title: Using community insight to understand physical activity adoption in overweight and obese African American and Hispanic women: a qualitative study.
abstract: Ecologic models suggest that multiple levels of influencing factors are important for determining physical activity participation and include individual, social, and environmental factors. The purpose of this qualitative study was to use an ecologic framework to gain a deeper understanding of the underlying behavioral mechanisms that influence physical activity adoption among ethnic minority women. Eighteen African American and Hispanic women completed a 1-hour in-depth interview. Verbatim interview transcripts were analyzed for emergent themes using a constant comparison approach. Women were middle-aged (age M = 43.9 ± 7.3 years), obese (body mass index M = 35.0 ± 8.9 kg/m(2)), and of high socioeconomic status (88.9% completed some college or more, 41.2% reported income >$82,600/year). Participants discussed individual factors, including the need for confidence, motivation and time, and emphasized the importance of environmental factors, including their physical neighborhood environments and safety of and accessibility to physical activity resources. Women talked about caretaking for others and social support and how these influenced physical activity behavior. The findings from this study highlight the multilevel, interactive complexities that influence physical activity, emphasizing the need for a more sophisticated, ecologic approach for increasing physical activity adoption and maintenance among ethnic minority women. Community insight gleaned from this study may be used to better understand determinants of physical activity and develop multilevel solutions and programs guided by an ecologic framework to increase physical activity in ethnic minority women.
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA skmama@mdanderson.org.
authors.forename: Scherezade K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Mama
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Sheryl A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: McCurdy
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas School of Public Health-Austin Regional Campus, Austin, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Alexandra E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.affiliation: USDA/ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Deborah I
authors.initials: DI
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Pamela M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Diamond
authors.affiliation: University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA.
authors.forename: Rebecca E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D009765:Obesity / Q000208:ethnology; D050177:Overweight / Q000208:ethnology*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D016387:Women's Health
keywords: community; exercise; incentive; minority health; participatory research; social environment