The Benefits and Drawbacks of Social Influence on Exercise

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Social Influence on Exercise

Exercising is a behavior that can be influenced by the social context of an individual’s environment. Social influence can act as a barrier or a motivator to participate in physical and exercise activities (Spiteri et al., 2019). The main sources of social influence on exercise are the family, health care providers, fitness professionals, exercise leaders, the exercise leader’s leadership style, exercise groups, co-exercisers, and observers. Each of these sources of social influence has its benefits and drawbacks on exercise motivation.

Family can act as a source of influence on exercise and physical activity or a barrier to the same. Family support for exercise and physical activity can help establish habits that can help an individual stick to their exercise routine. Family support can also help change how an individual perceives exercises and the self. This can motivate them to engage in physical activities. Research links familial exercise attitudes and physical activity habits to children’s engagement in related physical activities (Zovko et al., 2021). However, the social influence of the family can demotivate a healthy lifestyle and physical activity if the family adopts a sedentary way of life.

Healthcare providers are a beneficial source of social influence on exercise as they provide professional and reliable advice that other people find easy to follow. Healthcare providers such as doctors and physiotherapists can provide direction on the exercises to perform, when, and how to perform them correctly. The healthcare providers also point out when and why a patient needs to exercise or be physically active. Research notes that physiotherapy-led exercise supervision and exercise individualization improve adherence to exercise and physical activity intervention protocols (Moore et al., 2020). However, healthcare providers can compromise their motivation to exercise if they are lazy, charge a lot for providing support, or show disinterest in the patient’s exercise and progress in physical activity.

Fitness professionals and exercise leaders provide direct motivation to maintain a constant exercise routine. Fitness professionals and exercise leaders can have personal knowledge and relationships with the individual, which can help design easy-to-follow individualized training and exercise plans. Fitness professionals and exercise leaders also provide extrinsic motivation to keep up with the exercises by pointing out developments an individual makes and workout goals achieved. However, the costs of hiring a fitness professional can act as a barrier to individuals who need professional exercise leadership to participate in physical activity and exercises.

An exercise leader’s leadership style can be a barrier or a motivator to individuals participating in exercises and physical activities. Leadership styles such as transformational leadership can support behavior change and self-perception. They can also change how people perceive exercises and certain physical activities. They can also support the individuals throughout the change process. However, a controlling leadership style can demotivate people from participating in exercises and physical activities as they may perceive them as too controlling when instructing them on the exercises to perform and how to perform them.

Lastly, exercise groups, co-exercisers, and observers provide a wider social influence on an individual’s motivation to participate and engage in exercise and physical activities. The benefits of exercise groups can be achieved based on the motivation of the co-exercisers, group size and cohesion, and the personalities and exercise skills of the group members. Studies show that perceived support from exercise groups improves pain thresholds, social bonding, continued engagement, and exercise-related performance outputs (Davis et al., 2021). However, exercise groups can have a negative social influence on exercise motivation due to a lack of individualized training plans, a lack of focus on individual levels of exercise, and overtraining.

References

Davis, A. J., MacCarron, P., & Cohen, E. (2021). Social reward and support effects on exercise experiences and performance: Evidence from parkrun. PLoS ONE, 16(9). https://doi.org/10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0256546

Moore, A. J., Holden, M. A., Foster, N. E., & Jinks, C. (2020). The therapeutic alliance facilitates adherence to physiotherapy-led exercise and physical activity for older adults with knee pain: a longitudinal qualitative study. Journal of Physiotherapy, 66(1), 45–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JPHYS.2019.11.004

Spiteri, K., Broom, D., Bekhet, A. H., de Caro, J. X., Laventure, B., & Grafton, K. (2019). Barriers and Motivators of Physical Activity Participation in Middle-Aged and Older Adults—A Systematic Review. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 27(6), 929–944. https://doi.org/10.1123/JAPA.2018-0343

Zovko, V., Djuric, S., Sember, V., & Jurak, G. (2021). Are Family Physical Activity Habits Passed on to Their Children? Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 3885. https://doi.org/10.3389/FPSYG.2021.741735/BIBTEX

ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE

We’ll write everything from scratch

---

Week 2 Assignment

Describe the benefits and drawbacks of social influence on exercise from each of the sources of social influence mentioned in this week’s lesson.

Lox, C. L., Ginis, K.A. M., Gainforth, H. L., & Petruzzello, S. J. (2019). The Psychology of Exercise (5th ed.). Taylor & Francis. https://online.vitalsource.com/books/9781000011999

Chapters: 4-6

Weblinks:
Exercise Motivation: Psychological Principles by Joel Minden, Ph.D.

