The following is a summary of “Exploring how people achieve recommended levels of physical activity, despite self-reported economic difficulties: a sense of coherence perspective,” published in the April 2024 issue of Primary Care by Johansson et al.
The salutogenic theory, foundational to health promotion, posits health along a continuum from disease to ease, with a sense of coherence (SOC) as a central concept bolstered by general resistance resources like stable economic circumstances. This study explores how individuals, despite grappling with self-reported economic challenges, navigate, manage, and derive significance from attaining the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommended physical activity (PA) levels.
Interviews were conducted with individuals achieving WHO-recommended PA levels despite economic constraints. Following targeted health dialogues, these interviews took place in primary healthcare and family centers. Employing qualitative deductive content analysis, the researchers centered on a sense of coherence as the overarching category, with comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness as the three main categories.
The findings unveil a discernible pattern of progression. Participants demonstrate a grasp of the health benefits associated with PA and devise plans for its implementation. Leveraging available resources, they navigate challenges to integrate PA into their lives. As PA assumes personal significance, intrinsic motivation drives its pursuit, and participants reap its rewards.
This study offers insights into a potential process facilitating the achievement of recommended PA levels among individuals facing economic constraints and other adversities. These findings promise to inform health promotion initiatives, such as targeted health dialogues in primary healthcare settings, aimed at mitigating health disparities by supporting individuals falling short of PA guidelines.
Source: bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12875-024-02354-z