Modifiable Psychosocial Constructs Associated With Physical Activity Participation in People With Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Blathin Casey; Susan Coote; Celina Shirazipour; Ailish Hannigan; Robert Motl; Kathleen Martin Ginis; Amy Latimer-Cheung

doi:10.1016/j.apmr.2017.01.027

Modifiable Psychosocial Constructs Associated With Physical Activity Participation in People With Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2017 Jul;98(7):1453-1475. doi: 10.1016/j.apmr.2017.01.027. Epub 2017 Feb 28.

Authors

Blathin Casey¹, Susan Coote², Celina Shirazipour³, Ailish Hannigan⁴, Robert Motl⁵, Kathleen Martin Ginis⁶, Amy Latimer-Cheung³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Therapies, Faculty of Education and Health Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland. Electronic address: blathin.casey@ul.ie.
² Department of Clinical Therapies, Faculty of Education and Health Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
³ School of Kinesiology & Health Studies, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
⁴ Graduate Entry Medical School, Faculty of Education and Health Sciences, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland.
⁵ Department of Physical Therapy, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL.
⁶ Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

PMID: 28254635
DOI: 10.1016/j.apmr.2017.01.027

Abstract

Objective: To synthesize current knowledge of the modifiable psychosocial constructs associated with physical activity (PA) participation in people with multiple sclerosis.

Data sources: A search was conducted through October 2015 in 8 electronic databases: CINAHL, PubMed, SPORTDiscus, Web of Knowledge, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and PsycINFO.

Study selection: Cohort and intervention studies were included if they (1) included an objective or subjective measure of PA; (2) measured at least 1 modifiable psychosocial construct; and (3) reported bivariate correlations (or these could be extracted) between the PA and psychosocial construct measures. A total of 13,867 articles were screened for inclusion, and 26 were included in the final analysis.

Data extraction: Meta-analyses of correlations were conducted using the Hedges-Olkin method. Where a meta-analysis was not possible, results were reported descriptively.

Data synthesis: Meta-analyses indicated a pooled correlation coefficient between (1) objective PA and self-efficacy (n=7) of r=.30 (P<.0001), indicating a moderate, positive association; (2) subjective PA and self-efficacy (n=7) of r=.34 (P<.0001), indicating a moderate, positive association; (3) subjective PA and goal-setting (n=5) of r=.44 (P<.0001), indicating a moderate-to-large positive association; and 4) subjective PA and outcome expectancies (n=4) (physical: r=.13, P=.11; social: r=.19, P<.0001; self-evaluative: r=.27, P<.0001), indicating small-moderate positive associations. Other constructs such as measures of health beliefs, enjoyment, social support, and perceived benefits and barriers were reported to be significantly correlated with PA in individual studies, but the number of studies was not sufficient for a meta-analysis.

Conclusions: Future PA interventions should continue to focus on the psychosocial constructs of self-efficacy and goal-setting. However, there is a need to explore the associations between other constructs outside those reported in this review.

Keywords: Behavioral medicine; Exercise; Multiple sclerosis; Rehabilitation.

Publication types

Meta-Analysis
Review
Systematic Review

MeSH terms

Adult
Exercise / psychology*
Female
Goals
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Multiple Sclerosis / psychology*
Self Efficacy
Social Support