Cognitive mediation of intervention effects on physical exercise: causal models for the adoption and maintenance stage.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate how the effects of a group-based intervention program (MoVo-LISA) on exercise behaviour were mediated by cognitive variables. Different causal models mapping the short-term (adoption) and long-term (maintenance) intervention effects were tested using path analyses.


METHODS
N = 220 in-patients of a rehabilitation clinic were assigned to an usual care or intervention group (quasi-experimental design). Questionnaire-based assessment was conducted at baseline; discharge; and at six weeks, six months and 12 months post discharge.


METHODS
The potential mediator variables were outcome expectations, self-efficacy, strength of goal intention (intention strength), self-concordance, action planning and barrier management.


RESULTS
Observed intervention effects on exercise behaviour (p < 0.05) were mediated by intention strength at the adoption and maintenance stages, by action planning only at the adoption, and by barrier management only at the maintenance stage. Self-efficacy and outcome expectations were only indirectly involved in these mediations by affecting intention strength and self-concordance.


CONCLUSIONS
This is the first study to track the cognitive mediation processes of intervention effects on exercise behaviour over a long time-period by differentiating the adoption and maintenance stages of behaviour change. The findings emphasise the importance of deconstructing intervention effects (modifiability vs. predictive power of a mediator) to develop more effective interventions.
Institute of Sport and Sport Science, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany. reinhard.fuchs@sport.uni-freiburg.de
Reinhard
R
Fuchs
Harald
H
Seelig
Wiebke
W
Göhner
Nicola W
NW
Burton
Wendy J
WJ
Brown
D000328:Adult; D003071:Cognition; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D033182:Intention; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D017008:Negotiating; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D012047:Rehabilitation Centers; D020377:Self Efficacy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome