Promoting physical activity with open goals: A pilot randomised controlled trial.

Area of Science:

• Public Health and Exercise Science
• Behavioral Medicine
• Health Psychology

Background:

• Open goals represent a novel strategy for enhancing physical activity (PA) engagement.
• Existing research highlights the feasibility of integrating open goals into walking interventions.
• Longer-term comparative studies are necessary to validate open goals against traditional specific goal-setting for real-world application.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the efficacy of open goals versus specific goals in a six-week walking program.
• To evaluate the impact of different goal-setting strategies on physical activity levels and psychological outcomes.
• To assess the feasibility, acceptability, and adherence of open goals in a walking intervention.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-methods randomized controlled trial involving 30 healthy adults with low-to-moderate PA levels.
• Participants were assigned to either an open goals group, a specific goals group, or a control condition.
• Outcomes included pedometer-measured step counts, psychological assessments, and qualitative interviews over a six-week intervention with a four-week follow-up.

Main Results:

• Both open and specific goals significantly increased physical activity post-intervention compared to baseline.
• Open goals demonstrated the largest within-group increases in steps, but also a steeper decline at follow-up.
• Participants in the open goals group reported more positive psychological experiences, despite similar step counts across groups by follow-up.

Conclusions:

• Walking programs incorporating open goals are feasible and achieve comparable PA increases to specific-goal programs.
• Open goals may foster more positive psychological experiences, warranting further investigation.
• Future research should focus on larger trials to optimize open goal strategies for sustained behavioral change and public health impact.