Abstract
ObjectivesObjectives: Human biologists are increasingly interested in measuring and comparing physical activities in different societies. Sedentary behavior, which refers to time spent sitting or lying down while awake, is a large component of daily 24 hours movement patterns in humans and has been linked to poor health outcomes such as risk of all‐cause and cardiovascular mortality, independently of physical activity. As such, it is important for researchers, with the aim of measuring human movement patterns, to most effectively use resources available to them to capture sedentary behavior.MethodsThis toolkit outlines objective (device‐based) and subjective (self‐report) methods for measuring sedentary behavior in free‐living contexts, the benefits and drawbacks to each, as well as novel options for combined use to maximize scientific rigor. Throughout this toolkit, emphasis is placed on considerations for the use of these methods in various field conditions and in varying cultural contexts.ResultsObjective measures such as inclinometers are the gold‐standard for measuring total sedentary time but they typically cannot capture contextual information or determine which specific behaviors are taking place. Subjective measures such as questionnaires and 24 hours‐recall methods can provide measurements of time spent in specific sedentary behaviors but are subject to measurement error and response bias.ConclusionsWe recommend that researchers use the method(s) that suit the research question; inclinometers are recommended for the measurement of total sedentary time, while self‐report methods are recommended for measuring time spent in particular contexts of sedentary behavior.
Highlights
Biological anthropologists and human biologists are increasingly interested in applying an evolutionary perspective to understand and potentially mitigate the effectsJustin Aunger and Janelle Wagnild should be considered joint first author.of modern, industrialized lifestyles on health
While there are limits to the extent to which the activity patterns of contemporary hunter-gatherer populations can be extrapolated to infer our evolutionary past (Cordain, Gotschall, Eaton, & Eaton, 1998), there is a general consensus that human physiology evolved within an ecological context which was characterized by a higher level of physical
Inclinometers or thighworn accelerometers, have the highest validity for the measurement of sedentary time, but they cannot determine what kinds of sedentary behaviors are taking place
Summary
Justin Aunger and Janelle Wagnild should be considered joint first author. of modern, industrialized lifestyles on health. This study identified that approximately 30% of time is spent in non-ambulatory postures (eg, squatting, kneeling) which require more muscular activation than the kinds of passive sitting common in industrialized contexts (Raichlen et al, 2020). Low burden, Pooled validity single question estimate and makes reliability range translation easy, from Bakker may be subject et al, 2020; See to social Prince desirability bias et al, 2020 and difficulty in recalling overall sedentary time allows estimate and gathering of reliability range contextual from Bakker information, et al, 2020; See may not be Prince useful outside et al, 2020 of northern, industrialized contexts, translation into different languages usually requires additional validation before use Relevance of each Otten, Littenberg, behavior is. We hope to provide a comprehensive resource to those interested in measuring sedentary behavior
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