Cognitive Bias Modification

CBM has established efficacy for reducing addictive behaviours and preliminary evidence in healthy eating and physical activity. Before IMPACT, no randomised controlled trial had tested CBM in cardiovascular patients. CBM trains approach and avoidance tendencies by pairing exercise stimuli with approach actions and sedentary stimuli with avoidance actions. The article presents automatic approach and avoidance tendencies as potentially important determinants of exercise behaviour. The article presents a dilemma around explaining CBM mechanisms because awareness may help engagement but could affect the assumed automatic pathway.