Effect of health locus of control on physical activity in stable patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases.
Shojiro Egoshi, Shinichiro Hayashi, Jun Horie and 6 others
PMID 34177112WHAT IT FOUND
Patients who believed health is controlled by gods or ancestors had lower physical activity after education.
Higher scores for this belief predicted less movement, while family and chance beliefs also linked to lower vigorous activity.
Key findings
01Higher supernatural health locus of control scores were significantly associated with lower total physical activity after the intervention.
02Participants with higher family and chance health locus of control scores engaged in less vigorous activity post-intervention.
03Physical activity levels improved overall after the educational program, with significant increases in total activity and walking.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Small sample size (37 participants) limits statistical power for subgroup analyses. Physical activity was self-reported via questionnaire, which tends to overestimate actual activity compared to objective measures like accelerometers. The study was observational regarding HLOC; it did not test whether targeting HLOC beliefs improves outcomes. All participants were male, limiting generalizability to female patients with COPD.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflict of interest. The research received no external funding.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that assessing health locus of control will predict which patients will respond to pulmonary rehabilitation. The study found associations, not causation, and did not test whether modifying these beliefs improves outcomes.