Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now
U.S. flag
An official website of the United States government
Veterans Benefits and Health Care About VA Find a VA Location

VA Health Systems Research

Go to the VA ORD website
Go to the QUERI website

HSR&D Citation Abstract

Search | Search by Center | Search by Source | Keywords in Title

Age and sex differences in prospective effects of health goals and motivations on daily leisure-time physical activity.

Gallagher P, Yancy WS, Swartout K, Denissen JJ, Kühnel A, Voils CI. Age and sex differences in prospective effects of health goals and motivations on daily leisure-time physical activity. Preventive medicine. 2012 Oct 1; 55(4):322-4.

Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects.

If you have VA-Intranet access, click here for more information vaww.hsrd.research.va.gov/dimensions/

VA staff not currently on the VA network can access Dimensions by registering for an account using their VA email address.    Search Dimensions for VA for this citation
* Don't have VA-internal network access or a VA email address? Try searching the free-to-the-public version of Dimensions


Abstract:

OBJECTIVE: To examine relationships between health goals, types of motivation for those goals, and daily leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), and whether these relationships differ by age or sex. METHODS: From 2005 to 2008, 710 participants in and around Berlin, Germany provided life goals and motivational attributes of those goals at baseline, then reported LTPA daily for 25 days. RESULTS: Having (vs. not having) a goal of physical health predicted higher odds of engaging in LTPA for younger but not older participants (under age 30; OR = 1.26, p = 0.048), and was not related to duration of LTPA episodes. Effect of intrinsic motivation for the health goal differed by sex: for females, higher intrinsic motivation predicted higher odds of LTPA (OR = 1.19, p = 0.001), but was not related to duration. For males, higher intrinsic motivation predicted lower LTPA odds marginally (OR = 0.70, p = 0.054) but predicted longer duration (estimate = 18.27 min, p < 0.001). More approach motivation for the health goal predicted longer duration of LTPA episodes (0.67 min, p = 0.022). CONCLUSIONS: One size does not fit all in LTPA intervention design. Future research should identify the mechanisms by which health goals and motivations affect health behavior.




Questions about the HSR website? Email the Web Team

Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.