A Goal Setting Intervention Positively Impacts Adolescents’ Dietary Behaviors and Physical Activity Self-Efficacy

The efficacy of a youth development intervention on improving eating and physical activity(PA) self-efficacy, goal attainment scaling, goal effort, and behaviors was examined in a repeated measures, quasi-experimental field trial. Ethnically diverse students (n=64) from a low-income middle school pa...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mical Kay Shilts, Marilyn S. Townsend
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Clemson University Press 2012-12-01
Series:Journal of Youth Development
Online Access:http://jyd.pitt.edu/ojs/jyd/article/view/120
Description
Summary:The efficacy of a youth development intervention on improving eating and physical activity(PA) self-efficacy, goal attainment scaling, goal effort, and behaviors was examined in a repeated measures, quasi-experimental field trial. Ethnically diverse students (n=64) from a low-income middle school participated in the 10-session intervention driven by the Social Cognitive Theory with a Goal Setting Theory emphasis. Participants, 13-14 years old, made significant changes in dietary behaviors (P=0.03) and PA self-efficacy (P=0.02) after receiving the intervention. Self-efficacy did not mediate dietary behavior change but did mediate the small changes made in PA. Goal effort was not a mediator of behavior change. After the intervention, more participants rated themselves as making one lasting improvement in eating (P
ISSN:2325-4017