Exercise behavior change revisited: Affective-reflective theory

Abstract

Meta-analyses show that theory-based interventions to increase physical activity behavior yield small effect sizes. One possible reason for this is that theories of behavior change that have been favored in exercise psychology over the past decades have overemphasized the role of forethought and controlled rational reflection. In contrast, the importance of situated affective reactions that cannot always be "thought away" by the individual has been underestimated. The affective-reflective theory (ART) of physical inactivity and exercise is a new theory that addresses this imbalance. The ART assumes that exercise-related stimuli (e.g., the thought of additional physical effort or a friend's reminder to go running) are quickly and involuntarily "valuated" before any reflective thought. This automatic affective valuation manifests as a pleasant or unpleasant feeling, which comes inherently imbued with an approach or avoidance impulse. Depending on the self-control a person is willing and able to apply in a situation, more reflective consideration about a possible change in behavior may follow. Reflective consideration can counteract or strengthen the initial impulse and lead to an intention to change. In this chapter, we explain why the ART is a fundamentally novel and different theory of physical activity behavior change. In the process, readers will also gain insights into the mechanisms of scientific (r)evolutions.