RESEARCH ARTICLE A Systematic Review Exploring the Social Cognitive Theory of Self-Regulation as a Framework for Chronic Health Condition Interventions

Background Theory is often recommended as a framework for guiding hypothesized mechanisms of treatment effect. However, there is limited guidance about how to use theory in intervention development. Methods We conducted a systematic review to provide an exemplar review evaluating the extent to which use of theory is identified and incorporated within existing interventions. We searched electronic databases PubMed, PsycINFO, CENTRAL, and EMBASE from inception to May 2014. We searched clinicaltrials.gov for registered protocols, reference lists of relevant sys-tematic reviews and included studies, and conducted a citation search in Web of Science. We included peer-reviewed publications of interventions that referenced the social cognitive theory of self-regulation as a framework for interventions to manage chronic health condi-tions. Two reviewers independently assessed articles for eligibility. We contacted all authors of included studies for information detailing intervention content. We describe ho