https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7199-0599
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ABSTRACT
Background: Precursors driving leisure-time sedentary behaviors remain poorly investigated, despite their detrimental consequences. This study aimed to investigate the predictive validity of controlled and automatic motivational precursors toward reducing sedentary behaviors and being physically active on leisure-time sedentary behaviors. The influence of demographic, physical, socio-professional, interpersonal, and environmental variables was also examined and compared with the associations of motivational precursors. Methods: 125 adults completed questionnaires measuring controlled motivational precursors (i.e., intentions, perceived competence), demographical (i.e., sex and age), physical (i.e., body mass index), and interpersonal (i.e., number of children) variables. Regarding automatic motivational precursors, habit strength and approach-avoidance tendencies were captured using the Self-Report Behavioral Automaticity Index and a manikin task. Time at work was computed as a socio-professional variable, days of the week and weather conditions were recorded as environmental precursors. Participants wore an accelerometer for 7 days and leisure time was identified using notebooks. Associations between the different precursors and the leisure-time sedentary behaviors were examined in linear mixed effect models. Results: Intention to be physically active and habit strength toward physical activity were negatively associated with leisure-time sedentary behaviors. Sex, body mass index, time at work, number of children, day of the week, and weather conditions were more strongly associated with leisure-time sedentary behaviors. Conclusion: Our findings show that, in comparison with other variables, the influence of motivational precursors on leisure-time sedentary behaviors is limited. This study supports the adoption of a broad-spectrum of precursors when predicting sedentary behaviors.
Availability of data
The datasets generated and analysed during the current study are available in the Zenodo repository, [doi: 10.5281/zenodo.4010153].
Ethics approval and consent to participate
Ethical approval for the study was granted by the University of Grenoble Research Ethics Committee.
Supplementary material
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed on the publisher’s website.
Notes
1 A previous version of this manuscript included affective and instrumental attitudes toward sedentary behaviors and physical activity as predictors. These variables were removed from the analysis as affective and instrumental attitudes showed low internal consistency (αs < .58) and are not considered as the most proximal motivational precursors of behaviors. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity at work (at both the within- and between levels) was also initially included in the analysis. These variables were also removed from the analysis as our sample was composed adults working in the tertiary sector, in which physical activity levels have been shown to be particularly low—here the mean percentage of moderate-to vigorous physical activity at work was M = 2.46 ± 3.61%.
2 The influence of the precursors that were marginally associated (p < .100) with leisure-time sedentary behaviors was tested in a parsimonious model (M7). Results of M7 are presented in supplemental material (Table S4).
3 When controlling for demographic, physical, socio-professional, interpersonal, and environmental variables, motivational precursors that were marginally associated with the leisure-time sedentary behaviors (i.e., competence and habit strength toward sedentary behaviors) were no longer associated with leisure-time sedentary behavior in the parsimonious model M7 (ps. > .382) (Table S4).