How Successful Has the Transtheoretical Model of Behavioral Change Been in Changing Sedentary Lifestyle?

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Most people have an aspiration to get rid of a certain unhealthy behaviour or to employ a new health behaviour that would benefit their wellbeing. Some examples include a wish to stop smoking, eating a balanced diet or getting rid of a sedentary lifestyle. Many psychologists have been trying to find a model that would help people fight these kinds of unwanted health behaviours. One of such is the Transtheoretical model of behavioural change (TTM) which will be the main focus of this essay. Specifically, how one’s sedentary lifestyle can be changed by bringing out a systematic exercising routine using TTM. I will first describe the importance of regular exercise and the downsides of sedentary lifestyle followed by a description of the TTM. Afterwards, I will concentrate on how successful this model was in modifying physical activity in the past. And lastly, I will evaluate the usefulness of TTM in relation to physical exercise and how it could be applied onto a large-scale sample. Impact of sedentary lifestyle on our health Staying healthy does not only mean to eat a healthy diet, but also to be active and to provide our body with stamina so it can fight various diseases. According to Myers (2003) around a quarter of a million deaths in the United States are caused by insufficient physical activity. The US Public Health Service (1996) has provided enough evidence towards the effect of physical exercise on cardiovascular (e.g. coronary heart disease) and non-cardiovascular health (hypertension, osteoporosis, colon cancer etc.). They followed a group of people for several years and found a positive correlation between the amount of participants’ physical activity and their health problems. So how much exercise is just enou... ... middle of paper ... ...e medical Journal, 54, 1-8. Woods, C., Mutrie, N., Scott, M. (2002). Physical activity intervention: a Transtheoretical Model-based intervention designed to help sedentary young adults become active. Health Education Reseacrh, 17(4), 451-460. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (1996). Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Adams, J. and White, M. (2005). Why don't stage-based activity promotion interventions work? Health Education Research, 20(2), 237-243. Greene, G. W., Rossi, S. R., Rossi, J. S., Velicer, W. F., Flava, J. L. and Prochaska, J.O. (1999). Dietary applications of the stages of change model. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 99, 673–678.

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