EXAMINING EXERCISE HABITS AMONG COLLEGE

STUDENTS: THE ROLE OF INTRINSIC VS. EXTRINSIC

FACTORS
A RESEARCH PROPOSAL BY SHELBILYN MILLER

INTRODUCTION
In the United States, more than one-third (36.5%) of U.S. adults are obese. Not only is
obesity common, but it’s also super costly; the estimated annual medical cost of obesity
in the U.S. was around $147 billion in 2008, and the medical costs for those
experiencing obesity were $1429 higher than those of normal weight. (“Overweight &
Obesity”). Obesity not only burdens those affected by it with considerable financial
losses, but it also affects one’s ability to live a normal life: everyday activities pose as
potential challenges, and the various health complications associated with the condition
can be life threatening.

In a study published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, researchers

measured the physical activity of 683 adolescents (12-15 years of age) into early
adulthood (24-27 years of age) and found a 24% decrease in activity over the span of
those twelve years. (McMaster University). An important question consequently forms
itself: what causes such a drastic decline in physical activity? Could it be a factor of time
management, greater responsibilities incurred, or a decrease in motivation? Whatever
the reason be, the simple fact is that young adults are exercising a lot less in college
than they did in high school, and these trends are carrying over into adulthood.

Through my purposed research, I plan to examine what motivates college students to

exercise: are they driven more by intrinsic or extrinsic factors? Here, I define intrinsic
factors as ones that arise from within an individual without any external influence, and
extrinsic factors as ones that arise out of exposure to one’s environment. More
specifically, I plan on targeting college students who aren’t currently exercising; by
carrying out this proposal, I hope to determine what would motivate students who aren’t
exercising to get back into a regular routine, and find out what kinds of resources they
would find most appealing when looking to get back into the gym. Through collecting
this data, I hope that I can present useful information for future gym marketers that will
allow them to produce more impactful propaganda. If students creating unhealthy
exercise habits in their undergraduate years can be better persuaded to work out, then

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 hopefully those habits will carry over into their adulthood, and our nation’s obesity issue
will decline within upcoming years.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Various studies have been conducted to examine the effects of intrinsic vs. extrinsic
factors on people’s motivation to exercise.

In one such study published in Health Education Research, researchers examined the
prevalence of extrinsic exercise goals within a sample of 580 British schoolchildren. (FB
Fillson et. all). The exercise goals of participants were measured using the Reasons for
Exercise Inventory, which consists of 23 items distributed between seven different
factors. Those relating to intrinsic motivation included fitness, mood, health, and
enjoyment, while those relating to extrinsic factors included weight control, to become
more attractive, and to improve body tone. The study found that young girls reported
exercising out of extrinsic goals more frequently than boys: the most commonly reported
exercise goals for girls were body tone (27%), health (26%), and attractiveness (26%),
while the most commonly reported goals for boys were fitness (36%) and health (33%).
While girls reported experiencing greater social physique anxiety and more pressure
from the media to lose weight (compared to pressure from friends and family), the
relationship between BMI and perceived pressure to lose weight was significant only for
boys.

In another study, the differentiation among motivation between collegiate men and
women’s participation in sports and exercise was assessed. (Marcus Kilpatrick et. al). In
this experiment, 233 students enrolled in undergraduate health and kinesiology courses
at a university in the southeastern part of the country were surveyed. Participant’s were
asked to provide basic information pertaining to their physical activity behaviors, and
responded to 4 single-item indicators that measured frequency, duration, intensity, and
adherence. The results indicated that the highest ranked motives for exercise were
health and appearance related, while the highest ranked motives for sports participation
were competition, enjoyment, and challenge; these results indicate that sport
participation is more closely linked to intrinsic motives, and exercise is related with
primarily extrinsic motives. In addition, men reported being more motivated by
challenge, competition, social recognition, and strength and endurance than women,
who reported only one motive higher than men: weight management.

