Interventions for promoting physical activity and/or reducing sedentary behaviour in older workers: a scoping review

To present the available evidence for interventions aimed at promoting physical activity and/or reducing sedentary behaviour in older workers and identify their key components.

A scoping review was conducted to provide an overview of the available literature on interventions for increasing physical activity and reducing sedentary behaviour in older workers, identify gaps in the literature base and inform future research. Intervention Component Analysis (ICA) was conducted to identify the components of interventions that appear important for encouraging physical activity and reducing sedentary behaviour, thus facilitating health-promoting behaviour change in older workers.

Thirty-eight articles were included in this review. Twenty-two studies were eligible for inclusion in ICA. Findings suggest that 'Planning for change and/or addressing barriers to change to achieve goals' and 'Social support from a professional, family member or organised group' appear to be key components within interventions that positively impact the physical activity and sedentary behaviour of older workers.

This is the first review to employ ICA to identify potentially important components of interventions that target sedentary behaviour and physical activity in older workers. A gap in the literature remains for interventions targeting older workers who work from home. Further work is needed to develop suitable interventions for older workers, given the increase in economic inactivity in this employee group due to ill health.