Abstract
BackgroundRecent research shows that sedentary behaviour is associated with adverse cardio-metabolic consequences even among those considered sufficiently physically active. In order to successfully develop interventions to address this unhealthy behaviour, factors that influence sedentariness need to be identified and fully understood. The aim of this review is to identify individual, social, environmental, and policy-related determinants or correlates of sedentary behaviours among adults aged 18–65 years.MethodsPubMed, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO and Web of Science were searched for articles published between January 2000 and September 2015. The search strategy was based on four key elements and their synonyms: (a) sedentary behaviour (b) correlates (c) types of sedentary behaviours (d) types of correlates. Articles were included if information relating to sedentary behaviour in adults (18–65 years) was reported. Studies on samples selected by disease were excluded. The full protocol is available from PROSPERO (PROSPERO 2014:CRD42014009823).Results74 original studies were identified out of 4041: 71 observational, two qualitative and one experimental study. Sedentary behaviour was primarily measured as self-reported screen leisure time and total sitting time. In 15 studies, objectively measured total sedentary time was reported: accelerometry (n = 14) and heart rate (n = 1). Individual level factors such as age, physical activity levels, body mass index, socio-economic status and mood were all significantly correlated with sedentariness. A trend towards increased amounts of leisure screen time was identified in those married or cohabiting while having children resulted in less total sitting time. Several environmental correlates were identified including proximity of green space, neighbourhood walkability and safety and weather.ConclusionsResults provide further evidence relating to several already recognised individual level factors and preliminary evidence relating to social and environmental factors that should be further investigated. Most studies relied upon cross-sectional design limiting causal inference and the heterogeneity of the sedentary measures prevented direct comparison of findings. Future research necessitates longitudinal study designs, exploration of policy-related factors, further exploration of environmental factors, analysis of inter-relationships between identified factors and better classification of sedentary behaviour domains.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-016-2841-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
Recent research shows that sedentary behaviour is associated with adverse cardio-metabolic consequences even among those considered sufficiently physically active
The model has been widely applied to research looking at what influences physical activity behaviours [7] and it has been suggested that a comprehensive approach, such as that offered by the socioecological model is essential for examining the multiple level factors that might determine sedentary behaviours [1]
We have found that recent efforts have focused on these types of correlates environmental factors and there has been an increase in the number of published papers in the past three years reporting these factors and their associations with sedentary behaviours in adults [8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16, 42, 59, 60, 63, 77, 79, 83,84,85]
Summary
Recent research shows that sedentary behaviour is associated with adverse cardio-metabolic consequences even among those considered sufficiently physically active. The socio-ecological approach emphasises that focus should be on individual behavioural factors and on the multiple-level factors that influence the specific behaviour in question [7], focusing on the interrelationships between individuals and the social, physical and policy environment This model places the individual within an ecosystem that acknowledges individual behaviour is dependent on the dynamic relationships between it and other determinants or correlates relating to the environment, economy, political and social agendas [7]. The model has been widely applied to research looking at what influences physical activity behaviours [7] and it has been suggested that a comprehensive approach, such as that offered by the socioecological model is essential for examining the multiple level factors that might determine sedentary behaviours [1]. This ecological model provides a framework that facilitates mapping the multiple domains of sedentary behaviour, while at the same time assuming multiple levels of influence [1]
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