Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2017 Feb;40(1):112-126.
doi: 10.1007/s10865-016-9797-8. Epub 2016 Oct 8.

Future directions in physical activity intervention research: expanding our focus to sedentary behaviors, technology, and dissemination

Beth A Lewis  1 , Melissa A Napolitano  2 , Matthew P Buman  3 , David M Williams  4 , Claudio R Nigg  5
Affiliations
Review

Future directions in physical activity intervention research: expanding our focus to sedentary behaviors, technology, and dissemination

Beth A Lewis et al. J Behav Med. 2017 Feb.

Abstract

Despite the increased health risks of a sedentary lifestyle, only 49 % of American adults participate in physical activity (PA) at the recommended levels. In an effort to move the PA field forward, we briefly review three emerging areas of PA intervention research. First, new intervention research has focused on not only increasing PA but also on decreasing sedentary behavior. Researchers should utilize randomized controlled trials, common terminology, investigate which behaviors should replace sedentary behaviors, evaluate long-term outcomes, and focus across the lifespan. Second, technology has contributed to an increase in sedentary behavior but has also led to innovative PA interventions. PA technology research should focus on large randomized trials with evidence-based components, explore social networking and innovative apps, improve PA monitoring, consider the lifespan, and be grounded in theory. Finally, in an effort to maximize public health impact, dissemination efforts should address the RE-AIM model, health disparities, and intervention costs.

Keywords: Dissemination; Intervention; Physical activity; Sedentary behavior; Technology.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Beth A. Lewis, Melissa A. Napolitano, Matthew P. Buman, David M. Williams and Claudio R. Nigg declare that they have no conflict of interest. Human and animal rights and Informed consent All procedures followed were in accordance with ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000.

References

    1. Abraham C, Michie S. A taxonomy of behavior change techniques used in interventions. Health Psychology. 2008;27:379. - PubMed
    1. Alkhajah TA, Reeves MM, Eakin EG, Winkler EA, Owen N, Healy GN. Sit-Stand workstations: A pilot intervention to reduce office sitting time. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2012;43:298–303. - PubMed
    1. American Heart Association. Physical activity improves quality of life. 2015 Retrieved from http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/PhysicalActivity/StartWalki....
    1. American Public Health Association. Supporting the national physical activity plan. 2016 Retrieved from http://apha.org/policies-and-advocacy/public-health-policy-statements/po....
    1. Antikainen I, Ellis R. A RE-AIM evaluation of theory-based physical activity interventions. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. 2011;33:198–214. - PubMed