Lifestyle counselling: emerging challenges, missing opportunities and future directions for research

Abstract

There is burgeoning demand for preventative care to protect from and manage a host of physical and psychological disorders. Particularly, the spurt in lifestyle diseases and the realization of role of lifestyle practices in promoting wellness have resulted in identification of a new area of lifestyle counselling. However, counselling approaches for changing lifestyles have been rather naive. Against this backdrop, the present paper deliberates on emerging challenges imbued in any counselling attempt for change in lifestyle and missing opportunities in the form of psychological strategies offered by existing theoretical models to effectively navigate the task of changing unhealthy behaviours and increase compliance with health-promotive behaviours. Finally, future directions for research are discussed.

Keywords:

• lifestyle counselling
• behavioural
• cognitive
• modelling
• gestalt
• motivational interview