Abstract:Background
African American women perform low levels of physical activity and are disproportionally burdened by associated cardiometabolic disease conditions (i.e. 57% are obese, 49% have cardiovascular disease) The marked health disparities among African American women indicate the need for innovative strategies to promote physical activity to help attenuate the chronic disease health disparities in this high-risk population. Culturally tailoring PA programs to address the sociocultural norms, values, beliefs… Show more
“…Historically, AA women have been viewed as the primary caretakers of their familial units (ie, family and other kinship-type relationships). 17 This caretaking role is something many AA women take great pride in, and as a result, can limit their available time to engage in PA. 17,24 Previous research indeed shows that some AA women view PA as a self-indulgent or self-serving behavior that takes valuable time away from their family and caretaking responsibilities. 43,44 Together, these phenomena have been termed collectively as an AA woman’s “ethic of care” (referring to the self-sacrificing behaviors of AA women to ensure the needs of their familial and community units are met before their own needs).…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Potential strategies to leverage these findings in the design of culturally relevant PA program for AA women include incorporating success stories or testimonials from other AA women to instill a sense of self-worth and self-entitlement for PA (ie, aligning with the emotional arousal and verbal persuasion concepts of Self-Efficacy) and emphasizing how PA is relevant to the various caretaking and community roles of AA women (ie, illustrate the importance of PA as a role modeling behavior to others and highlight how being active on a regular basis can result in increased energy that can help women perform their caretaking tasks and their ability to engage with their children,). 17,49 …”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Focus group guides were derived from our previous PA promotion work with AA women 17,24–28 and a critical review of the extant literature. In particular, the guides were designed to: (1) examine specific SCT constructs (Table 1) underpinning a PA program previously developed by the research team; and (2) elucidate how these constructs can be optimized in the design of a culturally relevant PA program for AA women.…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…14–16 These constructs can be culturally tailored to address deeply-rooted aspects of AA culture (ie, of collectivism/ethic of care, experiential knowledge, and kinship) for the promotion of PA among AA women. 17 However, few researchers have explicated the utility of the SCT in the design of culturally relevant PA programs for AA women. A 2014 review of PA interventions for AAs 18 revealed that 7 of 16 studies used SCT as a theoretical basis for activities.…”
Objective
We examined the cultural relevance of Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) in the design of a physical activity intervention for African-American women.
Methods
A qualitative study design was used. Twenty-five African-American women (Mean age = 38.5 years, Mean BMI = 39.4 kg·m2) were enrolled in a series of focus groups (N = 9) to elucidate how 5 SCT constructs (ie, Behavioral Capability, Outcome Expectations, Self-efficacy, Self-regulation, Social Support) can be culturally tailored in the design of a physical activity program for African-American women.
Results
For the construct of Behavioral Capability, participants were generally unaware of the amount, intensity, and types of physical activity needed for health benefits. Outcome Expectations associated with physical activity included increased energy, improved health, weight loss, and positive role modeling behaviors. Constructs of Self-efficacy and Self-regulation were elicited through the women perceiving themselves as a primary barrier to physical activity. Participants endorsed the need of a strong social support component and identified a variety of acceptable sources to include in a physical activity program (ie, family, friends, other program participants).
Conclusions
Findings explicate the utility of SCT as a behavioral change theoretical basis for tailoring physical activity programs to African-American women.
“…Historically, AA women have been viewed as the primary caretakers of their familial units (ie, family and other kinship-type relationships). 17 This caretaking role is something many AA women take great pride in, and as a result, can limit their available time to engage in PA. 17,24 Previous research indeed shows that some AA women view PA as a self-indulgent or self-serving behavior that takes valuable time away from their family and caretaking responsibilities. 43,44 Together, these phenomena have been termed collectively as an AA woman’s “ethic of care” (referring to the self-sacrificing behaviors of AA women to ensure the needs of their familial and community units are met before their own needs).…”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Potential strategies to leverage these findings in the design of culturally relevant PA program for AA women include incorporating success stories or testimonials from other AA women to instill a sense of self-worth and self-entitlement for PA (ie, aligning with the emotional arousal and verbal persuasion concepts of Self-Efficacy) and emphasizing how PA is relevant to the various caretaking and community roles of AA women (ie, illustrate the importance of PA as a role modeling behavior to others and highlight how being active on a regular basis can result in increased energy that can help women perform their caretaking tasks and their ability to engage with their children,). 17,49 …”
Section: Discussionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…Focus group guides were derived from our previous PA promotion work with AA women 17,24–28 and a critical review of the extant literature. In particular, the guides were designed to: (1) examine specific SCT constructs (Table 1) underpinning a PA program previously developed by the research team; and (2) elucidate how these constructs can be optimized in the design of a culturally relevant PA program for AA women.…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…14–16 These constructs can be culturally tailored to address deeply-rooted aspects of AA culture (ie, of collectivism/ethic of care, experiential knowledge, and kinship) for the promotion of PA among AA women. 17 However, few researchers have explicated the utility of the SCT in the design of culturally relevant PA programs for AA women. A 2014 review of PA interventions for AAs 18 revealed that 7 of 16 studies used SCT as a theoretical basis for activities.…”
Objective
We examined the cultural relevance of Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) in the design of a physical activity intervention for African-American women.
