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. 2023 Sep 30;20(1):117.
doi: 10.1186/s12966-023-01507-0.

Momentary within-subject associations of affective states and physical behavior are moderated by weather conditions in real life: an ambulatory assessment study

Irina Timm  1 , Markus Reichert  2   3   4 , Ulrich W Ebner-Priemer  2   4 , Marco Giurgiu  2   4
Affiliations

Momentary within-subject associations of affective states and physical behavior are moderated by weather conditions in real life: an ambulatory assessment study

Irina Timm et al. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. .

Abstract

Background: Physical behavior (PB) is a key lifestyle factor in regulating and preventing diseases across the lifespan. Researchers identified affective, cognitive, and contextual factors like weather conditions, as significant contributors in determining if individuals are physically active. However, there is scarce empirical evidence about potential associations between PB and affective states influenced by weather conditions in daily life. Therefore, we explored if weather conditions moderated the within-subject association between momentary affective states and subsequent PB.

Methods: Utilizing ambulatory assessment, 79 participants completed electronic diaries about their affective states (i.e., valence, energetic arousal, and calmness) up to six times a day over five days, and their PB (i.e., physical activity and sedentariness) was simultaneously recorded via accelerometers. Weather conditions (i.e., temperature and precipitation) recorded near participants' locations served as moderators in the multilevel analyses.

Results: We confirmed earlier findings associating affective states with PB. Increased valence and energetic arousal were positively associated with physical activity (β = 0.007; p < .001), whereas calmness predicted lower levels of physical activity (β = -0.006; p < .001). Higher levels of calmness showed a positive association with sedentary behavior (β = 0.054; p = .003). In addition, we revealed a significant positive association between temperature, as a momentary weather condition, and physical activity (β = 0.025; p = .015). Furthermore, we showed that the association of affective states and physical activity was moderated by temperature. Higher temperatures enhanced the positive effects of valence on physical activity (β = .001, p = .023) and attenuated the negative effects of calmness on physical activity (β = .001, p = .021). Moreover, higher temperatures enhanced the positive effects of valence on reduced sedentary behavior (β = -0.011, p = .043).

Conclusions: Temperature alterations appeared to have an impact on subsequent physical activity. Furthermore, temperature alterations moderated the influence of affective states on conducted physical activity. This might offer the opportunity for just-in-time adaptive interventions to intervene in individually appropriate environmental conditions for promoting physical activity.

Keywords: Context; Ecological momentary assessment; Mood; Physical activity; Precipitation; Sedentary behavior; Temperature.

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Conflict of interest statement

UWE-P reports consultancy for Boehringer-Ingelheim. The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Beta coefficients of the ML model demonstrating the main effect of valence, the main effect of temperature and the interaction of valence*temperature on physical activity. Y-axis: log-transformed mg values; X-axis person-centered valence
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Beta coefficients of the ML model demonstrating the main effect of valence, the main effect of temperature and the interaction of valence*temperature on sedentary behavior. Y-axis: amount of time (min) spent in sedentary behavior; X-axis: person-centered valence
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Beta coefficients of the ML model demonstrating the main effect of calmness, the main effect of temperature and the interaction of calmness*temperature on physical activity. Y-axis: log-transformed mg values; X-axis: person-centered calmness
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