Understanding the Physical Activity of Girls and Boys in India: A Logistic Model of Gender and Socio-Contextual Determinants of Outdoor Play Open Access
Gloor, Susannah Downing (2014)
Abstract
The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore underlying socio-contextual factors that may influence physical activity differences between adolescent boys and girls in Bijapur city, Karnataka, India. This project was set within a larger study that aims to assess how globalization leads to social, economic, and ideational changes that have repercussions for adolescent weight in the rapidly-changing environment of Bijapur. Guided by the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) and its core tenet of reciprocal determinism, this specific project developed a logistic model to help predict physical activity differences within the context of social and environmental factors that may encourage or discourage certain behaviors depending on gender. The chosen outcome measure was outdoor play. Data collection occurred in early 2012 using a survey of private and public school adolescents (n=399). Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 21, and analyses included descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and sequential logistic regression. The study concluded that a lower proportion of girls reported participating in outdoor play than their male counterparts. Friend encouragement of play and availability of sports equipment were both identified as socio-contextual determinants of outdoor play at the bivariate level, and these coincided with the SCT constructs of self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and observational learning. A sequential logistic regression found that girls are 71.2% less likely to participate in outdoor play when holding constant these socio-contextual determinants and other sample demographics (age, school type, income, caste, and religion). The results of this study add to the current research on adolescent obesity prevention in India and help fill a gap in existing literature by conducting a preliminary application of some SCT constructs to the issue. Public health practitioners can use initial findings from this study to pursue more research on theory application to obesity prevention behaviors in India. Future interventions could involve a focus on cultural traditions and include female adults such as grandmothers and mothers in public health initiatives on gender and obesity.
Table of Contents
Chapter One: Introduction........................................................................................................... 1 Statement of Problem................................................................................................................... 1 Study Purpose.............................................................................................................................. 4 Significance of the Study.............................................................................................................. 5 Theoretical Framework............................................................................................................... 6 Definition of Terms...................................................................................................................... 8 Delimitations................................................................................................................................ 9 Limitations................................................................................................................................. 10 Chapter Two: Literature Review............................................................................................... 11 Introduction............................................................................................................................... 11 Epidemiology of Adolescent Overweight and Obesity in India.................................................. 11 Overweight/Obesity and Adolescents................................................................................... 12 Overweight/Obesity and Person-Level Factors......................................................................... 13 Socioeconomic Status............................................................................................................ 13 Gender................................................................................................................................... 14 Overweight/Obesity and Environment-Level Factors................................................................ 15 Globalization and Urban Development................................................................................. 15 Cultural Beliefs and Traditions............................................................................................. 17 Application of the Social Cognitive Theory................................................................................ 18 Summary.................................................................................................................................... 20 Chapter Three: Methodology..................................................................................................... 22 Introduction............................................................................................................................... 22 Data Source............................................................................................................................... 22 Participants and Sampling......................................................................................................... 23 Procedure.................................................................................................................................. 24 Data Collection...................................................................................................................... 24 Instrument Design................................................................................................................. 24 Family and Household.......................................................................................................... 25 Food and Activity................................................................................................................. 26 Anthropometric Measurements............................................................................................. 27 Survey.................................................................................................................................... 27 Internal Validation................................................................................................................ 28 Measurement............................................................................................................................. 28 Behavior-Level (Outcome).................................................................................................... 29 Person-Level.......................................................................................................................... 29 Environment-Level................................................................................................................ 29 Data Analysis............................................................................................................................. 30 Chapter Four: Results................................................................................................................. 31 Introduction............................................................................................................................... 31 Sample Characteristics.............................................................................................................. 31 Preliminary Analyses................................................................................................................. 33 Descriptive Statistics............................................................................................................. 33 Demographic Correlations with Physical Activity................................................................ 34 Main Analyses............................................................................................................................ 35 Aim 1: Gender Differences in Physical Activity................................................................... 36 Aim 2: Socio-contextual Determinants of Physical Activity................................................ 36
Aim 3: Gender Differences in Socio-contextual Determinants of Physical Activity............ 37
Summary.................................................................................................................................... 39 Chapter Five: Discussion............................................................................................................ 40 Introduction............................................................................................................................... 40 Findings by Research Aim......................................................................................................... 40 Aim 1: Gender Differences in Physical Activity................................................................... 40 Aim 2: Socio-contextual Determinants of Physical Activity................................................ 41Aim 3: Gender Differences in Socio-contextual Determinants of Physical Activity............ 42
Limitations................................................................................................................................. 44 Implications and Recommendations.......................................................................................... 44 Summary.................................................................................................................................... 46 Appendices................................................................................................................................... 48 Appendix A: Emory IRB Review Board Letter.......................................................................... 49 Appendix B: Data Use Agreement............................................................................................. 50References.................................................................................................................................... 53
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