Lecture Notes Week 2
Lecture 2

Slide 1

Understanding exercise behavior, part 2

Slide 2

The social-ecological model acknowledges that individuals are responsible for their own actions and adds social and environmental factors that also influence their behavior. As we will see in the next slide, the model specifically names four layers of external influence on the individual: the immediate physical environment, the community, society, and government.

Slide 3

The social-ecological model was developed by Urie Bronfenbrenner and represented the layers of social-ecological influence with rings around the individual. The innermost ring is called the microsystem and represents the immediate physical environment of the individual. In the context of exercise, this might be a gym or the workout room in your house. The next layer is called the mesosystem, which refers to the interactions between microsystems. For example, if you usually exercise at home but see a personal trainer in a facility once per month, the advice they give you about your home routine is considered part of the mesosystem. The next layer is called the exosystem and is made up of the external factors that influence the microsystems. In our example, the trainer’s own training influences how they work with you in session. Finally, the outermost layer is known as the macrosystem and encompasses all of the aspects of all of the inner layers. The macrosystem usually refers to things like cultural values, government regulations, and political philosophies, all of which play a part in influencing people’s exercise behavior.

Slide 4

Applications of the social-ecological model are usually seen in large-scale campaigns to increase physical activity. These can come in the form of increased access to recreational environments, such as parks or community fitness centers. In other cases, physical activity is ingrained in a culture, such as in the Netherlands, where 27% of all trips are made by bicycle.

Slide 5

Since implementations of the social-ecological model are usually made in large-scale campaigns, the feasibility and cost of implementation can be a limiting factor. Additionally, just because a large-scale campaign is implemented doesn’t mean people will use it. In one example, a large company with over 1,000 employees presented an opportunity to participate in various sports and other physical activities on company time and under ideal conditions. At the beginning of the study, nearly 50% of employees participated. After only a year, that number dropped to 17%. In this case, different actions needed to be taken to motivate the employees to exercise beyond just providing access.

Slide 6

Social influence and support

Slide 7

Social support can have a huge influence on a person’s exercise behavior. The term “social support” refers to the real or imagined pressure from external individuals to change behavior, attitudes, or beliefs. Social support usually takes the form of comfort, caring, assistance, and information provided by others and is measured by the size of a person’s social network, as well as the amount or type of support they receive.

Slide 8

Social support can take many forms. Instrumental support refers to tangible assistance that a person receives from another. Much of the work that we do as personal trainers falls under instrumental support, from making adjustments to a client’s workout routine to showing them how to use a particular piece of equipment. Emotional support is also a part of what we do. Emotional support usually works best when the individual feels heard and feels like the listener cares, and it often takes the form of cheerleading and inspirational motivation. Informational support provides the individual with verbal or written communication about a topic, such as information about the benefits of weight loss and regular exercise. Companionship support simply involves someone being there with the individual. Many people prefer to exercise with a companion than alone. Finally, validation support provides an individual with a point of comparison. If someone feels like they aren’t losing enough weight, they can look to other people’s weight-loss stories to see that they are not alone in their struggles and validate that they are still on the right path to a healthier lifestyle.

Slide 9

Since there are so many types of social support, and every individual has a different perspective of their environment and self-efficacy, the most effective type of support will change based on the exerciser’s needs at any given time. Changes in the exerciser’s moods and feelings, biophysical changes, developmental changes, and the transtheoretical stage they are in should all inform your decision about how to best support the exerciser.

Slide 10

Sources of social influence on exercise

Slide 11

In the following sections, we will discuss the sources of support and influence that can have an impact on an individual’s exercise behavior. Sources of support can come from spouses and family, health care providers, exercise professionals, and other exercisers.

Slide 12

Let’s begin with the family. Research has shown that friendly reminders and encouragement from family decrease dropout rates. Some examples of family support include a father taking care of the children while the mom goes to exercise, or parents driving their kids to soccer practice and encouraging them to try their best. Parents are also role models. Children with parents who exercise regularly are more likely to exercise themselves.

Slide 13

Family support can provide individuals with motivation to exercise, but it can also have downsides. For example, any parent of a teenager will tell you that they do the opposite of what they are asked to do. Exercise support from family can come across as nagging, and the exerciser can feel guilt and shame. There is a fine line between being supported and controlled, and each family’s dynamics will determine the best way they are able to support the exerciser.

