Testing a walking program that changes how older Spanish couples view aging

The goal of this clinical trial is to promote positive views on aging and walking in Spanish partners aged 65 years and over. The trial will comprise three arms. In the first arm, both partners will undertake the intervention together. In the second arm, only one of the two partners will undertake the intervention. In the third arm (control) none of the partners will undertake the intervention. Collection of quantitative data will make it possible to test the following hypotheses:

• Differently from arm three, those participants from arms one and two who undertake the intervention will experience changes in primary and secondary intervention outcomes between pre- and post-intervention and these changes will be maintained at follow-ups.
• Compared to delivering the intervention to only one partner, delivering it to both partners will lead to a greater and more lasting change in primary and secondary intervention outcomes.
• In the group where only one partner will undertake the intervention, their change in intervention outcomes is observed at least to a small extent in the other partner.

Qualitative data collected at the end of the intervention through interviews of ten couples from each of arms one and two will make it possible to test three additional research questions:

• How do participants in Group one engage with the intervention tasks, and to what extent do they undertake these tasks jointly as a couple?
• In what ways do participants in Group two involve their non-participating partner in the intervention activities?
• What changes do participants in Groups one and two report in their views of themselves and their aging, as well as in their perceptions of and interactions with their partner?

Participants will undertake a multicomponent intervention comprising:

• Three in-person psychoeducational sessions aiming to promote positive views on aging, including positive self-perceptions of aging, and accurate facts about aging
• Independent walking for 12 weeks Primary intervention outcomes are changes in participants' self-perceptions of aging and physical activity engagement. Secondary intervention outcomes are changes in ageism, subjective views of couple's joint aging, perceived age-related changes in one's partner, mood, physical fitness, and cognitive functioning.