2.1: Physical Activity Motivation Theories
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)The abundant physical and mental health benefits of physical activity provide ample reason why people should be physically active, but seldomly do these explain why people are physically active. Think about the people in your life that are regularly active. What motivates them on a day-to-day basis? And those people you know who have started being active but quit:what moved them to start being active? Why did they quit?
Theories provide general frameworks or structures to describe, predict, or understand physical activity behavior or behavior change (Bem & Looren de Jong, 1997; Rebar & Rhodes, 2020). There are many behavior change theories available: one review documented more than 80 theories that are available to organize thinking about which factors impact behavior change and through which pathways (Michie et al., 2014). Practically, theories can inform our efforts to change people’s behavior and to understand why certain behavior change efforts may work and others may not (Michie & Abraham, 2004). Throughout this chapter,we consider different types of theories,and provide illustrative applications of these to physical activity motivation.
Historically, theories of physical activity motivation have been adapted from sports and performance psychology (Rebar & Rhodes, 2020; Rhodes & Nigg, 2011), the aim of which is to achieve (e.g., win, improve). Hence, many theories of physical activity motivation focus on the processes of setting and achieving goals to change physical activity. Influences from public health, developmental psychology, social psychology, evolutionary psychology, and neurobiology have led to expansions in the conceptualization of physical activity motivation. Now, nonconscious influences like habits and urges are considered in physical activity motivation theories as well as evolutionary tendencies for humans to exert as little effort as possible when moving (Cheval et al., 2016; Kwasnicka et al., 2016). Additionally, innovations in measurement and analysis have transformed theory from accounts of motivation and behavior on single occasions, towardsa portrayal of motivation and behavior as dynamic, changing on a moment-by-moment basis,and acknowledging the longer-term process of maintenance (Dunton et al., 2019; Rebar & Rhodes, 2020).
This chapter is not a comprehensive inventory of physical activity motivation theories. Rather, it showcases different types of theories, and provides illustrative examples of how theories of each type have been applied to physical activity motivation science. Table 2.1 depicts the categories of theories and physical activity motivation theories covered in this chapter. Notably, these categories are not mutually exclusive;many theories could fit within multiple categories. The organizational structure offers a heuristic framework for thinking about the different ways in which physical activity motivation has been theorized.
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Table 2.1 Overview of the Categories of Theories and Examples of Specific Theories as Applied to Physical Activity Motivation
| Category and Assumptions | Example Theories |
| Social cognitive theories: Behavior is motivated by intentions/goals, which are based on expectancies and values about the behavior. | Health Action Process Approach(Schwarzer, 1992, 2008, 2016)Temporal Self-Regulation Theory (Hall & Fong, 2007, 2010, 2015) |
| Humanistic theories: Behavior is motivated by the common human pursuit of fulfillment. | Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 1980, 2002) |
| Dual-process theories: Behavior is motivated by two different types of processes: reflective processes that are deliberate and reasoned, and automatic processes that are spontaneous and uncontrollable. |
Hedonic Motivation Theory (Williams, 2018; Williams & Bohlen, 2019) Theory of Effort Minimization in Physical Activity (Cheval & Boisgontier, in press) Affective-Reflective Theory (see Chapter 4; Brand & Ekkekakis, 2021) |
| Maintenance theories: Motivation to initiate a change in behavior is distinct from motivation to maintain behavior change. | Theoretical Explanations for Maintenance of Behavior Change |