Participation in a three-month intervention at Norwegian Healthy Life Centres resulted in a modest improvement in self-reported physical activity at six months, with autonomous motivation and social support positively associated and psychological defiance negatively associated with physical activity outcomes.
Key Findings
Results
Participants in the intervention group reported higher levels of self-reported physical activity compared with the waiting-list control group at six-month follow-up.
The randomized controlled trial included 118 participants, with 57 in the intervention group and the remainder in a waiting-list control group.
Participants were recruited from Healthy Life Centres in South-western Norway.
The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT02247219).
The intervention consisted of a three-month program at Norwegian Healthy Life Centres.
Results
The estimated intervention effect on self-reported physical activity was modest, with a confidence interval that included zero.
The estimated effect was B = 0.26, 95% CI -0.01 to 0.53.
This effect was equivalent to approximately 0.37 SD.
Although the confidence interval included zero, 'the estimate remained compatible with a modest positive effect.'
The effect was assessed by comparing intervention and control groups after six months.
Results
Autonomous motivation was positively associated with self-reported physical activity at six months.
Autonomous motivation was identified as a positive predictor of physical activity status at six months.
Autonomous motivation also positively impacted physical activity change during the six-month period.
The analysis of predictors combined both intervention and control groups into a single cohort.
Sociodemographic and motivational predictors were examined together.
Results
Social support was positively associated with self-reported physical activity at six months.
Social support was identified as a positive predictor of physical activity status at six months.
The analysis combined both groups into a single cohort to examine predictors.
Social support was examined alongside autonomous motivation and psychological defiance as motivational predictors.
Results
Psychological defiance showed a negative association with self-reported physical activity at six months and negatively impacted physical activity change during the six-month period.
Psychological defiance was negatively associated with SR-PA after 6 months.
Psychological defiance and autonomous motivation 'impacted PA change during the 6-month period in opposite directions.'
Psychological defiance was examined as one of the motivational predictors across both groups combined.
This finding suggests that reactance or defiance toward health promotion efforts may undermine physical activity outcomes.
What This Means
This research suggests that attending a structured three-month health program at Norwegian Healthy Life Centres—community-based services designed to help people adopt healthier behaviors—led to a small but potentially meaningful increase in participants' self-reported physical activity compared to those on a waiting list. The study followed 118 adults over six months and found that while the improvement was modest (roughly one-third of a standard deviation), it was consistent with a positive effect of the program, even though the statistical uncertainty was large enough that the result could not rule out no effect.
The study also found that the psychological factors behind why people exercise matter a great deal. People who were motivated by their own internal values and goals (called 'autonomous motivation') were more physically active at six months and showed greater improvement over time. Having social support also helped. In contrast, people who tended to react against being told what to do ('psychological defiance') were less physically active and showed less improvement, suggesting that a feeling of being pressured into health behaviors may work against the intended benefits.
This research suggests that health promotion programs may be more effective when they foster participants' internal sense of motivation rather than relying on external pressure or directives. It also highlights that individual psychological characteristics like defiance may need to be addressed in program design to help people who are resistant to guidance. These findings are relevant for how primary care and public health services structure brief lifestyle interventions.
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Iglebæk M, Espeland J, Meland E, Mildestvedt T. (2026). Self-reported physical activity in a randomized study from Norwegian Healthy Life Centres.. Primary health care research & development. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1463423626101686