Abstract

The positive health enhancing effects of exercise, physical activity (PA), and sport for the general population as well as for persons with musculoskeletal diseases like osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis are indisputable. High potential lies in activating biopsychosocial exercise interventions that target long-term changes of physical activity behavior, and thus think beyond short intervention periods with mostly short-term effects on physical functions. Those behavioral interventions are related to the framework of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) of the World Health Organization (WHO) and consider – in addition to the classical target area of restoration of body functions and structures – relevant activities and aspects of participation as well as personal context factors. Based upon recent psychological health behavior change (HBC) theories and using the principles of intervention mapping we identified 28 exercise-related techniques that impact relevant modifiable personal factors of PA. Together with classical exercise components these techniques were integrated into an ICF-based concept of a “Behavioral Exercise Therapy” (BET). This concept serves as a theory-driven “tool box” for designing complex BET programs to promote PA and to build and strengthen individual movement-related health competence. In BET relevant contents and methods are didactically arranged on three intervention levels to enable the development of movement-related health competence: 1) physical exercise and training, 2) learning/education, and 3) experience. Movement-related health competence is composed of the three components movement competence, control competence and self-regulation competence. It is regarded as a personal resource for the movement and mobility demands in daily life, for autonomous health enhancing physical activity and sport, and for coping with or adjustment to health disorders and diseases.