title: Work-related correlates of occupational sitting in a diverse sample of employees in Midwest metropolitan cities.
abstract: The worksite serves as an ideal setting to reduce sedentary time. Yet little research has focused on occupational sitting, and few have considered factors beyond the personal or socio-demographic level. The current study i) examined variation in occupational sitting across different occupations, ii) explored whether worksite level factors (e.g., employer size, worksite supports and policies) may be associated with occupational sitting. Between 2012 and 2013, participants residing in four Missouri metropolitan areas were interviewed via telephone and provided information on socio-demographic characteristics, schedule flexibility, occupation, work related factors, and worksite supports and policies. Occupational sitting was self-reported (daily minutes spent sitting at work), and dichotomized. Occupation-stratified analyses were conducted to identify correlates of occupational sitting using multiple logistic regressions. A total of 1668 participants provided completed data. Those employed in business and office/administrative support spent more daily occupational sitting time (median 330 min) compared to service and blue collar employees (median 30 min). Few worksite supports and policies were sitting specific, yet factors such as having a full-time job, larger employer size, schedule flexibility, and stair prompt signage were associated with occupational sitting. For example, larger employer size was associated with higher occupational sitting in health care, education/professional, and service occupations. Work-related factors, worksite supports and policies are associated with occupational sitting. The pattern of association varies among different occupation groups. This exploratory work adds to the body of research on worksite level correlates of occupational sitting. This may provide information on priority venues for targeting highly sedentary occupation groups.
authors.affiliation: Division of Public Health Sciences, Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, USA; Department of Epidemiology, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management, College of Natural Resources, North Carolina State University, USA; Center for Geospatial Analytics, North Carolina State University, USA.
authors.forename: J Aaron
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Hipp
authors.affiliation: Division of Public Health Sciences, Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, USA; Agricultural Statistics Laboratory, University of Arkansas, USA.
authors.forename: Jung Ae
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis, USA; Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, Washington University in St. Louis, USA.
authors.forename: Rachel G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Tabak
authors.affiliation: Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis, USA; Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, Washington University in St. Louis, USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Dodson
authors.affiliation: Division of Public Health Sciences, Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, USA.
authors.forename: Christine M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Marx
authors.affiliation: Division of Public Health Sciences, Department of Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, USA; Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis, USA; Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, Washington University in St. Louis, USA; Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St. Louis, USA.
authors.forename: Ross C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Brownson
keywords: Occupation; Occupational sitting; Physical activity; Worksite support and policies