In the preparation stage, interventions specific to goal setting should focus on which of the following?

• A. focus on creating goals to help clients prepare for a healthy lifestyle.
• B. focus creating goals that help facilitate change.
• C. focus on creating goals that will help clients identify benefits of healthy changes specific to __
• D. focus on creating goals that will help clients become better informed bout factors that affect __

Answer: (A)

In the preparation stage, goal setting is about getting ready to change—building readiness and planning concrete steps toward a healthier lifestyle. Goals should help clients lay the groundwork for change, such as deciding on a start date, choosing a manageable first activity, and arranging supports—things that prepare the way for action rather than forcing the change itself.

That’s why focusing on creating goals that prepare for a healthy lifestyle is the best fit. The other options lean toward initiating change, boosting awareness of benefits, or gathering information about factors affecting behavior, which align more with later stages or different aspects of the process rather than the preparatory focus of this stage.