Decisional balance and its relationship with stages of change in exercise behavior among employees of Gorgan: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Introduction: This study aimed to investigate the decisional balance for exercise and its relationship with stages of change in exercise behavior among employees in city of Gorgan, north of Iran. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 991 employees selected through random cluster sampling. Data were collected using the stages of change and decisional balance questionnaires. Results: a unit increase in the mean score of barriers decreased the possibility of moving to later stages by 49%, while a unit increase in the mean score of exercise benefits increased the possibility by 61%. There was a significant relationship between gender and stages of change (P<0.001) in a way that more female employees were in the early stages of exercise compared with males. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that the disadvantages of exercise decrease through while subjects move toward later stages. Majority of the participant, specifically female employees, are in the early stages of exercise and are expected to have a sedentary lifestyle