title: Physical activity counseling in primary care: Insights from public health and behavioral economics.
abstract: Physical inactivity has reached epidemic proportions in modern society. Abundant evidence points to a causal link between physical inactivity and increased risk for numerous noncommunicable diseases, such as some types of cancer and heart disease, as well as premature mortality. Yet, despite this overwhelming evidence, many individuals do not meet the recommended amount of physical activity required to achieve maximum health benefits. Because primary care physicians' advice is highly regarded, clinicians have the unique opportunity to play an important role in enabling patients to modify their behavior at the point of care with the goal of guiding patients to adopt and maintain an active lifestyle. In the current study, the authors evaluate pertinent literature from the fields of medicine/public health and economics/psychology to suggest a comprehensive approach to physical activity counseling at the primary care level. They first examine the public health approach to physical activity counseling, and then proceed to offer insights from behavioral economics, an emerging field that combines principles from psychology and economics. The application of key behavioral economics tools (eg, precommitment contracts, framing) to physical activity counseling in primary care is elaborated. CA Cancer J Clin 2017;67:233-244. © 2017 American Cancer Society.
authors.affiliation: Director, Physical Activity and Nutrition Research, Economic & Health Policy Research Program, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA.
authors.forename: Kerem
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shuval
authors.affiliation: Associate Professor, Department of Economics, University of Dallas, Irving, TX.
authors.forename: Tammy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Leonard
authors.affiliation: Vice President, Economic & Health Policy Research Program, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA.
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Drope
authors.affiliation: Director, Yale University Prevention Research Center, Griffin Hospital, Derby, CT.
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Katz
authors.affiliation: Strategic Director, Cancer Prevention Study-3, Epidemiology Research Program, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA.
authors.forename: Alpa V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Patel
authors.affiliation: Senior Policy Analyst, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Washington, DC.
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maitin-Shepard
authors.affiliation: Associate Professor, Rady School of Management, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, CA.
authors.forename: On
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Amir
authors.affiliation: Associate Professor of Marketing, D'Amore-McKim School of Business, Northeastern University, Boston, MA.|Associate Professor of Marketing, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Amir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Grinstein
mesh_terms: D003376:Counseling; D060909:Economics, Behavioral; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D011634:Public Health
keywords: behavioral; counseling; economics; exercise; motor activity; primary health care