Attribution Theories Of Obesity

Obesity has been a rapidly growing epidemic in the United States for over 20 years. There was a dramatic increase in obesity starting in the 1990s, and since then, obesity levels have only been rising. The prevalence of obesity varies among differing states and regions. However, in 2012, no state had a prevalence rate that was less than 20 percent of the population, some states even reaching prevalence rates as high as 30 percent. Furthermore, there is a higher prevalence of adult obesity in states located in the Midwest and in the South, than in states located in the Northeast and West (CDC, 2014). Physical activity, as defined by the World Health Organization, is “any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure.”

The Attribution Theory focuses on three dimensions to explain public health problems, specifically those with a behavioral component. The first dimension Attribution Theory looks at is “control,” more specifically, “locus of control.” Locus of control has to do with the extent to which people believe they have control over events in their lives (Hayden, 2014). Additionally, there are two sources of control: internal and external. Internal control has to do specifically with factors a person has the ability to control such as personality, intentions, abilities, intellect, and attitudes. External control has to do with events that a person has no control over such as chance, luck, fate, or other people. In the issue of weight and obesity, weight has been seen as something that is internally controlled. If someone is fat it is because they are lazy and they are not seen as hardworking (Seaman). According to the Attribution Theory, for the person who is over-weight, they may place the blame of being over-weight somewhere else, other than

Use marketing slogan lines that encourage hard work and dedication, in order to garner more effective results. There should also be a focus on unhealthy health behaviors as being unstable in the sense that they can change. Encourage women that being physically inactive is just a temporary state that can be changed. Encourage internal control by manipulating the women into focusing on their own ability and motivate them to work at their own pace. Another way to encourage physical activity is to look into the most exhilarating way to be physically active. Every person, every woman, is different in the sense that not everyone will want to go to the gym and run 20 laps. For some woman, swimming 50 laps, is a much easier way to be physically active. Another model that can explain this obesity problem is the Health Belief Model. The health Belief model is the most widely used and most often revised model used in health interventions. Health behavior is determined by personal beliefs or perceptions about a disease and strategies available to decrease its occurrence. Essentially, the Health Belief Model focuses on how personal beliefs influence health behavior. The Health Belief Model is motivated by six factors: perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits of an action, low perceived barriers, cues to