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Global Handbook on Noncommunicable Diseases and Health Promotion pp 137–157Cite as

Physical Inactivity and Health Promotion: Evidence and Challenges

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Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to give an overview of evidence on existing physical activity promotion strategies, to contribute to the development of theories that expand our focus beyond the individual level, and to provide insights about such interactions based on actual research projects. In the first part of this chapter, we review some of the existing evidence relating to physical activity promotion intervention strategies. We argue that there is an urgent need to develop and utilize theories that go beyond dynamics that occur at the individual level. The second section presents such a theoretical built on Giddens’ theory of structuration and on Sewell’s additions to incorporate structural change. The model also integrates Ostrom’s distinction between the operational level (where physical activity practice occurs) and the collective choice level (where physical activity-related policy-making takes place). In the third part of this chapter, we present two case studies for purposes of illustrating the cross-level interplay between structure and agency in health promotion. We conclude that future research should pay special attention to the specific processes at the collective choice level and to the fact that “what works” in public health might be different from “what works” in policy-making. In addition, from a global perspective, selecting appropriate interventions and policies and adapting existing ones to new contexts are questions of central importance. This will require closer investigation of national policy processes and context variables.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    In a previous work (Rütten and Gelius 2011), we have outlined how our multi-level model on the interplay of structure and agency can be related to the central claims of the Ottawa Charter (WHO 1986), i.e. “build healthy public policy”, “create supportive environments”, “strengthen community actions”, and “develop personal skills”. This approach was helpful to demonstrate the specific fruitfulness of the model for health promotion theory development. But given the particular focus of this chapter it need to be advanced with respect to at least two aspects: (1) the central claims of the Ottawa Charter are not theory-based in a strict sense (i.e. they are not explicitly derived from theory). Therefore, an advanced model should use theoretical terms that are in line with our theoretical framework. (2) An adequate theoretical model for this the context of this book should consider specificities of physical activity promotion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Sport Science and Sport, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Gebberststr. 123b, 91058, Erlangen, Germany

    Alfred Rütten, Karim Abu-Omar, Annika Frahsa & Peter Gelius

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  1. Alfred Rütten
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  2. Karim Abu-Omar
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  3. Annika Frahsa
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  4. Peter Gelius
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Correspondence to Alfred Rütten .

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  1. Emory University, Midvale Court 2418, Atlanta, 30084, Georgia, USA

    David V. McQueen

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Rütten, A., Abu-Omar, K., Frahsa, A., Gelius, P. (2013). Physical Inactivity and Health Promotion: Evidence and Challenges. In: McQueen, D. (eds) Global Handbook on Noncommunicable Diseases and Health Promotion. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7594-1_9

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