The Relationship between Self-Expansion and Physical Activity in Rural Adults in Bern, Switzerland and Idaho, USA

Nigg, Claudio R.; Dütschler, Benjamin; Schnegg, Sandra; Do, Joseph; Xu, Xiaomeng (2023). The Relationship between Self-Expansion and Physical Activity in Rural Adults in Bern, Switzerland and Idaho, USA. International Journal of Applied Psychology, 13(1), pp. 9-17. Scientific & Academic Publishing 10.5923/j.ijap.20231301.02

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Self-expansion theory posits that people are motivated to pursue activities that expand one’s efficacy and ability to accomplish goals. Self-expanding activities are associated with positive health behaviours including physical activity (PA). However, research to-date on self-expansion and PA has involved only urban samples within the USA. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to extend current knowledge by investigating the connection between self-expansion and self-reported PA levels in two independent rural samples, one in Bern, Switzerland (n=69) and one in Idaho, USA (n=45). Participants were adults’ (≥18 years old) who completed online measures of PA, general self-expansion, and PA specific self-expansion. Both samples showed similar results and confirmed the hypotheses that self-expansion is positively related to PA; and that PA specific self-expansion exhibits a stronger relationship to PA compared to general self-expansion. Effect sizes with Cohen’s f ranged from 0.220 to 0.443 in the Bernese sample and 0.451 to 0.641 in the Idaho sample. Effects were even stronger for moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and general self-expansion as well as PA specific self-expansion and MVPA with this relationship having the strongest effect for both independent samples. These two studies provide evidence that there is a medium to large relationship between self-expansion and PA. Future research including longitudinal and intervention studies and studies with larger samples in multiple countries are needed to test directionality of influence and whether leveraging existing intrinsic motivation via self-expansion could offer a novel approach to promoting PA.

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