Abstract
IntroductionSocio-economically disadvantaged women are at a greater risk of spending excess time engaged in television viewing, a behavior linked to several adverse health outcomes. However, the factors which explain socio-economic differences in television viewing are unknown. This study aimed to investigate the contribution of intrapersonal, social and environmental factors to mediating socio-economic (educational) inequalities in women's television viewing.MethodsCross-sectional data were provided by 1,554 women (aged 18-65) who participated in the 'Socio-economic Status and Activity in Women study' of 2004. Based on an ecological framework, women self-reported their socio-economic position (highest education level), television viewing, as well as a number of potential intrapersonal (enjoyment of television viewing, preference for leisure-time sedentary behavior, depression, stress, weight status), social (social participation, interpersonal trust, social cohesion, social support for physical activity from friends and from family) and physical activity environmental factors (safety, aesthetics, distance to places of interest, and distance to physical activity facilities).ResultsMultiple mediating analyses showed that two intrapersonal factors (enjoyment of television viewing and weight status) and two social factors (social cohesion and social support from friends for physical activity) partly explained the educational inequalities in women's television viewing. No physical activity environmental factors mediated educational variations in television viewing.ConclusionsAcknowledging the cross-sectional nature of this study, these findings suggest that health promotion interventions aimed at reducing educational inequalities in television viewing should focus on intrapersonal and social strategies, particularly providing enjoyable alternatives to television viewing, weight-loss/management information, increasing social cohesion in the neighborhood and promoting friend support for activity.
Highlights
Socio-economically disadvantaged women are at a greater risk of spending excess time engaged in television viewing, a behavior linked to several adverse health outcomes
Experiencing higher levels of stress is more prevalent amongst adults of a low socio-economic position [17], and stress has been reported as a barrier to physical activity amongst women [18] in physical activity literature, warranting research testing this possible mediator of the socio-economic gradient in television viewing
Given that the extent to which these intrapersonal, social and physical environmental factors vary across socio-economic groups, and whether these variations explain socio-economic differences in television viewing, are unknown, the aim of this study was to examine the role of several intra-personal, social and physical environmental factors in mediating socio-economic inequalities in women’s television viewing
Summary
Socio-economically disadvantaged women are at a greater risk of spending excess time engaged in television viewing, a behavior linked to several adverse health outcomes. This study aimed to investigate the contribution of intrapersonal, social and environmental factors to mediating socio-economic (educational) inequalities in women’s television viewing. No previous studies have investigated mediators of socio-economic inequalities in television viewing among adults. Influences on adults’ sedentary behavior, in particular television viewing, can be described in terms of intra-personal, social, and physical environmental factors, following the socio-ecological framework of human behavior [13]. Social influences on television viewing include social support for physical activity [15] Other social factors such as interpersonal trust (an indicator of perceived social capital) [19] and social cohesion (an absence of conflict within society) [20], have been found to predict physical activity in physical activity research. One study suggested that the walkability of the neighborhood was inversely associated with television viewing in women [21]
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