategy can help maintain or increase physical activity during university.