INCREASING EXERCISE
Running head: INCREASING EXERCISE
Using self-modification to
Increase Exercise
Blessing Chitemerere
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Learning & Behavior 47.312
Fall, 2012
Abstract
The purpose of this project was to determine whether exercise could be increased using a selfmodification plan involving social support and self-praise. The participant in the study was a
student at University of Massachusetts Lowell taking a course in learning and behavior. During
a period of two weeks the participant engaged in an assessment of increasing exercise in which
he recorded all instances of the behavior and the antecedents and consequences. At the end of the
assessment the participant instituted a plan in which he used social support and self-praise to
increase motivation and extinguish competing behaviors. At the end of two weeks exercise was
increased and the goal of running at least 1 mile a day was reached on 12 out of the 14 days. The
participant lost 6 pounds. It was concluded that the modification plan was partially successful.
Plans for follow-up and improvement were discussed.
Using Self-Modification to Increase Exercise
Research has shown that obesity in America is on the rise. It has become a public health
crisis with its prevalence rising nationally over the last three decades. Obesity has a lot of health,
social and psychological problems (Wang, Liang & Kumanyika, 2008). Obesity is mostly
attributed to exercise as a deficit.
According to the website for the U.S. National Library of Medicine exercise and/or
behavior therapy in conjunction with diet appear to improve weight loss. Moreover, long-term
weight loss has been associated with a reduced risk of developing diabetes, and may be
beneficial for cardiovascular disease (U.S. National Library of Medicine Source, 2004).
Research has proved that exercise is beneficial in that, “Patients who continue to exercise tend to
have lower depression scores than the sedentary ones. Patients appreciate physical exercise, and
rank exercise to be the most important element in comprehensive treatment programs. Exercise
seems to be a promising new approach in the treatment of non-bipolar depressive disorders of
mild to moderate severity” (Martinsen, 1990).
METHOD
PARTICIPANT
The study participant was a student 31-year-old male. He had some concerns about the
amount of weight he was gaining due to lack of exercise. He hoped to increase exercise to at
least 2 miles ran each day. As part of a course in Learning and Behavior at the University of
Massachusetts, Lowell, the participant attempted a self-modification program to increase
exercise.
MATERIALS
The apparatus used in this projection was an app called Nike Running, which records
distance ran in miles and an alarm clock.
PROCEDURE
Behavioral Definition. The target behavior, exercise, was defined as running with a goal
of running at least 2 miles a day.
Assessment. The participant first conducted an assessment to evaluate antecedents
present for running to occur and obtain additional information about the behavior.
To achieve this, the participant used the Nike Running app to self-record the distance ran
each day and recorded the data on a graph, showing when the goal was met and when it was not
met. The participant took note of what the discriminating stimulus was for each event using the
ABC (antecedent-behavior-consequence) functional assessment, as described by Miltenberger
(2012).
Treatment. The participant initially used the data obtained from Nike Running to track
his exercise related behavior over a period of 14 days, in order to obtain sufficient baseline data.
He then reviewed these data, so the information collected could inform the design of the
behavioral modification treatment. The information suggested that the participant was able to
accomplish his goal on days he felt motivated. Motivation was set up by antecedent of working
up early each morning which was achieved by the use of an alarm clock. Social support was also
used to encourage the participant increase exercise. The participant confided in a buddy training
for a half marathon to go on group runs. Benefits of increasing exercise suggested that the more
weight the participant lost the happier he felt. The consequence was positively reinforced by the
use of self-praise. The participant engaged in self-praise by telling himself what a good job he
did every time he met his goal. The participant posted the graph showing distance ran and the
target miles for each day on the fridge as a reminder.
Recording of the behaviors of interest continued during the treatment phase, using the
same procedure that was utilized to collect baseline data.
Results
This report includes the results of the two phases of the behavioral modification plan.
Figure 1 presents the distance the participant ran each day during the baseline and treatment
phases. A trend towards increasing exercise is apparent, although the goal level of running at
least 2 miles a day had been partially demonstrated by the end of treatment phase.
During the baseline data collection period, the participant ran a total distance of 17.49
miles with a mean level of 1.24 miles. Out of the 14 days, the goal was met on 12 days and there
were 2 days when the goal was not met, with 0 miles ran on both days. The longest distance ran
was 1.82 miles. During baseline and treatment phases, increases in these numbers were noted.
For example the mean level during treatment phase was 1.37 miles. The participant also reported
a weight loss of 10 pounds during the treatment phase, a 66.6% increase from the baseline
weight loss, and went from an overweight body mass index of 26.6 to a normal weight BMI
index of 24.2 during the whole recording period.
Discussion
The data collected during the baseline and treatment plan suggest that although the
behavior modification plan was effective, the ultimate goal was only partially achieved. The
treatment phase was aimed at increasing exercise to running at least 2 miles a day. It appears it
was achieved on most but not all days. The participant lost weight over the recording period and
the results from the functional assessment suggest a positive correlation between exercise and
mood as hypothesized by (Martinsen, 1990). While it appears that a happier mood was attributed
to increasing exercise they may have been other confounding variables present.
References
Martinsen, E. W. (1990). Benefits of exercise for the treatment of depression [Abstract]. Sports
Medicine, 9(6).
Systematic review of the long-term effects and economic consequences of treatments for obesity and
implications for health improvement. (2004). Retrieved December 4, 2012, from U.S. National
Library of Medicine website: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0015087/
Wang, Y., Liang, L., & Kumanyika, S. K. (2008). Will all americans become overweight or obese?
Estimating the progression and cost of the US obesity epidemic. Obesity a Research Journal.
Miltenberger, R. G. (2012). Behavior Modification: Principles & Procedures, fifth edition. Wadsworth.
Belmont, CA.
Figure 1. Distance Ran in miles, baseline and treatment phases