Abstract
BackgroundInformal caregivers providing unpaid assistance may be vulnerable to changes in health behaviors due to modifications in caregiving during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, this cross-sectional study explored self-reported changes in physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior, and screen time among informal caregivers providing care for older adults aged 50+ during the pandemic.MethodsStudy participants were recruited via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk and reported their perceived changes (increased a lot, increased a little, remained the same, decreased a little, decreased a lot) in moderate-intensity PA (MPA), vigorous-intensity PA (VPA), sedentary behavior, and screen time (weekday and weekend) during the pandemic. For analytic purposes, response categories were categorized into three-level ordinal variables—increased (increased a lot, increased a little), no change (remained the same), decreased (decreased a little, decreased a lot). Multinomial logistic regression models assessed the likelihood of changes (vs. no change) in MPA, VPA, sedentary behavior, and screen time (weekday, weekend) based on caregiving and demographic characteristics.ResultsIn total, 2574 individuals accessed the study link, 464 of whom did not meet eligibility requirements. In addition, people who completed 80% or less of the survey (n = 1171) and/or duplicate IP addresse (n = 104) were excluded, resulting in an analytic sample of n = 835. The sample was 69% male, had a mean age of 34 (SD = 9.7), and 48% reported increased VPA, while 55% reported increased MPA. The majority also reported increased sedentary behavior, as well as increased screen time. Respondents living with their care recipient were more likely to report increased weekday screen time (Odds Ratio [OR] = 1.55, 95% CI 1.11–2.16) and sedentary behavior (OR = 1.80, 95% CI 1.28–2.53) than respondents not living with the care recipient. Those living with their care recipient were also more likely to reported increased MPA (OR = 1.64, 95% CI 1.16–2.32), and VPA (OR = 1.53, 95% CI 1.09–2.15), but also more likely to report a decrease in VPA (OR = 1.75, 95% CI 1.14–2.70).ConclusionThe majority of respondents reported that their MPA, VPA PA, sedentary behavior, and screen time had changed during the pandemic. Living with the care recipient was associated with both positive and negative changes in behavior. Future research can explore factors associated with these reported changes in behavior.
Highlights
Informal caregivers providing unpaid assistance may be vulnerable to changes in health behaviors due to modifications in caregiving during the COVID-19 pandemic
The majority of respondents reported that their moderate-intensity PA (MPA), vigorous-intensity PA (VPA) physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior, and screen time had changed during the pandemic
There is a growing body of research suggesting that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted participation in healthful behaviors, including physical activity (PA) [4,5,6]
Summary
Study participants were recruited via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk and reported their perceived changes (increased a lot, increased a little, remained the same, decreased a little, decreased a lot) in moderate-intensity PA (MPA), vigorous-intensity PA (VPA), sedentary behavior, and screen time (weekday and weekend) during the pandemic. Multinomial logistic regression models assessed the likelihood of changes (vs no change) in MPA, VPA, sedentary behavior, and screen time (weekday, weekend) based on caregiving and demographic characteristics. Study participants were recruited in June 2020 using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk), an online platform/labor market that is used to recruit study participants globally for social and behavioral science research [30,31,32]. Registered users log in to the MTurk online platform where they can access a list of HITs that they may be eligible to complete. Participants received $1.50 for their effort and the study was approved by the Institutional Review Board at the University of Rhode Island (study # 1606088-2)
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