Factors influencing participation in outdoor physical activity promotion schemes: the case of South Staffordshire, England

Abstract

Policy exhortations for promoting outdoor physical activity have increased considerably in England and Wales over the past 20 years. Despite a considerable number of schemes developing during this period to encourage physical activity and exercise, marked population-level changes in outdoor physical activity behaviour have not been seen. The paper explores the triggers to this participation using a five-fold classification: physical infrastructure; information infrastructure; administrative infrastructure; participant constraints and participant preferences. Through a series of interviews in a case study ‘healthy exercise’ scheme in South Staffordshire, a district local authority in England, these triggers to participation are identified and explored. It is concluded that whilst the infrastructure triggers can be manipulated by scheme providers in an attempt to improve scheme participation, participant triggers fall largely beyond the control of scheme providers. Research suggests, too, that participant triggers tend to be stronger than infrastructure ones. Because of this, where there is a lack of healthy exercise scheme success, this cannot necessarily be attributed to scheme providers as it might be as a result of user triggers. For the same reason, it might be beyond the influence of scheme providers to turn ‘failing’ exercise schemes into successful ones.

Keywords:

• health policy
• triggers to exercise participation
• participant constraints
• participant preferences
• barriers to exercise

Acknowledgements

This research was funded by Physical Activity Network West Midlands, the Department of Health West Midlands and Natural England and we are grateful for this financial support. The results contained in the paper do not necessarily accord with the views of the sponsors and all errors and omissions remain those of the authors and not those of the sponsors. We would also like to acknowledge the contributions of representatives from the Physical Activity Network (West Midlands), Natural England, South Staffordshire PCT Public Health team, Lichfield District Council, Age Concern South Staffordshire (now Age UK) and Sport Across Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent for the success of the project evaluation.

Notes

1. Pate, O’Neill, & Lobelo (2008) define sedentary behaviour as activities that do not increase energy expenditure substantially above the resting level, including activities such as sleeping, sitting, lying down, watching television, and other forms of screen-based entertainment. Operationally, sedentary behaviour includes activities that involve energy expenditure at the level of 1.0–1.5 metabolic equivalent units (METs).

2. The notion of ‘choice’ being a contested one.

3. The Department of Health launched the LGM PACP toolkit in November 2009.