© 2004 BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. & Royal College of Nursing
Qualitative
Review: lasting health behaviour changes began with critical self appraisal and small steps that led to an identity shift
Kearney MH, O’Sullivan J. Identity shifts as turning points in health behavior change. West J Nurs Res 2003;25:134–52.
Q What are the key influences and processes that enable people to make lasting health behaviour changes (eg, in diet, exercise, smoking cessation, and substance abuse recovery)?
Key Words: health behaviour
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
Studies were identified by searching CINAHL, Medline, Sociofile, and PsycLIT and by hand searching relevant journals (to 2000).
Articles or dissertations were selected if they were qualitative reports, addressed turning points or a process of change in health behaviour over time, and were grounded in or supported by observational or verbatim qualitative data. 2 reviewers independently coded study findings in categories of main concept, pre-change influences, turning point, and steps in the change process. Categories were refined through discussion as inductive coding and analysis unfolded.
14 studies (399 participants, 73% women; 6 studies on weight loss and cardiovascular risk reduction, 6 on substance abuse recovery, and 2 on smoking cessation) were included. Distressing accumulated evidence. The process of health behaviour change began with awareness of a growing body of distressing evidence that was incongruent with personal goals and values (eg, memory lapses, auto accidents, or loss of custody of
University of Missouri-Columbia
Columbia, Missouri, USA
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