Stages of change toward physical activity: a review of literature

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to carry out a review of the literature about studies that investigated the stages of change for physical activity among adults. The search was conducted in the following electronic databases: Medline/Pubmed, Web of Science, Ovid, Biomed Central, Elsevier, Oxford, Sports Discus, PsycInfo e Lilacs. The terms used were: “transtheoretical model”, “stages of change”, “stages of readiness” combined with “physical activity” or “exercise”; when appropriated, the equivalent terms in Portuguese were used. Only original or reviews articles were selected, and other type of works were excluded. The issues discussed in this article addressed the background and the temporal evolution of the stages of change, ways of operationalize and analyze the stages, validity and reliability of the instruments applied to measure the stages, and the factors associated with the stages. In conclusion, the importance of the stages of change model to promote physical activity practice was highlighted.