Exercise‐related goals and self‐efficacy as correlates of aquatic exercise in individuals with arthritis

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Objective: To examine whether aquatic exercise–related goals, task self‐efficacy, and scheduling self‐efficacy are predictive of aquatic exercise attendance in individuals with arthritis. A secondary objective was to determine whether high attendees differed from low attendees on goals and self‐efficacy.Methods: The sample comprised 216 adults with arthritis (mean age 69.21 years). Measures included exercise‐related goal difficulty and specificity, task and scheduling self‐efficacy, and 8‐week aquatic exercise attendance.Results: Results of a multiple hierarchical regression analysis were significant (P< 0.01). Goal difficulty, specificity, and task self‐efficacy were independent predictors of attendance (P< 0.05). A significant multivariate analysis of variance (P< 0.01) indicated that high attendees had higher task and scheduling self‐efficacy and lower goal difficulty than did low attendees (P< 0.05).Conclusion: Support for the importance of exercise‐related goal setting and self‐efficacy was demonstrated. Implications pertain to the design of interventions to impact aquatic exercise.