TecHealth
A South Carolina SmartState Center
Invites you to
TECH TUESDAY TALKS
Tuesday - April 24 - Noon
Discovery 1, 915 Greene Street, Room 140
Amanda Rebar, PhD
Senior Research Fellow, Central Queensland University, Australia
Flex: An App that Applies Associative Learning Theory
with Gamification to Target Non-Conscious Physical Activity Behavioral Biases
Most physical activity interventions provide compelling reasons to be active based on the premise that persuasion is the most effective way to change behavior. However, evidence based on dual process models show that physical activity behavior is more than just the translation of attitudes, values, or goals. The automatic urges people feel to approach or avoid certain actions are the result of automatic associations people hold in their procedural memory. For example, some people automatically associate the concept of physical activity with being good and therefore tend to approach opportunities to be physically active more often. FLEX is a unique mobile app-based physical activity intervention because it targets these automatic associations; thereby enhancing physical activity behavior discretely. Along with this theory-based approach to changing behavior, FLEX applies gamification to encourage high engagement and retention. Our pilot data suggests that FLEX can improve the way we target health behavior promotion efforts.