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Lookup NU author(s): Professor Falko Sniehotta
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Intervention science faces a hazardous paradox: on the one hand, vulnerable populations (eg, patients, people from low socioeconomic background, older adults) are those for whom adoption of healthy behaviors is most urgent; on the other hand, behavior change models are less predictive, and interventions less successful, in these populations. This commentary presents 4 reasons that may explain this issue: (1) research mostly focuses on what causes behavior and how to change it, at the expense of investigating among whom and under what conditions models are valid; (2) models put an undue emphasis on individual cognitions; (3) most studies are not conducted on vulnerable populations; and (4) most researchers are from high-income countries. Several avenues are proposed to address this issue: (1) providing a central place to the context and audience in health behavior change modelization, through collaborations with researchers from other disciplines and countries, and with members of the targeted audience; (2) better reporting samples' sociodemographic characteristics and increasing samples' diversity; and (3) using more rigorous and innovative designs (eg, powered randomized controlled trials, N-of-1 trials, intensive longitudinal studies). In conclusion, it becomes urgent to change the way we do research: the social utility and credibility of intervention science depend on it.
Author(s): Chalabaev A, Cheval B, Maltagliati S, Saoudi I, Sniehotta FF
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Journal of Physical Activity & Health
Year: 2023
Volume: 20
Issue: 6
Pages: 465-470
Print publication date: 01/06/2023
Online publication date: 19/04/2023
Acceptance date: 02/04/2023
ISSN (print): 1543-3080
ISSN (electronic): 1543-5474
Publisher: Human Kinetics, Inc.
URL: https://doi.org/10.1123/jpah.2023-0072
DOI: 10.1123/jpah.2023-0072
PubMed id: 37076243
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