Mental Contrasting to Promote Health Behavior Change: Meta-Analysis of Behavioral Impact, Mechanisms, and Combined Effects with Implementation Intentions

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  • July 27, 2023
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  • Okoro, Florence
    • College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience
Abstract
  • Objective: Adherence to recommended health behaviors can save lives and reduce healthcare costs. This meta-analysis was performed to (a) evaluate the effectiveness of mental contrasting in promoting health behavior adherence, (b) quantify the impact of combining mental contrasting with implementation intentions on health behavior change, and (c) test the impact of mental contrasting on the specified mechanisms of change: energization, reality evaluations, adapting to negative feedback, future-reality associations, and obstacle-behavior associations. We also aligned behavioral responses to expectations of success. Methods: A total of 33 studies were included in this analysis (k=99). Cohen’s d formed the effect size for this study and 95% CI were computed around each mean. Results: MC (d=0.325, 95%CI =0.236 to 0.414) and MCII (d=0.359 95%CI= 0.259 to 0.458) yielded significant effect sizes. Also, when people engage in mental contrasting, it creates a nonconscious effect that triggers the specified mechanisms of change, leading to goal attainment. These effects are stronger when expectations of success are high and weaker when expectations of success are low. Conclusion: This analysis supports that mental contrasting is a beneficial tool for improving health behaviors and shows the mechanisms of mental contrasting exerts its effects. More studies are needed to further test the impact of MC and MCII on health behavior change.
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  • In Copyright
Advisor
  • Sheeran, Paschal
    • College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience
Degree
  • Bachelor of Arts
Graduation year
  • 2023
Language
  • English

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