Slide 14

Health care providers from the second group of social support for exercise behavior. Healthcare providers, such as doctors, nurses, and physical therapists, offer curative, preventative, or rehabilitative healthcare services, which are considered instrumental support. They can also offer counseling services, and are role models within the community. Many health care providers have partnerships with local health clubs that they refer their patients to.

Slide 15

Fitness professionals and exercise leaders play a large role in the social support network for exercisers. As a fitness professional yourself, you probably know about many of the interactions that are available to support your clients. You can explain what exercises to do and how to do them, you can encourage and praise your clients, you can design a workout program for them, and you can help them stay focused when they become fatigued or bored. You can help your clients establish exercise goals and inspire confidence in them by bringing out their potential.

Slide 16

An exercise leader’s leadership style has a huge influence on their success in their role. Good exercise leaders have a positive social influence. They encourage and promote physical activity in a way that makes the exerciser want to continue. Poor leaders have a negative social influence. If they berate their clients for not meeting goals or are sarcastic during a session, their leadership style may lead to dropouts.

Transformational leadership behaviors seek to encourage people to change their way of feeling or thinking about exercise. Researchers have identified four transformational behaviors that are effective in practice. Idealized influence means that people see you as a role model and professional who commands respect with regard to exercise education. Inspirational motivation means that you show optimism and enthusiasm for the activity, influencing your clients to feel the same way. Intellectual stimulation seeks to answer questions that the exerciser might have, as well as prompt the exerciser to think of their exercise problems in a new way. Individualized consideration is the demonstration of care and concern for each individual’s well-being and fitness goals. A good fitness professional exhibits all of these behaviors in an effort to increase their client’s physical activity.

Slide 17

Exercise groups are another form of social support that we will discuss in this lesson. Research has shown that people who exercise in groups are more likely to continue exercising than people who exercise alone. Group support is measured by three important aspects: group size, group cohesion, and group composition. We will examine these aspects in more detail in the next section.

Slide 18

Group size is fairly straightforward. Some people respond better to larger groups, whereas others respond better to smaller groups. Either way, it is important for an individual to be clear with themselves which group size works best for them.

Group cohesion is a little trickier. Groups that stick together have higher success rates than groups with high turnover. Seeing the same faces week after week creates a sense of comradery and accountability that you don’t get otherwise. Some ideas for enhancing group cohesion include developing feelings of distinctiveness among group members, assigning group roles or positions, establishing group norms, such as a pre-workout mantra, providing opportunities to make sacrifices for the group, and providing opportunities for interaction among group members. If the members feel invested in the group, they will tend to stick with it.

Slide 19

The personalities and skill levels of the people in the group can have just as much influence on the group’s success as the group size or the group cohesion. Most people prefer groups where they feel equal to the other members, and they perceive the other members as physically similar. Group sessions should be modeled accordingly. It will probably be intimidating for someone who is new to exercise to be in the same group as a professional athlete, for example.

Slide 20

Co-exercisers and observers also influence how people exercise. We mentioned earlier that people are more successful when they exercise with someone else than by themselves. People tend to exert more effort when they exercise with a friend to make a good impression. Most people also enjoy the social interaction that comes with exercising with a friend, making it more likely that they will actually get out and exercise.

Slide 21

As we have seen, social support comes in many forms, not all of which work for all people. Exercisers should consider what type of social support works best for themselves to determine their social support needs. Exercise professionals need to consider their clients’ needs, and work to improve the social aspects of the physical activity environment.

Slide 22

Physical activity interventions

Slide 23

In this section, we are going to discuss the various physical activity interventions that are available to us as fitness professionals. Intervention approaches can be categorized in four ways: informational approaches, behavioral approaches, social approaches, and environmental approaches. We will explore the details of each approach in the following sections.

Slide 24

Before we can get into the details of each intervention approach, we need to explore motivational interviewing, which can help you determine if an individual is even open to interventions at all. If someone is completely opposed to exercising, interventions can actually cause them to become entrenched in their position. Motivational interviewing is a psychological technique designed to provide people with an opportunity to speak about conflicting feelings, and move forward towards positive change. As a fitness professional, motivation interviewing can be used to strengthen the intrinsic motivations that a person already has.

