Abstract
Measurement of specific behaviors involved in weight management is essential to understanding the behavior change process. This study presents measures of common behavioral objectives for weight management interventions. The relationships between these measures and conventional outcomes of weight management are described. Data are from a survey of 407 adults in the rural Midwest ages 23 to 88. Analyses involved bivariate and multivariate statistical tests. Relationships were stronger when limited to diet or physical activity outcomes as opposed to body mass index or waist circumference. Diet-related strategies were more strongly correlated with diet-related outcomes than physical activity-related outcomes and vice versa. Measures of social interactions and self-monitoring for both diet and physical activity were consistently related to outcomes. The measures show promise as reliable and valid indicators of behavior that could be useful in the evaluation of interventions. Intervention studies are needed to further characterize their value and sensitivity to change over time.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 793-809 |
| Number of pages | 17 |
| Journal | Health Education and Behavior |
| Volume | 34 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Oct 2007 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Diet
- Physical activity
- Weight management
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous)
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health