Friday, October 20, 2017

From Healthful Intention to Healthful Action

We all have moments when we would like to do something, whether that is going to the gym or calling our mother.  But what gets us from the liking to the doing?   First, we must be aware of the liking.  Second, by definition, during our state of liking to do something, we almost certainly are doing something else that needs to end, or at least be radically reduced.   Third, we must desire the future behavior more than the current behavior or other competing behaviors.   That is, we must expect a payoff for switching to the future behavior.  Fourth, we must have the competence necessary to perform the activity to reach the goal associated with the liking.  And fifth, we must have sufficient energy to perform the activity to reach the goal associated with the liking.


Your good health intentions depend on the same set of conditions described above.  How often have you said “I’d like to exercise more often,” but never actually did so?   Are you aware of what you would like to do for yourself health-wise?  I mean explicitly aware, not implicitly aware.  Do you know what you currently are doing that is competing with your good health intentions?   Do you expect that behaving healthfully truly will be more rewarding than your customary behaviors?   Are you confident that you know how to implement the activity required for the healthful payoff?  And finally, are you willing and able to exert the energy needed to enact the healthful behavior?

Good intentions can break done at any of the five steps.  So you must be cognizant of all of them and of how each specifically affects you personally.

Let's take a concrete example.  Suppose you want to reconnect with a friend whom you haven't seen in six months, and who lives an hour and a half away.  The only day you both have free is Saturday.  But Saturday is your usual grocery shopping day.  You should ask yourself a series of questions.  Is seeing your friend more important than shopping on Saturday?  Do you know how easily you can get to her house and how you two probably will send your time together?  Are you willing to dedicate three travel hours to reconnect with someone whom you haven't seen in six months.  In essence: Is this relationship sufficiently rewarding and important to you that you are willing to "put yourself out" to re-establish the connection?

The re-connection opportunity might be a minor or major factor in your life.  And that obviously also will impact your decision to act relationship-wise rather than merely to intend to act. Moreover, it could be a one-time decision, or the prelude to more regular Saturday visits to your friend.  The important issue is that every physical health or mental health decision can be viewed through a similar lens.  The more you understand your unique decision process, the more you will be in control of your lifestyle.  It is well worth your time and effort to think about the five steps.

     
References

McCusker, P.  (2016).  Don't Rest in Peace: Activity-Oriented, Integrated Physical and Mental Health.  New York: Amazon Createspace.


Kruglanski, A. W. (2017). Motivational phases on the road to action. Motivation Science, 3(3), 196-207.

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