Issn Print: 0195-9131
Publication Date: 1996/05/01
POTENTIAL MISCLASSIFICATION OF ADOLESCENTS AS SEDENTARY USING THE YRBSS PHYSICAL ACTIVITY SELF-REPORT INSTRUMENT 194
Excerpt
The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) has been used extensively (Public Health Reports, 1993) to measure adolescent levels of physical activity (P.A.). Until recently, the most common method of prescribing the minimum levels of P.A. required to gain documented health related fitness (HRF) benefits has been the exercise prescription model (ACSM, 1990). This model mandates that participants complete 20 minutes of continuous P.A. on 3 or more occasions per week. Alternatively, the health paradigm model(Haskell, 1994) suggests that HRF benefits accrue from accumulating 30 minutes of P.A. daily or near daily. In a study of 703 adolescents (348 male, 355 female), 21% of males and 28% of females reported insufficient P.A. to achieve the minimum standards of either model. When ACSM guidelines (1990) were applied, 77% of males (n=265) and 66% of females (n=229) achieved minimum P.A. goals, however, of those meeting these goals, only 29% of males (n=99) and 21% of females (n=75) also achieved the health paradigm model (1994) requirements. Depending on which prescription model was used to categorize adolescent P.A., differing classifications of sedentary participants emerged. Results also show that 7% of females and 2% of males reported sufficient P.A. to meet health paradigm standards, yet did not report continuous P.A. sufficient to meet ACSM standards. Thus, the likelihood exists for adolescents to be misclassified as sedentary if the analysis is based solely on ACSM 1990 guidelines. Researchers should, therefore, utilize criteria of both models for purposes of classifying levels of adolescent physical activity.
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Email
