Transtheorical Model And The Stages Of Change Model

Prochaska and DiClemente(1984)  deals with intentional behavioural change and views change as a process rather than an event.The change process is characterised by six stages of change.These include the precontemplation,contemplation,preparation,action,maintenance and relapse which can occur at any stage in any part of the cycle.

Prochaska’s stages of change or the Transtheoretical model of change (TTM) uses six different stages to conceptualize the process of intentional change of behavior (Prochange, 2015). The stages are precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance and termination.

(James, p. 74, 2012). Pre-contemplation is when the person is not considering change and denying they have a problem. Contemplation is when the addict is sitting on the fence about if they have a problem or not. Preparation/ready for action is described as when they are making a mental plan for how and when they are going to act. Action is practicing the new behavior for three to six months. The maintenance stage is continuing to maintain the new behavior for more than six months after the action plan. Relapse occurs if the old behaviors happen again, (James, 2012).

The Contemplation Stage and Preparation Stage of the Stages of Change Model vary greatly. In the Contemplation Stage, a person reflects on their own behavior, their ability to change, and the outcome it would bring compared to their current behavior. After a person has moved on from the Contemplation Stage, they take a step forward and begin test their ability to change by taking small steps like foreshadowing the difficulties that they will face and like the name of the stage suggest, prepare for them.

The Transtheoretical Model of Change has become popular over the past few decades in explaining health behaviors like substance and alcohol abuse, dieting, and smoking cessation. It has four parts to it, the first being the stages of change. The Stages of Change Model gives explanations for different points on the path to intentional behavioral change (Vilela, Jungerman, Laranjeira, & Callaghan, 2009). Intentional behavioral changes are changes in the habitual patterns of behavior that are related to issues such as substance or alcohol abuse. There are six steps in the Stages of Change Model: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance, and

step, relapse, but for the sake of this assignment, five will be used as per the text. During the pre-contemplation stage the client is not thinking about change; they are unaware or under-aware that there is a problem. At the contemplation stage the client is ambivalent about change, and not likely considering making a change within the next thirty days. The preparation stage is when the client has made some progress with change and attempting to change further. The action stage is when the client has been performing a new behavior from ninety days to six months. The maintenance stage in involves the client making a commitment to achieving the desired change, and typically takes place after six months and up to five years (University of Arizona C.A.T.S. Life Skills Program, 2016).

The Transtheoretical Model is a theory of health behavior that suggests that behavior change is a process, not an event. There are five stages of change someone can go through while attempting to engage in positive behavior: precontemplation, no intention to act within six months; contemplation, intention to act within six months; preparation, intention to act within the next thirty days along with some behavioral steps; action, changed behavior for less than six months, maintenance, changed behavior for more than six months; termination, end of the behavior. These stages are not linear, so an individual can move up and down the stages of change indiscriminately.

This model consists of five different stages that include the following: Precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance (DiClemente, Schlundt, & Gemmell, 2004).The main tenant of this model’s theory is that at any point in time, an individual is in a specific stage in relation to behavioral change (Prochaska and DiClemente, 1982). This model also suggests that there will always be continuity and discontinuity throughout the process of change and that the progression of stages is not always linear. In fact, it is possible for a person to go from stage one to stage three, and then back to stage one, depending on the individual’s willingness and readiness to change (DiClemente, Schlundt, & Gemmell, 2004). Therefore it is fundamental to keep in mind that although these stages of recovery are listed as numbers one through five, not all individuals going through recovery will go through these stages linearly.

Precontemplation: This change is the stage were the individual is aware of the negative behavior but has no intention in changing it due to avoidance in being demoralized about their ability to change, talking or even thinking the high health emotional risk behavior.

Prochaska and DiClemete discovered the stages-of-change model in the 1980s as six multistage processes in which knowledge and type of treatment were recommended to provide and individualize approach to help people in each stage. Motivation and education were helpful to people in the precontemplation and contemplation; active cognitive-behavioral interventions were needed for those in the preparation, action and maintenance stages. The relapse stage is where the individual returns to any earlier stage and begins to recycle through the earlier stages (Knickman, Jonas & Kovner, 2015, p. 128).

The second stage is contemplation, where the individual evaluates whether or not to make a change. Like making a pros and cons list of the effects smoking gives. Amanda would think of the positive effects smoking gives her, but might also think about how it affects her school education or relationships.

The process of change describes how people change. These processes of change are divided into two categories; cognitive and behavioral. Cognitive is the thinking process of change and behavioral is the action process of change. The transtheoretical model suggests that people use different strategies, techniques or different amounts of each at different stages in their change process. Self-efficacy refers to confidence and an individual’s experience with confidence to perform specific behaviors in specific situations. Self-efficacy is a good predictor of behavior change. An individual with higher self-efficacy may be more likely to change a behavior even if the situation doesn’t have any positive reinforcements (Campbell, Eichhorn, Early, Caraccioli, Greely, 2012).

8. Behavioral change typically consists of several attempts. Person may progress, backslide, and cycle and recycle through stages.

As such, smoking cessation programs should not only employ a combination of psycho-educational, behavioural, and social learning strategies, but also be thought of as process of behaviour change that occurs in consecutive stages (Stiefel, 2006). Therefore, smoking cessation programs ought to rely on the Stages of Change Model as it does just that. Formulated by Prochaska and Di Clemente originally for smoking cessation, the Stages of Change Model is an integrative model that provides a descriptive account of the processes of intentional behaviour change unfolding over time based on the individual’s readiness of change and proposes that individuals move through five stages commencing in pre-contemplation, progressing to contemplation, then to preparation, action, and, ultimately, maintenance (Warwick-Booth et al., 2012). Though progression through the Stages of Change can transpire in a linear manner, a nonlinear progression is common. Often, individuals linger in a particular stage or regress to former stages from later ones. The main assumption undermining the Stages of Change Model is that a person’s behaviour and choices are contingent on where the individual stands in the stages of behaviour change. In other words, the clinician examines the smoker’s readiness for change and guides him or her through the stages accordingly, instead of expecting a behaviour change based irrelevant factors like the amount of meetings attended in a certain time frame. In the pre-contemplation stage individuals are unaware of the problems with smoking. They are seen as resistant or unmotivated, and tend to avoid information, discussion, or thought with regards to quitting smoking because they have no interest in doing so. In the contemplation stage, the individual has not stopped smoking, but is seriously considering it. They

Some strongly believe that a requirement for adherence success is that movement professionals strive to understand the purposes behind one’s decision to begin exercising in the first place. In addition, it is thought that understanding what has prevented someone from beginning an exercise regimen in the past or the causes for relapse back into a sedentary lifestyle are also crucial tools for success. Once these variables have been identified, the professional and their client or student should be able to come up with ways to overcome these obstacles and plan ahead for periods of relapse. While it is important to be able to understand these barriers, the concern lies in the fact that this comprehension can only provide limited power to movement professionals. All the planning, discussions about overcoming barriers, and motivational tips have set them up for success, but it is their personal responsibility to follow through and maintain an exercise program, which can be a struggle when alone.