Slide 25

Motivational interviewing strengthens an individual’s intrinsic motivations through four specific techniques. Expressions of empathy with people will make them feel like you understand their thoughts and feelings, and they will become more open to interventions. When people become aware of the discrepancies between their current activity levels and the activity levels required to meet their fitness goals, they will also be more open to interventions. As the interviewer, the more you can “roll with the resistance”, the more likely you are to influence your client. Clients will resist your attempts to intervene or motivate. Don’t push back. Roll with it, and see if you can get the client to talk themselves into becoming more active. Finally, as a motivational interviewer, you should support the self-efficacy of your clients. You can use the self-efficacy support techniques we learned in last week’s lesson, such as past performance accomplishments, vicarious experiences, social persuasion, and physiological and affective states.

Slide 26

Previously, we named four intervention approaches that can be effective in increasing physical activity: informational approaches, behavioral approaches, social approaches, and environmental approaches. We will begin with informational approaches, which provide information about physical activity benefits. This information might arouse fear or concern about the risks of inactivity, and increase awareness of opportunities to be active. You can explain techniques to overcome barriers to activity, and provide strategies to overcome negative attitudes.

Slide 27

Informational interventions are most effective when the message is tailored to the specific population you are trying to influence. For example, an informational intervention on osteoporosis will probably not resonate with teenagers, but will have a great impact on seniors. You should also stay positive and emphasize the benefits of activity rather than dwell on the risks of inactivity. Your message should be specific and meaningful. Just saying that exercise is healthy isn’t enough. You need to say specifically how exercise benefits the population you are trying to reach. Finally, simple yet detailed information on how to perform an activity is more valuable than a vague description of that same activity.

Slide 28

Behavioral approaches teach people skills for modifying their behavior and establish healthy activity patterns. Examples include looking for opportunities to exercise, rather than opportunities to avoid exercise. Developing strategies to maintain activity levels, learning how to identify and eliminate situations that would sabotage your exercise plans, and developing strategies to prevent relapse are all important skills learned through behavioral approaches.

Slide 29

One of the first skills we can teach our fitness clients is goal setting. When we develop an action plan for a client, we should start with where they are now, and where they want to be after a set period of time. This is the goal, and is an important motivator in physical activity. Without a goal, a client can feel lost and hopeless. With a goal, they have a tangible number that they can work towards. Goals should be specific and relate to some aspect of performance, such as number of pounds lost, or miles run without stopping. As the exerciser progresses through their action plan, they should be self-monitoring to see if they are exercising as often as the plan demands, and if they are achieving their goals. As a personal trainer, you can reinforce their progress with praise or corrections as needed.

Slide 30

Many exercisers start strong and then relapse into a period of inactivity. How many times have you seen the gym completely full in early January, and by March, the gym is back to its usual level of activity? What can you do as a fitness professional to minimize relapse? To start, you should expect clients to relapse. Exercisers relapse so often it’s almost a given that a significant percentage of your clientele will require some sort of intervention to prevent them from relapsing. Once you have prepared yourself mentally for this eventuality, you can identify high-risk thoughts or feelings in your clients that might prompt a relapse. If your client says that their new work schedule won’t give them the time to exercise, help them develop a behavioral strategy for overcoming that obstacle. Change their thinking about how impactful their schedule will really be. Help them think outside of the box, and don’t be afraid to adjust exercise goals to match your clients’ current state.

Slide 31

Social interventions focus on structuring people’s social environment to support their physical activity. People who exercise with other people are more likely to stick with it, so encourage people to pick a workout buddy, and teach people how to ask for support when they need it. Make yourself available and offer email and phone support, and show your clients the array of social media groups dedicated to fitness.

Slide 32

In our final section, we will explore environmental and policy approaches to physical activity interventions. Changes to physical and organizational structures can facilitate activity within an entire population. As an example, one town added a walking path along a major river that ran from a quiet neighborhood to downtown. As a result, more people are walking to work. Modifying PE curriculum in schools can also affect exercise behavior. More and longer PE classes that actually appeal to the children they are serving will encourage kids to want to get outside and play more.

Slide 33

In this week’s lesson, we learned about several effective intervention techniques. However, just because an intervention was successful in a research environment does not necessarily mean that it will be successful in the real world. To determine the success of an intervention, we use the RE-AIM framework. First, how many people did the intervention reach? One? Ten? One thousand? Next we look at efficacy; how effective was the intervention? If the intervention was for weight loss, did the people actually lose weight? What percentage of people you reached adopted the exercise behavior? How was the intervention implemented? Was it too difficult for people to understand? Finally, we have to ask how long the increased exercise behavior lasted, since ultimately we are striving to inspire our clients to exercise for the rest of their lives.