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“I don’t Believe in Age; I Believe in Staying Enthusiastic”: A Qualitative Study Into Recruitment Strategies Stimulating Middle-Aged and Older Adults to Join Physical Activity Interventions
Boekhout, J.M.; Hut, R.; Lechner, L.; Peels, D.A. “I Don’t Believe in Age; I Believe in Staying Enthusiastic”: An Exploratory Qualitative Study into Recruitment Strategies Stimulating Middle-Aged and Older Adults to Join Physical Activity Interventions. Geriatrics2024, 9, 80.
Boekhout, J.M.; Hut, R.; Lechner, L.; Peels, D.A. “I Don’t Believe in Age; I Believe in Staying Enthusiastic”: An Exploratory Qualitative Study into Recruitment Strategies Stimulating Middle-Aged and Older Adults to Join Physical Activity Interventions. Geriatrics 2024, 9, 80.
Boekhout, J.M.; Hut, R.; Lechner, L.; Peels, D.A. “I Don’t Believe in Age; I Believe in Staying Enthusiastic”: An Exploratory Qualitative Study into Recruitment Strategies Stimulating Middle-Aged and Older Adults to Join Physical Activity Interventions. Geriatrics2024, 9, 80.
Boekhout, J.M.; Hut, R.; Lechner, L.; Peels, D.A. “I Don’t Believe in Age; I Believe in Staying Enthusiastic”: An Exploratory Qualitative Study into Recruitment Strategies Stimulating Middle-Aged and Older Adults to Join Physical Activity Interventions. Geriatrics 2024, 9, 80.
Abstract
Many middle-aged and older adults (MAOA) do not engage in sufficient physical activity (PA) despite its well-documented benefits for healthy aging. Existing PA interventions often fail to reach or engage the target population effectively. This study investigates MAOA's preferences for recruitment strategies to optimize the reach and uptake of PA interventions, thereby enhancing their impact on healthy aging and public health. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 39 MAOA participants (69% female, mean age = 69.46, SD = 7.07), guided by McGuire's Theory on Persuasive Communication. Factors related to the source, message content, channel, receiver characteristics, and target behavior of recruitment strategies were analyzed. Findings suggest a preference for trustworthy sources (e.g., healthcare professionals over commercial entities) and positive, non-ageist messaging. MAOA vary in channel preferences but emphasize the importance of personalization. Despite heterogeneity, MAOA commonly perceive themselves as sufficiently active, necessitating improving knowledge on what constitutes sufficient PA, and easy enrollment or trying-out interventions. Tailoring recruitment strategies to diverse MAOA segments, based on age, seems crucial for effective engagement. Future research could explore quantitative research into how communication factors relate to various target population characteristics.
Public Health and Healthcare, Public Health and Health Services
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
