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Committed to Exercise : A qualitative study on the persuasive effect and potential of a gym’s online booking system / Schemalagd träning : En kvalitativ studie av ett gyms digitala bokningssystem och dess effekt på användares träningsvanor och motivation

While physical activity has many important benefits on our health and well-being, many people find it hard to establish and maintain long-lasting exercise routines. Technology can be an effective tool to combat this issue by increasing users’ motivation to exercise and encouraging them to make healthier choices. In this qualitative study, we explored the persuasive effect and potential of an online booking system (OBS) implemented in a gym in the South West of United Kingdom to limit the amount of people in the facilities during the Covid-19 pandemic. The purpose of our research was to examine gym members’ experiences of the system, how it had impacted their motivation to exercise, and to explore how their experiences could be used in a digital system aiming to promote regular gym-use and long-lasting exercise routines. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews, carried out with five gym members. The results demonstrate that all informants had ambivalent feelings towards the OBS, with both positive and negative attitudes towards the system. Three key findings were identified. First, the system forced the users to adapt their exercise routines and daily activities in general to its new constraints which, in some instances, reduced their motivation to exercise. Second, the activity of booking and scheduling gym sessions gave the users a sense of commitment and determination, which increased their motivation to adhere to their planned exercise regime. Third, the users experienced the increased familiarity in the gym as a positive outcome of the OBS. Based on the empirical findings, we proposed a set of recommended features and three key components which can be beneficial to include in a digital system aiming to increase gym user’s motivation to exercise, and that could come of use to designers developing interactive systems for gym settings.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:lnu-106818
Date January 2021
CreatorsLöthman, Anna, Liljeblad, Malin
PublisherLinnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för informatik (IK)
Source SetsDiVA Archive at Upsalla University
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeStudent thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text
Formatapplication/pdf
Rightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

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