Social support and social norms: do both contribute to predicting leisure-time exercise?
OBJECTIVE
To clarify the contribution of social support and social norms to exercise behavior.


METHODS
A sample of 363 college students completed a questionnaire that assessed social support and social negativity from friends, descriptive and injunctive social norms related to friends, perceived behavioral control, attitude, intention, and leisure-time exercise.


RESULTS
Esteem social support was the strongest predictor of total and strenuous leisure-time exercise (P < .001), and descriptive norm was a significant (P < .01 predictor of strenuous leisure-time exercise.


CONCLUSIONS
Social support and social norms contribute independently to our understanding of variation in the frequency of strenuous leisure-time exercise.
Okun
Morris A
MA
Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1104, USA. d.rmorris@asu.edu
Ruehlman
Linda
L
Karoly
Paul
P
Lutz
Rafer
R
Fairholme
Chris
C
Schaub
Rachel
R
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D007899:Leisure Activities; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D009341:Negativism; D012649:Self Concept; D012944:Social Support; D012945:Social Values; D015206:Southwestern United States; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology