scholarly journals Multi-level validation of the German physical activity barriers self-efficacy scale in a sample of female sixth-graders

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joachim Bachner ◽  
David Joseph Sturm ◽  
Stephan Haug ◽  
Yolanda Demetriou

Abstract Background The physical activity behaviour of the majority of children and adolescents is insufficient. Self-efficacy is regarded as one of the most important determinants able to enhance physical activity. The purpose of this study is to validate the German version of the physical activity barriers self-efficacy scale by means of a multi-level approach. Factorial validity, internal consistency and criterion validity were examined for the individual and the class level.Methods The final sample comprised 454 female sixth-graders of 33 classes. The original 8-item physical activity barriers self-efficacy scale was translated by a committee approach and pilot tested within the pretest procedure. To examine the factorial validity of the translated scale, a multi-level confirmatory factor analysis was conducted with the lavaan package in R. Internal consistency was estimated with the alpha function of the psych package. Criterion validity was examined by correlating self-efficacy with moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) assessed with accelerometers.Results In contrast to previous validation studies, two-dimensional models fit the data better than uni-dimensional models. The best overall fit exhibited a 2x2-model, with two factors both on the individual and the class level (χ2 = 65.13, CFI = .985, TLI = .977, RMSEA = .046, SRMR = .033). The latent factors correlated highly on both levels (r = .87; r = .72). Every item loaded significantly on its respective factor on both levels. Internal consistency for the full scale and the first subscale was good on the individual level and excellent on the class level. For the second subscale, Cronbach’s alpha was low on level 1 and excellent on level 2. Weak relations between self-efficacy values and MVPA were found for level 1, strong associations were found for level 2.Conclusions The validation speaks in favour of a two-dimensional scale measuring not only actual self-efficacy but also support from family and friends. Furthermore, the results argue for the relevance of the multi-level approach which is able to differentiate between self-efficacy on the individual level and collective efficacy on the class level.

2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna C. Svensson ◽  
Joanna Stjernschantz Forsberg ◽  
Dominika Seblova ◽  
Anton Lager

Aim: To determine whether there are systematic differences in physical activity between residential areas after extensive control for sociodemographic factors at the individual level. Methods: Multi-level regressions of walking/bicycling, sedentary activities, household work and exercise were carried out in a representative sample of 68,303 adults in 39 residential areas in Stockholm County, first adjusting at the individual level for country of birth, sex, age, education, occupational class and income. The type of housing was then considered at the individual level or, for walking/bicycling and exercise, at both the individual and area levels (as a measure of area density). Results: After adjustment for sociodemographic factors, differences between residential areas remained in walking/bicycling, corresponding to 0.27 SD, or 50 min/week between the most and least active areas. Forty per cent of this difference could be explained by the type of housing at the area level. For sedentary activities and household work, respectively, much of the variation that remained after adjustment for sociodemographic factors was, in turn, explained by the type of housing at the individual level, leaving a difference of 0.16 SD (80 min/week) and 0.13 SD (60 min/week), respectively. For exercise, the corresponding difference was 0.11 SD (11 min/week, not sensitive to housing). Conclusions: Area level factors may influence walking/bicycling. High area density was associated with more activity. However, high density also comes with a type of housing (apartments) that is associated with less household work and, surprisingly, more sedentary activities, introducing a challenging trade-off. The differences in exercise were smaller than for all other types of activities.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joachim Bachner ◽  
David Joseph Sturm ◽  
Stephan Haug ◽  
Yolanda Demetriou

Abstract The authors have withdrawn this preprint due to a need to make corrections.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joachim Bachner ◽  
David J. Sturm ◽  
Stephan Haug ◽  
Yolanda Demetriou

2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Adela Martin ◽  
Eddie Conlon ◽  
Brian Bowe

AbstractThis paper aims to review the empirical and theoretical research on engineering ethics education, by focusing on the challenges reported in the literature. The analysis is conducted at four levels of the engineering education system. First, the individual level is dedicated to findings about teaching practices reported by instructors. Second, the institutional level brings together findings about the implementation and presence of ethics within engineering programmes. Third, the level of policy situates findings about engineering ethics education in the context of accreditation. Finally, there is the level of the culture of engineering education. The multi-level analysis allows us to address some of the limitations of higher education research which tends to focus on individual actors such as instructors or remains focused on the levels of policy and practice without examining the deeper levels of paradigm and purpose guiding them. Our approach links some of the challenges of engineering ethics education with wider debates about its guiding paradigms. The main contribution of the paper is to situate the analysis of the theoretical and empirical findings reported in the literature on engineering ethics education in the context of broader discussions about the purpose of engineering education and the aims of reform programmes. We conclude by putting forward a series of recommendations for a socio-technical oriented reform of engineering education for ethics.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariano Calvo Martín ◽  
Stamatios C. Nicolis ◽  
Isaac Planas-Sitjà ◽  
Jean-Christophe de Biseau ◽  
Jean-Louis Deneubourg

AbstractCockroaches, like most social arthropods, are led to choose collectively among different alternative resting places. These decisions are modulated by different factors, such as environmental conditions (temperature, relative humidity) and sociality (groups size, nature of communications). The aim of this study is to establish the interplay between environmental conditions and the modulation of the interactions between individuals within a group leading to an inversion of preferences. We show that the preferences of isolated cockroaches and groups of 16 individuals, on the selection of the relative humidity of a shelter are inversed and shed light on the mechanisms involved. We suggest that the relative humidity has a multi-level influence on cockroaches, manifested as an attractant effect at the individual level and as a negative effect at the group level, modulating the interactions.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yingxiang Yu ◽  
Cuiqing Chang ◽  
Yifan Wu ◽  
Lan Xie ◽  
Chengcheng Guo

