PERSONALITY AFFECTS STRATEGIES TO CHANGE EXERCISE BEHAVIOR

Abstract

1034 Interventions to change exercise behavior have been developed based on the Stages of Change Model (SCM), which classifies individuals into exercise stages [precontemplation (PCON), contemplation (CON), preparation (PREP), action (ACT) and maintenance (MT)]. Although the SCM has been used to implement stage-specific interventions, few studies have looked at the association between components of the SCM, i.e., processes of change, and personality dynamics. The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between exercise stage, processes of change [experiential (EXP) and behavioral (BEH)], and personality dynamics measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). The MBTI is a personality inventory that defines people based on their preferred way of taking in data and making judgements. MBTI types examined were extroversion (E) vs introversion (I) and judging (J) vs perceiving (P). Subjects were 130 students (age 21.5±2.9, 75.4% female, 80% Caucasian) enrolled in college health classes [CON (23.1%), PREP (28.5%), ACT (20%), and MT (28.5%)]. There was a significant (p<0.05) 3-way interaction (StagexE/IxJ/P) for EXP but not BEH. For Js but not Ps, EXP was lower in CONT than PREP for Es, but higher in CONT than PREP for Is, p<0.0125. There was a significant main effect for stage for BEH, CONT=PREP<ACT=MT, p<0.01. There were 2-way interactions (StagexE/I) for specific processes, e.g., counter conditioning (CC) and self-reevaluation(SR). There were no differences for Is. For Es, CC (CONT=PREP<ACT=MT, p<0.0001) and SR (PREP<MT, p<0.0125) were different between stages. We conclude that processes of change vary as a function of exercise stage and MBTI classifications. Further research is needed on how these variables interact when subjects change stages and how this information can be used to design exercise interventions.