A Personal Reflection On Lifestyle Behavioral Change

Prochaska & DiClemente’s (1984) research suggests the Prochaska & DiClemente’s model of change is effective and has an impact in health promotion. The Prochaska & DiClemente’s model of change is becoming a more popular and widely used resource for health promotion; this is because it can be applied with a number of addictive behaviours such as smoking, drug use and alcohol abuse (Whitelaw, et al, 2000). The Prochaska & DiClemente’s model of change has six stages these include, Pre contemplation this is when the patient is not seriously considering change, Contemplation This is when the patient is thinking about change, Preparation when the

In this report it will investigate at least three recent health education campaigns and use them to explain two models of behaviour change. The three recent health education campaigns will be ‘Smoke Free’, ‘Change4Life’ and ‘FRANK’. The two models of behaviour change will be the theory of reasoned action and the stages of change model.

The concept of health promotion has emerged with the increasing realisation in society that our health is one of our most valuable personal assets, as well as an asset for society (Crafter, 1997). The Health Promotion Agency (2008) describes health promotion as a process enabling people to

In everyday life many people develop habits, but it is never too late to attempt to change that bad habit to live a healthier life. For this behavioral change project, I was asked to choose a health behavior that I would like to change for the better. So, I decided that I wanted to increase the amount of water I was consuming each day. The standard recommendation on how much water an individual should consume is about 64 ounces daily. However how much a person should drink is more individualized then one might assume. Therefore, for this particular project my goal was to at least consume 64 ounces of water daily as a baseline starting point. I also had to consider days when I worked out. So, I decided that I would attempt to increase that amount

Explain two models of behaviour change that have been used in recent national health education campaigns.

The Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change (TTM) was created by Prochaska and DiClemente. It is based on “(1) the stages of change, (2) the decisional balance scale, (3) the strong and weak principle, (4) self-efficacy, and (5) the processes of change” (Kelly, 2008, p. 149). A person’s progression through the stages depends on their perception of the advantages of adopting a healthy lifestyle (Kelly, 2008).

Since the launch it has moved onto targeting parents of 1-4 years (Department of Health, 2009). The main aim of this campaign was to ‘eat more, move more, live longer’. Change 4 Life was published alongside Healthy lives, Healthy people: A call to action on obesity in England (Department of Health, 2011). The Change 4 Life programme will provide information, products and tools for individuals and families wanting to improve their lifestyle (Department of Health, 2011). Change 4 Life (Department of Health, 2009) state that if trends continue it is estimated that one in ten of the adult population will be a healthy weight by 2050. This therefore shows how important the Change 4 Life campaign is. At the same time it will influence the behaviours of todays children, leading to a steady decrease in the prevalance of obesity (Department of Health,

The majority of people will decide to change their health behavior throughout their lifetime. The reasons for the change might be quite different from individual to individual. Some may be motivated to take action after experiencing a life threatening illness, while others are proactive and change their health behavior to decrease the risks of developing a potential disease. However, even if the reasons for the change are valid and well understood, there is a great possibility that one will not follow set goals long term. Stacy Carter, an assistant of professor and an author of the Social Validity Manual, expresses her opinion about people implementing a scientifically proven health behavior change treatment in their routine, “if it's something that is going to cause them a lot of effort, or is difficult to implement, then they probably are not going to use it for long” (Cranford, 2011). Use number superscript 1

In this part of my assignment I will describe 2 different theories of behaviour change in relation to health.

Improving lifestyle was given more of an emphasis after statistics showed the trends in obesity and learning that it was causing 9,000 premature deaths per year in the UK. It was also shown to cause heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some types of cancer. Link this up with deaths caused by CHD in the UK shows that people need to learn more about healthy living. Due to these statistics some people are finally starting to realise problems between lifestyle choices and health and therefore quite a few are attempting to alter their lifestyle so as to maintain or proceed with a

My health goal was to change my eating habits. I chose this goal because I have a bad habit of not eating as well as I should. Although I usually do not eat fast food, I eat a lot of carbs. I was raised in an Italian family so macaroni and pizza are my two worst enemies. I figured that if I used this project to get rid of my bad eating habits, I would have an easier time eating healthy after this class ends. Before starting the project I realized that there will be challenges, but this project was not meant to be simple. If behavior change was simple, then anyone would be able to change behavior whenever they wanted to.

The contributing factor which makes it so successful is that it provides an explanation into the ‘how’ of behaviour change as opposed to the ‘why’, effectively demonstrating problematic areas which need to be addressed (Adam & White, 2003). This alludes to the source of the problematic behaviour and stimulates thought into how this behaviour can be changed. A main component of the model which makes it so effective is its integral focus on decision-making, important in promoting real change in the individual (Adam & White, 2003). Decision-making is imperative to this model’s success as it allows for intervention strategies that are individually tailored as well as applicable to a wider, diverse population (Nigg et al, 2011). Not all individuals begin at the same stage and hence TTM provides the appropriate mechanisms to support those who aren’t ready for change, those who are committed, and those who experience relapse (Nigg et al, 2011). For example, two individuals may utilise this model to engage in more effective behaviours regarding physical activity. Although they both share a common goal, they may be in different stages of the model – one individual may be in the preparation stage contemplating an exercise regime, while the other may be in the maintenance stage considering methods to maintain change (Nigg et al,

The change models are change agents that could explain the ways of implementing a change process. These models explain the reason for the change, what to expect during the process and the way a change occurs. Thus, these models help one understand the various aspects of the change process (Agriculture & Life Sciences: Texas A & M University, n.d.). The transtheoretical model of health behavior change could explain my evidence-based practice (EBP) project implementation plan.

On individual level changes in health promotion and ecological approaches target and influence multiple health behaviors. This is because the individuals living in the environment are embedded in temporary change of behaviors. Therefore it is very important to consider ecological approaches, changing health behaviors and environmental factors while designing operational and supportable health promotion plans.

The main purpose of health promotion is to heighten people’s motivation to strive for optimal health, while assisting them in making lifestyle modifications that will help them advance their wellbeing to an ideal state. Modifications of the unfavorable way of living can be enabled through a