Abstract Background: Physical activity has proven to be effective in improving blood pressure (BP), but research on the beneficial exercise volume for BP control is limited. We assessed the intervention effects of walking on BP in the Chinese Han occupational population with a sedentary lifestyle to explore the appropriate exercise volume needed for BP control.Methods: A total of 802 subjects were recruited from enterprises and institutions for our study. This study was designed as an intervention study for a baseline control trial. All participants received a 3-month open and prescription pedometer-assisted self-monitoring walking intervention. Multiple linear regression models were used to assess the association between physical activity and changes in systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) BP. We divided the effective step counts into five levels: 4000-<6000 (level 1), 6000-<8000 (level 2), 8000-<10000 (level 3), 10000-12000 (level 4), and >12000 (level 5) steps/day for statistical analysis to evaluate the exercise intervention efficiency.Results: Data of 688 participants who completed the study were analyzed. After 3 months, SBP and DBP decreased by 1.9 and 2.0 mmHg, respectively (P < 0.05). Taking level 5 (>12000 steps/day) as reference, SBP can be better controlled at levels 1-4: level 1 had the best effect (-6.05 mmHg, P=0.007), followed by level 2 (-3.54 mmHg, P=0.006), showing a significant dose-effect relationship between exercise and SBP. Furthermore, the effective step count of 6000-<8000 steps/day was better in controlling SBP in males (-4.26 mmHg, P = 0.014), while 4000-<6000 steps/day had a better effect on females (-6.86 mmHg, P = 0.037). The significant dose-effect relationship was only observed in the 36-50 age group. However, no significant dose-effect relationship between exercise and DBP.Conclusions: Brisk walking can effectively control BP in the Chinese Han occupational population with a sedentary lifestyle. There was a significant dose-effect relationship between exercise and SBP with differences in sex and age. Trial registration: ChiCTR-OOh-16010229. Registered 5 January 2017 - Retrospectively registered, http://www.chictr.org.cn/showprojen.aspx?proj=17362.


Author(s):  
Marilyn E. Wende ◽  
Andrew T. Kaczynski ◽  
John A. Bernhart ◽  
Caroline G. Dunn ◽  
Sara Wilcox

Interventions in faith-based settings are increasingly popular, due to their effectiveness for improving attendee health outcomes and behaviors. Little past research has examined the important role of the church environment in individual-level outcomes using objective environmental audits. This study examined associations between the objectively measured physical church environment and attendees’ perceptions of physical activity (PA) and healthy eating (HE) supports within the church environment, self-efficacy for PA and HE, and self-reported PA and HE behaviors. Data were collected via church audits and church attendee surveys in 54 churches in a rural, medically underserved county in South Carolina. Multi-level regression was used to analyze associations between the church environment and outcomes. Physical elements of churches were positively related to attendees’ perceptions of church environment supports for PA (B = 0.03, 95% CI = 0.01, 0.05) and HE (B = 0.05, 95% CI = 0.01, 0.09) and there was a significant interaction between perceptions of HE supports and HE church environment. Self-efficacy and behaviors for PA and HE did not show an association with the church environment. Future research should establish a temporal relationship between the church environment and these important constructs for improving health. Future faith-based interventions should apply infrastructure changes to the church environment to influence important mediating constructs to health behavior.


Management ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 256-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Piórkowska

SummaryThe paper is embedded in the following fields: strategic management in terms of behavioural strategy concept, adaptability construct, and micro-foundations realm as well as organizational theory and psychology. Moreover, the paper concerns to some extent a multi-level approach in strategic management involving individual, team, and organizational level. The aim of the paper is to contribute to extend, on one hand, the ascertainment set in the field of behavioural strategy as behavioural strategy encompasses a mindboggling diversity of topics and methods and its conceptual unity has been hard to achieve (Powell, Lovallo, Fox 2011, p. 1371), and on the other hand, to order mixed approaches to adaptability especially to gain insights on micro-level adapting processes (individual adaptability and adaptive performance) in terms of the multi-level approach. The method that has been used is literature studies and the interference is mostly deductive. The structure of the manuscript is four-fold. The first part involves the considerations in the field of adaptability and adaptive performance at the individual level. The issues of adaptability and adaptive performance at the team level have been presented in the second part. The third part encompasses the organizational adaptability assertions. Finally, the conclusion, limitations of the considerations highlighted as well as the future research directions have been emphasized. The overarching key finding is that the behavioural strategy concept may constitute the boundary spanner in exploring and explaining adaptability phenomenon at different levels of analysis.


2014 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 255-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Stefanek ◽  
Dagmar Strohmeier ◽  
Rens van de Schoot

This study was an investigation of individual and contextual predictors for same-cultural friendship preferences among non-immigrant ( N = 125), Turkish ( N = 196) and former Yugoslavian ( N = 256) immigrant youths ( M age = 14.39 years) in 36 multicultural classes. At the individual level age, gender, cultural group, number of friends, and acculturation variables, such as immigrant status, cultural pride and racist victimization were investigated. At the class level, predictors drawn from contact theory such as cultural diversity and multicultural education were analyzed. Multilevel analyses have revealed that being a former Yugoslavian first and second generation immigrant, being a Turkish first generation immigrant, having fewer friends, a high level of cultural pride and a high level of cultural diversity in classes are related to more same-cultural friendship preferences. The present findings highlight the importance of acculturation-related and contextual factors for same-cultural friendship preferences.


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