Individual Level Intervention

Strategies
December 5, 2002
 Individual Level Interventions
Study of individual behavior change is a
core area of psychology
Interventions designed to increase/maintain
regular exercise reflects ideas of psychology
Early psychopathologsits beliefs
 Interventions Defined
Health-promoting activities that originate
from a health promotion team with the
intention of instilling/maintaining health-
related attitudes, norms, and behaviors, in
a specific target
Success of Intervention Programs
Dishman & Buckworth (1996) found 127
with ~131,000 subjects who were targeted
in community, worksite, school, home, and
health care settings
Studies tested interventions designed to
increase PA
Pearson correlation coefficients were found
(.10, .30, .50)
Dishman & Buckworth Findings
Several types of interventions are
commonly used
Completed comparisons among 7 general
categories of interventions
Types of Individual Interventions
Behavior modification (r=.91)

Cognitive behavior modification (r=.10)

Health education (r=.10)
Types of Individual Interventions
Health-risk appraisal (r=.10)

Exercise prescription (r=.21)

PE curriculum (r=.21)

Combinations (r=.11)
 Setting of Interventions
General community-based interventions
produce better results when compared to
home, school, or health-care settings
Interventions delivered in the presence of
others are superior to those delivered to
people on their own
 Settings of Interventions
Interventions promoting leisure-time PA are
more sucessful than those promoting
strength or aerobic exercise
Interventions promoting moderate intensity
PA are more successful than those
promoting strenuous exercises