Cultural Beliefs and Attitudes of Black and Hispanic College-Age Women Toward Exercise

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the cultural knowledge that informs exercise behaviors among Black and Hispanic college-age women. Focus groups were conducted among 26 Black or Hispanic female college students. Questions were based on constructs from social cognitive theory. Data were analyzed using content analysis. Latinas were found to be more likely to view vigorous exercise as "unfeminine" and cited family responsibilities as barriers. Black women enjoyed the competition and camaraderie of exercise, but felt pressure to conform to White standards of beauty. There appear to be distinct differences in the cultural beliefs that inform exercise behaviors among these women.

African American Women and Weight Loss

“…Study results support existing research (Blixen et al, 2006;D'Alonzo & Fishetti, 2008) that illustrates how minority populations struggling with weight issues often do not possess basic knowledge and/or they hold cultural views that are not conducive for either preventing or overcoming overweight and obesity. For instance, the women did not have a clear understanding that the vast majority of African American women are either overweight or obese.…”

Barriers to Physical Activity Among African American Women: An Integrative Review of the Literature

“…The mean age of participants among the 26 studies providing sufficient data for calculation was 47.9 years (encompassing a total of 4188 participants). Additionally, five studies had samples comprised of mostly low-income women (Evans, 2011; Hoebeke, 2008; Kirchoff et al 2008; Lee et al 2011; Wilbur et al 2002; Wilcox et al 2005) and the remainder of studies included women with diverse income levels (n=28) or lacked sufficient information to determine the income levels of participants (n=9; Bopp et al 2004; Bopp et al 2006; Dunn 2008; Eyler et al 1998; Wilcox et al 2002; Im et al 2012; Sanderson, Littleton and Pully 2002; D’Alonzo and Fischetti 2008; Richter et al 2002). Only one study (Doldren and Webb 2013) provided information the regarding the ancestry or ethnic background of AA women enrolled in the study.…”

“…The first theme was that participants did not engage in PA because they thought they received sufficient PA through their daily activities (Pekmezi et al 2013; Walcott-McQuigg and Prohaska 2001) or because they were unaware how much PA should be performed to achieve positive health benefits (Wilcox et al 2005; Pekmezi et al 2013). The second theme was that participants lacked knowledge on what constituted PA (Nies, Vollman, and Cook 1999; Wilcox et al 2002) or how to use exercise equipment/machines at the gym, which resulted in not attempting to engage in PA (Im et al 2012; Bopp et al 2007; Wilcox et al 2005; Harley et al 2009; D’Alonzo and Fischetti 2008). Interestingly, lack of knowledge as a barrier to PA was not explored as a potential barrier among any quantitative studies.…”

Outcomes of a Culturally Tailored Partially Randomized Patient Preference Controlled Trial to Increase Physical Activity Among Low-Income Immigrant Latinas

“…Many low-income minority women cite concerns about neighborhood safety as a compelling reason for lack of outdoor PA (Bennett et al, 2007; Roman, Knight, Chalfin, & Popkin, 2009). Negative cultural perceptions about PA among Latinas, including fear of harm to a women’s reproductive health, have been noted as deterrents (D’Alonzo & Fischetti, 2008). Finally, Hispanic women are often socialized into placing family needs above their own, a mind-set associated with marianismo (Comas-Diaz, 1988; Englander, Yáñez, & Barney, 2012; Gil & Vasquez, 1996; Stevens, 1973), the female cultural counterpart to machismo.…”