Text Messaging: An Intervention to Increase Physical Activity among African American Participants in a Faith-Based, Competitive Weight Loss Program

Pamela McCoy, Sophia Leggett, Azad Bhuiyan, David Brown, Patricia Frye and Bryman Williams
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Pamela McCoy: School of Public Health, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS 39217, USA
Sophia Leggett: School of Public Health, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS 39217, USA
Azad Bhuiyan: School of Public Health, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS 39217, USA
David Brown: College of Medicine, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32827, USA
Patricia Frye: School of Public Health, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS 39217, USA
Bryman Williams: College of Liberal Arts, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS 39217, USA

IJERPH, 2017, vol. 14, issue 4, 1-12

Abstract: African American adults are less likely to meet the recommended physical activity guidelines for aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity than Caucasian adults. The purpose of this study was to assess whether a text message intervention would increase physical activity in this population. This pilot study used a pre-/post-questionnaire non-randomized design. Participants in a faith-based weight loss competition who agreed to participate in the text messaging were assigned to the intervention group ( n = 52). Participants who declined to participate in the intervention, but agreed to participate in the study, were assigned to the control group ( n = 30). The text messages provided strategies for increasing physical activity and were based on constructs of the Health Belief Model and the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills Model. Chi square tests determined the intervention group participants increased exercise time by approximately eight percent ( p = 0.03), while the control group’s exercise time remained constant. The intervention group increased walking and running. The control group increased running. Most participants indicated that the health text messages were effective. The results of this pilot study suggest that text messaging may be an effective method for providing options for motivating individuals to increase physical activity.

Keywords: text messaging; African Americans; public health; health disparity; health education; physical activity; obesity; health communication; health behavior; behavioral theory (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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