The application of optimal defaults to physical education in college students

Research has documented an increase in weight during the first year of college. Consequently, a number of interventions have targeted healthier nutrition and exercise patterns on campuses, using course requirements that can be structured to include healthy lifestyle education. Presumably, it is the intended goal of these interventions to establish routines that persist into adulthood. However, no consistent format has been established for offering these courses. The concept of optimal defaults provides a unique framework for increasing physical education by setting healthier default coursework options, while still maintaining free choice. The purpose of the present study was to determine if setting optimal defaults using a simulated course selection paradigm would increase physical education enrollment. Furthermore, this study investigated if social, behavioral, and cognitive factors influenced course enrollment.;Participants included 317 students (ages 18-22) in either their first or second year at a large public university in the northeastern United States from diverse ethnic backgrounds (37.22% Caucasian). Participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: optimal defaults (automatic enrollment in a physical education well-being course with the choice to opt-out to a sedentary well-being course), suboptimal defaults (automatic enrollment in a sedentary well-being course with the choice to opt-out to a physical education well-being course), or free choice (participants could freely select from the full list of well-being courses). Participants also completed questionnaires assessing social, cognitive, and behavioral factors.;Participants in the optimal defaults condition were significantly more likely to enroll in a hypothetical physical education well-being course compared to those in the suboptimal defaults and free choice conditions. Encouragement and discouragement from friends for healthy behaviors predicted selection of a physical education course in the free choice condition and emerged as significant moderators in the relationship between condition and choice. Additionally, among participants automatically enrolled in a suboptimal course, those with high dietary restraint were less likely to select a suboptimal well-being course than those with low dietary restraint. Findings suggest that setting optimal physical education defaults in the college environment can serve as an obesity prevention measure by increasing engagement in exercise.