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 RESEARCH DESCRIPTION
While the two previous studies were successful in linking exercise motifs (within their
specific samples) to two broad factors, and distinguishing different motivations for
exercising between genders, there are a couple points of analysis that were absent;
take for instance the study that examined motivation across genders between sports
and exercise programs. This study only surveyed college students that were actively
exercising; in my research, I want to target a sample of the population that doesn’t
exercise the recommended amounts set forth by the American Heart Association (150
minutes per week of moderate exercise). Furthermore, while the study published in
Health Education Research presented convincing data that exercise motivation varies
between genders, their sample population consisted only of schoolchildren ranging from
ages 13-15. For my research, the sample size would consist of collegiate students
ranging from ages 18-24. Based off of the conclusions presented by the previous
studies mentioned, I hypothesize that collegiate women will be more motivated to
exercise out of extrinsic factors, and collegiate men will be more driven by intrinsic
factors.

METHODOLOGY
In this study, the sample population will consist of inactive undergraduate students
attending the University of Colorado at Boulder. A survey will be constructed, and
participants will fill it out voluntarily (participant’s names will be omitted for privacy).

The survey will be advertised on social media platforms, via email to class rosters, and
through flyers posted around campus. The questions issued will evaluate how
frequently participants exercise, their gender/majors, and what kind of factors would
motivate them to increase their exercise routine. The data collected will be used to
analyze why college students aren’t exercising regularly, what factors play the highest
roles in their motivation to work out, and what resources they would find most beneficial
when starting their exercise routines back up. Based off of these results, our team can
deduce what types of key words, phrases, or messages might catch the most attention
in fitness program advertisements (and which genders would be most attracted to these
phrases), what types of programs inactive-students would be most inclined to try, and
what types of issues these advertisements can address that would make them seem
more realistic and attainable to their target audience. Sample questions include:

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  How often do you engage in physical activity per week?
o A. none
o B. 10-30 minutes
o C. 30-60 minutes
o D. 60-120 minutes
o E. 120-150 minutes
o F. +150 minutes
 When you exercise, at what intensity do you typically perform?
o A. mild (e.g., walking)
o B. moderate (e.g., jogging, hiking)
o C. vigorous (e.g., running, strength training)
 This next questions evaluates what kind of factors motivate you to exercise.
Choose all that apply:
o Weight management
o Confidence
o Health
o To look good
o Strength gains
o Increase muscle
o To feel good
o Stress management
o To socialize
 The following questions are intended to gauge how well you resonate with a
certain statement. Questions will be answered on a 1-5 scale: 1 = strongly agree,
3 = neutral, and 5 = strongly disagree.
o Exercising is great for health reasons, but I don’t do it that frequently
because I’m confident in my current health state.
o I don’t exercise that much because I feel intimated when I’m around others
who are more fit than me.
o I prefer exercising in classes, groups, or with partners over exercising by
myself.
o I would exercise if I had more time.
o I’m happy with my current exercise routine/frequency.
o I don’t exercise because I’m happy with the way I look.
o I would exercise more if I had better understanding of how gym equipment
worked.

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 TIMELINE
March 12th-March 15th: Create survey questions and compose final draft by the 15th
March 15th – April 10th: Advertise/canvas the survey around campus and on social
media; these time frames will be when the data is collected
April 11th – April 13thth: Analyze data and create statistical figures (look at common
trends, themes, and patterns within data subset)
April 14th-April 17th: Create first draft of presentation; get basic framework of
presentation created, start organizing data into relevant sections, divvy up
sections/tasks to team members
April 18th-April 23rd: Finalize presentation; work out revision suggestions, etc.
April 24th: Turn in final presentation

REFERENCES
FB Gillison, M Standage, SM Skevington; Relationships among adolescents' weight perceptions, exercise goals,
exercise motivation, quality of life and leisure-time exercise behaviour: a self-determination theory approach, Health
Education Research, Volume 21, Issue 6, 1 December 2006, Pages 836–847, https://doi.org/10.1093/her/cyl139

Marcus Kilpatrick PhD, Edward Hebert PhD & John Bartholomew PhD (2010) College Students' Motivation for
Physical Activity: Differentiating Men's and Women's Motives for Sport Participation and Exercise, Journal of
American College Health, 54:2, 87-94, DOI: 10.3200/JACH.54.2.87-94

McMaster University. "Young adults drop exercise with move to college or university." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19
December 2011. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111215232728.htm>.

“Overweight & Obesity.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 29
Aug. 2017, www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html.

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