A Narrative Review on the Internet-based Physical Activity Interventions

A great number of internet-based physical activity interventions have occurred as the Internet technology development in recent years.For the purpose of introducing contents of these programs and evaluating their efficacies,this article reviewed 23 empirical studies on the internet-based physical activity interventions searched in the Medline and Sciencedirect databases(2001—2015)and introduced the main theoretical basis,effective elements and results of efficacy evaluation of the existing online physical activity promotion interventions.As results indicated,the health belief model,the trans-theoretical model and the social cognitive theory were the most widely used theories in these programs.A theory-based online physical activity intervention program usually include self-monitoring,individualized suggestions and feedback,group discussion and email reminders for exercises or delivery of health-related information.The short-term efficacies of these programs have been confirmed,but results on the long-term efficacies are still inconsistent.Resultsof this study might have implications on the development and evaluation of similar domestic interventions.