Behaviour Change Interventions to Address Sedentarism in Different Communities - Workshop Report

This report is based on keynote talks and discussions at the GetAMoveOn Network+ (GAMO) workshop, Behaviour Change Interventions to Address Sedentarism in Different Communities, that took place in February 2018. The workshop brought together experts to highlight the challenges and opportunities of using digital technology interventions to reduce sedentary behaviour in different communities.

The workshop was organised jointly by Professor Ann Blandford (Director of the UCL Institute of Digital Health) and Professor Anna Cox, and held in London on 20 February 2018. Its purpose was to explore the role of behaviour change and other theories that support reasoning about the social and community contexts within which behaviour takes place. The focus was on reducing sedentarism across communities, including schools, work places and care homes, where it is possible to introduce digitally enabled interventions to shape individual and group practices.

This report is based on the workshop proceedings and introduces some of the theories and practices being used in behaviour change. It includes the responses of workshop participants who discussed the opportunities and challenges for changing sedentary behaviours and made recommendations in respect to four communities: older people, schools, the workplace and people with chronic disease or disability.

The report is set out in five parts:
• Background
• Method
• Theory and practice from keynote lectures
• Discussion group reports
• Conclusion