Re-assessing the social climate of physical (in)activity in Canada

Matthew James Fagan¹, Leigh M Vanderloo^{2

3}, Ananya Banerjee⁴, Leah J Ferguson⁵, Eun-Young Lee⁶, Norman O'Reilly⁷, Ryan E Rhodes⁸, John C Spence⁹, Mark S Tremblay^{10

11}, Guy Faulkner¹²

Affiliations

¹ School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
² , ParticipACTION, 77 Bloor Street West, Suite 1205, Toronto, ON, Canada.
³ School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
⁴ Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
⁵ College of Kinesiology, University of Saskatchewan, 87 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.
⁶ School of Kinesiology and Health Studies, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
⁷ Graduate School of Business, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA.
⁸ Behavioural Medicine Laboratory, School of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Education, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.
⁹ Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, University of Alberta, 1-153 Van Vliet Complex, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
¹⁰ Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
¹¹ Department of Pediatrics, University of Ottawa, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
¹² School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. guy.faulkner@ubc.ca.

PMID: 38124062
PMCID: PMC10734048
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-17436-3

Re-assessing the social climate of physical (in)activity in Canada

Matthew James Fagan et al. BMC Public Health. 2023.

. 2023 Dec 21;23(1):2548.

doi: 10.1186/s12889-023-17436-3.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
² , ParticipACTION, 77 Bloor Street West, Suite 1205, Toronto, ON, Canada.
³ School of Occupational Therapy, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
⁴ Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
⁵ College of Kinesiology, University of Saskatchewan, 87 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.
⁶ School of Kinesiology and Health Studies, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
⁷ Graduate School of Business, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA.
⁸ Behavioural Medicine Laboratory, School of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Education, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.
⁹ Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, University of Alberta, 1-153 Van Vliet Complex, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
¹⁰ Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
¹¹ Department of Pediatrics, University of Ottawa, 401 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
¹² School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. guy.faulkner@ubc.ca.

PMID: 38124062
PMCID: PMC10734048
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-17436-3

Abstract

Social-ecological models suggest that a strategy for increasing population physical activity participation is to reconstruct the "social climate" through changing social norms and beliefs about physical activity (PA). In this study, we assessed whether the PA social climate in Canada has changed over a five-year period after controlling for sociodemographic factors and PA levels. Replicating a survey administered in 2018, a sample of adults in Canada (n = 2,507) completed an online survey assessing social climate dimensions, including but not limited to descriptive and injunctive norms. Descriptive statistics were calculated, and binary logistic regressions were conducted to assess the associations of sociodemographic factors and year of the survey with social climate dimensions. Results suggest some social climate constructs are trending in a positive direction between 2018 and 2023. Physical inactivity was considered a serious public health concern by 49% of respondents, second to unhealthy diets (52%). Compared to those who participated in the 2018 survey, participants in 2023 were less likely to see others walking or wheeling in their neighbourhood (OR = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.41, 1.78), but more likely to see people exercising (OR = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.73, 0.92) and kids playing in their neighbourhood (OR = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.66, 0.85). No changes were reported between 2018 and 2023 in individuals' perceptions of whether physical inactivity is due to individual versus external factors (OR = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.87, 1.13). The findings of this work indicate a modest positive shift in some measured components of the social climate surrounding PA although attributing causes for these changes remain speculative.

Keywords: Ecological model; Physical activity; Policy; Public opinion; Social climate.

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Conflict of interest statement

AB, LJF, EL, NO, RER, JCS, MST, and GF are members of ParticipACTION’s volunteer-based Research Advisory Group, and LV works as ParticipACTION’s Knowledge Translation Manager. No financial or promotional advantages were gained from conducting this study. The authors have no other conflict of interest to declare.

References

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Re-assessing the social climate of physical (in)activity in Canada

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Re-assessing the social climate of physical (in)activity in Canada

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

References

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Medical