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A systematic review of single health behavior change interventions vs. multiple health behavior change interventions among older adults

  • Systematic Review
  • Published:
Translational Behavioral Medicine

ABSTRACT

Multiple behavior change is widely used to reduce targeted health behaviors; however, its effect on behaviors such as physical activity, nutrition, and alcohol and tobacco use among older adults remains inconclusive. The primary purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate the effects of single health behavior change (SHBC) interventions vs. multiple health behavior change (MHBC) interventions among older age individuals. PubMed was searched for publications on health behavior interventions from 2006 to 2011. Twenty-one randomized clinical trials assessed the effects of health behavior change in older individuals. Results were reviewed by a number of health behaviors and effectiveness. Results revealed that within SHBC interventions, physical activity or exercise behavior revealed that interventions were the most common and showed the most promise in influencing positive outcomes in physical activity behavior among community-dwelling older adults. There were too few MHBC studies identified to allow confident comparison to SHBC interventions. The MHBC field is still at an early stage within the older adult literature, and more attention is recommended to investigate if the benefits of MHBC apply to this age group.

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Acknowledgments

Support for CRL was provided by R25 CA090956.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health Sciences, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1960 East-West Road, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA

    Claudio R. Nigg PhD

  2. University of Hawai‘i Cancer Center, Honolulu, HI, USA

    Claudio R. Nigg PhD & Camonia R. Long PhD

Authors
  1. Claudio R. Nigg PhD
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  2. Camonia R. Long PhD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Claudio R. Nigg PhD.

Additional information

Implications

Research: More MHBC studies are needed in older adults to inform if such approaches are effective, provide synergy, provide savings of resources, are more cost effective; or if they provide too large of a burden, are too confusing; and ultimately if MHBC is a better investment compared to SHBC approaches.

Practice: Older adults respond well to behavior change interventions delivered one behavior at a time. Practical experience in MHBC needs to be gained, evaluated, and documented to see if MHBC interventions are feasible and accepted by older adults.

Policy: Evidence-based single health behavior change programs exist for older adults; however, the evidence of multiple health behavior change does not yet exist.

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Nigg, C.R., Long, C.R. A systematic review of single health behavior change interventions vs. multiple health behavior change interventions among older adults. Behav. Med. Pract. Policy Res. 2, 163–179 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-012-0130-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-012-0130-y

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