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Effectiveness of Social Marketing Campaigns to Promote Physical Activity in Adults:A Systematic ReviewYuan XiaA Thesis ProposalSubmitted to the School of Graduate Studies of the University of LethbridgeIn Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science (MSc) in ManagementFaculty of ManagementUniversity of Lethbridge? Yuan Xia, 2013AbstractObesity has become a severe public health issue and its consequences lead to severe health disorders and economic hardships. Reduced levels of physical activity is a major contributor to the epidemic and as a result promotingphysical activity is an important strategy in the battle to prevent obesity and promote public health. Social marketing framework as a behavior change tool is compatible with the psychological states of the target audience (adults, in our case) and what managers of a physical activity intervention want to achieve. However, it is not known whether social marketing strategy promotes physical activity. The present study will perform a systematic review of published studies to assess effectiveness of physical activity interventions that employed a social marketing framework and provide recommendations tosocial change managers to improve future interventions. IntroductionObesity epidemic has become a worldwide health issue that needs attention from governments and nongovernmental organizations. The prevalence of adult obesity has reached an alarming level in the world (Flegal et al., 2012; Tjepkema, 2005; Berghofer et al., 2008; Ma et al., 2005). Obesity not only leads to other severe health disorders, such as resistance and hyperinsulinemia, type-2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, coronary heart disease, gallbladder disease, cancer, and early mortality (Pi-Sunyer, 2002), but alsocreates enormous economic burden for both government health systems and individuals (Withrow and Alter, 2010). Existing literature suggests that physical activity has a significant role in reversing obesity epi