The relation between risk perceptions and physical activity among older adults: A prospective study

Abstract

Past studies have found that risk perceptions of suffering from diseases play an important role in the development of intentions to perform physical activity (PA). According to the behaviour motivation hypothesis, perceived risk could be positively and directly related to PA, but this possibility has been ignored and/or underestimated. Accounting for recent methodological developments on the importance of study design and risk perception assessment, the purpose of the present study was to examine the risk-perceptions–PA relationship among older adults. Participants (N = 143) aged from 61 to 70 years initially underwent measurement of risk perceptions, baseline PA, socio-demographic and health factors. Six months later, they were asked about their PA participation. Multiple regression analyses revealed that perceived risk of suffering from diseases and conditions without regular PA participation was an independent positive predictor of later PA, over and beyond baseline behaviour, socio-demographic and health variables. This study fills a gap in the existing literature on the PAs of older adults and reveals that risk perceptions are directly linked to their participation. In addition, it extends existing knowledge in health psychology on the behaviour motivation hypothesis, and emphasises the necessity of methodological adjustments when assessing the risk-perception–behaviour relationship.

Keywords:

• risk perceptions
• physical activity
• older adults

Notes

Notes

1. Given that all participants were in the same age decade, and as a result the sample was quite homogeneous for age, this variable was not included as a control variable for the prediction of Time 2 PA.

2. Descriptive statistics revealed that the main variables of this study were only moderately skewed (risk perceptions, skew = −0.18; Time 1 PA, skew = 0.73; Time 2 PA, skew = 0.57).

3. Additional analyses revealed that including age as a control variable did not change the overall prediction pattern, and that age did not contribute to Time 2 PA. In addition, exploratory analyses tested the hypothesis that risk perceptions differentially predict PA according to its level of intensity. Activities were classified according to Godin and Shephard (1985) as strenuous (running, cycling and rowing) or moderate activities (walking, hiking, strength training, games and martial arts). No significant contributions of risk perceptions on either strenuous activities (β = 0.13, p = 0.06) or moderate activities (β = 0.12, p = 0.08) were found.