title: Primary and secondary exercise dependence in a community-based sample of road race runners.
abstract: The purpose of our study was to examine exercise dependence (EXD) in a large community-based sample of runners. The secondary purpose of this study was to examine differences in EXD symptoms between primary and secondary EXD. Our sample included 2660 runners recruited from a local road race (M age = 38.78 years, SD = 10.80; 66.39% women; 91.62% Caucasian) who completed all study measures online within 3 weeks of the race. In this study, EXD prevalence was lower than most previously reported rates (gamma = .248, p < .001) and individuals in the at-risk for EXD category participated in longer distance races, F(8,1) = 14.13, p = .01, partial eta squared = .05. Group differences were found for gender, F(1,1921) 8.08, p = .01, partial eta squared = .004, and primary or secondary group status, F(1,1921) 159.53, p = .01, partial eta squared = .077. Implications of primary and secondary EXD differences and future research are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, Fargo, ND, and with the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of North Dakota, Fargo, ND.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: Trisha M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Karr
authors.forename: Christie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zunker
authors.forename: James E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Mitchell
authors.forename: Ron
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sherman
authors.forename: Ross D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Crosby
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Erickson
authors.forename: Stephen A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Wonderlich
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D056352:Athletes / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009658:North Dakota / Q000453:epidemiology; D009770:Obsessive Behavior / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D010807:Physical Endurance / Q000502:physiology*; D012420:Running / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017678:Sex Distribution