Motivational Correlates of Physical Activity among Adults with Type 2 Diabetes

Abstract

PURPOSE: About 61% of adults with type 2 diabetes are not meeting the current physical activity guidelines. This study examined the usefulness of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) for understanding physical activity intention and behavior in this population. METHODS: A link to an electronic survey that included a demographics questionnaire, a TPB questionnaire, and the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire (GLTEQ) was distributed through several social media outlets during an 8-week period. The TPB questionnaire used 7-point Likert-type scales to measure attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control (PBC), and intention. The GLTEQ assessed weekly frequency of moderate and vigorous physical activity. RESULTS: Although 48 adults consented to participate in the research, only 23 adults (Mage = 56.18, SD = 11.41; MBMI = 29.55, SD = 7.65; 56.5% male; 78.3% White) reported having type 2 diabetes and provided complete survey data. Two hierarchical regression analyses with forced entry within each block were used to examine the predictors of physical activity intention and behavior. The final model that included attitude, subjective norm, and PBC explained 60.0% of the variance in intention, but PBC was the only significant predictor (β = .73; p < .001). For the prediction of physical activity, the model that included only intention (β = .45; p = .03) accounted for 20.5% of the variance. The addition of PBC did not add a significant amount of explained variance and was not a significant predictor of physical activity. CONCLUSION: These results are similar to previous research and suggest that the TPB is useful for understanding the physical activity intention and behavior of adults with type 2 diabetes. Further research with larger and more diverse samples are needed to inform intervention design.