knee joint, largely limiting their movements.
Lead researcher, Dr. Agnes Vitry, says that the fear of movement is a significant barrier for people with knee OA, leading to a vicious cycle of inactivity and worsening symptoms.
“The fear of movement is a common issue for people with knee OA and it leads to a self-perpetuating cycle of pain, avoidance, and further physical decline,” Dr. Vitry says.
“Our study shows that negative beliefs about physical activity, especially in relation to the safety of the knee joint, contribute to inactivity in people with knee OA.”
The study, published in Arthritis Care & Research, involved 1,518 people with knee OA who completed surveys about their physical activity levels, self-efficacy, and pain beliefs.
condition, despite medical advice telling them otherwise.
The survey revealed that 69% of individuals experiencing knee pain held unconscious beliefs that exercise was risky, which was stronger than those without pain.
This discovery not only emphasizes the conflicting relationship between pain and physical activity, but also suggests that there may be a disparity between what people express and what they truly believe.
Brian Pulling, the lead researcher and PhD candidate at SAHMRI, believes that the research offers valuable insights for clinicians treating individuals with knee OA.
“Research indicates that Physical activity is beneficial for individuals with knee osteoarthritis (OA), but most people with this condition do not engage in enough movement to promote joint or overall health,” Pulling says.
“To comprehend why individuals with OA may not be active, studies typically use questionnaires to measure fear of movement. However, questionnaires have limitations — what we feel internally (and how our body naturally responds to something perceived as threatening) may differ from what we report. Yet, we still know that many people are avoiding exercise, so we wanted to understand why.”
To address this, the researchers created a tool capable of detecting and evaluating individuals’ implication
It has been found that people may have unconscious beliefs about exercise, regardless of what they say about their fear of it. Even those who claim to have no fear of exercise still hold hidden beliefs that movement could be dangerous,” according to Pulling. The research reveals that individuals have complex thoughts about exercise and may express one thing when asked directly, but hold a completely different implicit belief. People may not realize that what they say does not align with their choices in certain tasks, suggesting that they are not deliberately misrepresenting their beliefs.
The research indicates that in order to truly grasp an individual’s feelings about an activity, we need to delve deeper than just asking straightforward questions, as their underlying beliefs can often be a more accurate indicator of their actual behavior than their verbal responses. This is where our tool comes in handy.”
The online implicit association test presents a series of words and images that participants must quickly associate with either safety or danger. The tool deliberately encourages immediate reactions to prevent overthinking and other external influences (such as giving answers they believe are expected).
According to Associate Professor Tasha Stanton, the new tool Technology has the potential to recognize a group of individuals who may face difficulties in increasing their levels of physical activity and participating in exercise.
“What individuals express and what they actually do are often two different things,” Associate Professor Stanton explains.
“Having access to more precise and insightful information will assist healthcare professionals in better supporting their patients to engage in physical activity and exercise. It may also create opportunities for pain science education, exposure-based therapy, or cognitive functional therapy…options that would not typically be considered for individuals who claim to have no fear of exercising. Researchers are now examining whether implicit beliefs are directly linked to behavior and are seeking volunteers to complete the Implicit Association Test. The test takes about seven minutes to complete, and participants will receive their results compared to the rest of the population at the end of the test.