Protection Motivation Theory and Physical Activity
- 26 October 2009
- journal article
- Published by SAGE Publications in Journal of Health Psychology
- Vol. 14 (8), 1119-1134
- https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105309342301
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) to predict physical activity (PA) behaviour in a large, population-based sample of adults. One thousand six hundred and two randomly selected individuals completed two telephone interviews over two consecutive six-month periods assessing PMT constructs. PMT explained 35 per cent and 20 per cent of the variance in intention and behaviour respectively. Coping cognitions as moderators of threat explained 1 per cent of the variance in intention and behaviour. Age and gender as moderators of threat did not provide additional variance in the models. We conclude that salient PMT predictors (e.g. self-efficacy) may guide the development of effective PA interventions in the general population.Keywords
This publication has 32 references indexed in Scilit:
- Physical Activity and Social Cognitive Theory: A Test in a Population Sample of Adults with Type 1 or Type 2 DiabetesApplied Psychology, 2008
- Stages of Change in Physical Exercise: A Test of Stage Discrimination and NonlinearityAmerican Journal of Health Behavior, 2006
- Social Cognitive Theory in Diabetes Exercise Research: An Integrative Literature ReviewThe Diabetes Educator, 2004
- Creating parsimony at the expense of precision? Conceptual and applied issues of aggregating belief-based constructs in physical activity researchHealth Education Research, 2004
- Toward a better understanding of the influences on physical activityAmerican Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2002
- Predicting exercise stage transitions over two consecutive 6-month periods: A test of the theory of planned behaviour in a population-based sampleBritish Journal of Health Psychology, 2001
- Protection motivation theory and the prediction of exercise and low-fat diet behaviours among Australian cardiac patientsPsychology & Health, 1998
- Testing for moderator variables in meta‐analysis: Issues and methodsCommunication Monographs, 1991
- Cognitive Processes in Health Enhancement: Investigation of a Combined Protection Motivation and Self-Efficacy ModelBasic and Applied Social Psychology, 1986
- The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1986