Methods for environmental change; an exploratory study

dc.creatorKok, Gerjoen
dc.creatorGottlieb, Nell H.en
dc.creatorPanne, Roberten
dc.creatorSmerecnik, Chrisen
dc.date.accessioned2014-12-15T17:11:04Zen
dc.date.available2014-12-15T17:11:04Zen
dc.date.issued2012-11-28en
dc.descriptionGerjo Kok and Robert Panne are with Work and Social Psychology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands -- Nell H Gottlieb is with Kinesiology and Health Education, University of Texas at Austin, Texas, USA -- Chris Smerecnik is with Applied Psychology, Fontys Hogeschool, Eindhoven, the Netherlandsen
dc.description.abstractBackground: While the interest of health promotion researchers in change methods directed at the target population has a long tradition, interest in change methods directed at the environment is still developing. In this survey, the focus is on methods for environmental change; especially about how these are composed of methods for individual change (‘Bundling’) and how within one environmental level, organizations, methods differ when directed at the management (‘At’) or applied by the management (‘From’). Methods: The first part of this online survey dealt with examining the ‘bundling’ of individual level methods to methods at the environmental level. The question asked was to what extent the use of an environmental level method would involve the use of certain individual level methods. In the second part of the survey the question was whether there are differences between applying methods directed ‘at’ an organization (for instance, by a health promoter) versus ‘from’ within an organization itself. All of the 20 respondents are experts in the field of health promotion. Results: Methods at the individual level are frequently bundled together as part of a method at a higher ecological level. A number of individual level methods are popular as part of most of the environmental level methods, while others are not chosen very often. Interventions directed at environmental agents often have a strong focus on the motivational part of behavior change. There are different approaches targeting a level or being targeted from a level. The health promoter will use combinations of motivation and facilitation. The manager will use individual level change methods focusing on self-efficacy and skills. Respondents think that any method may be used under the right circumstances, although few endorsed coercive methods. Conclusions: Taxonomies of theoretical change methods for environmental change should include combinations of individual level methods that may be bundled and separate suggestions for methods targeting a level or being targeted from a level. Future research needs to cover more methods to rate and to be rated. Qualitative data may explain some of the surprising outcomes, such as the lack of large differences and the avoidance of coercion. Taxonomies should include the theoretical parameters that limit the effectiveness of the method.en
dc.description.catalogingnoteg.kok@maastrichtuniversity.nlen
dc.description.departmentKinesiology and Health Educationen
dc.description.sponsorshipen
dc.identifier.Filename1471-2458-12-1037.pdfen
dc.identifier.citationKok, Gerjo, Nell H. Gottlieb, Robert Panne, and Chris Smerecnik. “Methods for Environmental Change; an Exploratory Study.” BMC Public Health 12, no. 1 (November 28, 2012): 1037. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-12-1037.en
dc.identifier.doidoi:10.1186/1471-2458-12-1037en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2152/27973en
dc.language.isoEnglishen
dc.publisherBMC Public Healthen
dc.rightsAdministrative deposit of works to UT Digital Repository: This works author(s) is or was a University faculty member, student or staff member; this article is already available through open access at http://www.biomedcentral.com. The public license is specified as CC-BY: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. The library makes the deposit as a matter of fair use (for scholarly, educational, and research purposes), and to preserve the work and further secure public access to the works of the University.en
dc.subjectbehvior change methoden
dc.subjectenvironmenten
dc.subjecthealth promotionen
dc.subjectInterventionen
dc.titleMethods for environmental change; an exploratory studyen
dc.typeArticleen

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