Active living in communities: understanding the intention to take up physical activity as an everyday way of life

The purpose of this study was to identify psychosocial factors influencing the intention to incorporate physical activity into daily routine. The subjects were 353 residents from New Brunswick aged 15 to 80 years. The intention to be active was explained by current physical activity habit (beta = 0.563, p < 0.0001), age (beta = -0.197, p < 0.0001), attitude toward the behaviour (beta = 0.164, p < 0.0001), and the obligation felt to perform the behaviour (beta = 0.155, p < 0.0001). These variables explained 52% of the variability in intention. MANOVAs revealed significant differences between high and low intenders concerning the perceived consequences of carrying out the behaviour (p < 0.0001) and the evaluation of these consequences (p < 0.01). It is suggested that a social marketing program should promote the concept that "walking every day for 15 consecutive minutes is fun and healthy; it will make me feel better, more energetic, and more relaxed, not to mention that it should contribute to the improvement of my physical condition while I enjoy the outdoors".