Methods
A qualitative study design was used. Twenty-five African-American women (Mean age = 38.5 years, Mean BMI = 39.4 kg·m2) were enrolled in a series of focus groups (N = 9) to elucidate how 5 SCT constructs (ie, Behavioral Capability, Outcome Expectations, Self-efficacy, Self-regulation, Social Support) can be culturally tailored in the design of a physical activity program for African-American women.
Results
For the construct of Behavioral Capability, participants were generally unaware of the amount, intensity, and types of physical activity needed for health benefits. Outcome Expectations associated with physical activity included increased energy, improved health, weight loss, and positive role modeling behaviors. Constructs of Self-efficacy and Self-regulation were elicited through the women perceiving themselves as a primary barrier to physical activity. Participants endorsed the need of a strong social support component and identified a variety of acceptable sources to include in a physical activity program (ie, family, friends, other program participants).
Conclusions
Findings explicate the utility of SCT as a behavioral change theoretical basis for tailoring physical activity programs to African-American women.
“…6,7 Faith-based interventions have been successful in reducing weight, improving dietary practices, and increasing physical activity among African American women. 8,9 Previous studies have identified positive linkages between cultural adaptation, spirituality/ religion and social support, and promotion of health-related behaviors among African American women, [10][11][12][13][14][15][16] perhaps through their impact on self-efficacy, selfconfidence, and "normalizing" behaviors through role modeling and accountability partners. Learning and Developing Individual Exercise Skills (L.A.D.I.E.S.)…”
<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Physical activity (PA) is beneficial for health, yet most African American women do not achieve recommended levels. Successful, sustainable strategies could help to address disparities in health outcomes associated with low levels of PA. The Learning and Developing Individual Exercise Skills (L.A.D.I.E.S.) for a Better Life study compared a faith-based and a secular intervention for increasing PA with a selfguided control group. </p><p><strong>Design Setting Participants: </strong>This cluster randomized, controlled trial was conducted from 2010 – 2011 in African American churches (n=31) in suburban North Carolina. Participants were 469 self-identified low active African American women. </p><p><strong>Measures: </strong>Baseline data were collected on participant demographics, objective and self-reported PA, and constructs related to social ecological theory and social cognitive theory. </p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Complete baseline data were available for 417 participants who were aged 51.4 ± 12.9 years, with average BMI (kg/ m2) 35.8 ± 9.9; 73% of participants were obese (BMI >30). Participants averaged 3,990 ± 1,828 pedometer-assessed daily steps and 23.9 ± 37.7 accelerometer-assessed minutes of daily moderate-to-vigorous PA, and self-reported 25.4 ± 45.4 minutes of weekly walking and moderate- and vigorous-intensity PA. Baseline self-reported religiosity and social support were high. </p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>L.A.D.I.E.S. is one of the largest PA trials focused on individual behavior change in African American women. Baseline characteristics suggest participants are representative of the general population. Findings from the study will contribute toward understanding appropriate strategies for increasing PA in high-risk populations.</p><p><em>Ethn Dis. </em>2017;27(3):257-264; doi:10.18865/ed.27.3.257 </p>
Introduction
Few studies have examined relationships between sensor‐measured physical activity (PA) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk among African Americans. This study described relationships between PA and CVD risk in NEW Soul study participants.
Methods
Participants completed a dual X‐ray absorptiometry scan and measures of blood pressure, waist and hip circumference, height, and weight. Actigraph GTM accelerometers measured moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). We assessed relationships between minutes/day of MVPA and total body fat percent, total lean body mass, total fat mass, total bone mass, total fat distribution, body mass index (BMI), systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and waist‐to‐hip ratio, adjusting for age, sex, and education.
Results
Participants (N = 159) were mostly women (79%), overweight/obese (99%), and had stage 1 or 2 hypertension (60%). Participants’ means ± SD for MVPA were 14.3 ± 12.5 min/day, total body fat percent 44.6% ± 7.5%, total lean body mass 54.7 ± 10.5 kg, systolic blood pressure 133.5 ± 16.7 mmHg, diastolic blood pressure 83.1 ± 9.6 mmHg, waist‐to‐hip ratio 0.9 ± 0.1, and BMI 36.9 ± 6.9 kg/m2. Every 10‐min increase in MVPA minutes per day was associated with a 1.2 kg kg/m2 decrease in BMI (t = –P = .02) and 2.0% decrease in total body fat percent (P ≤ .0001). MVPA also was negatively associated with total fat mass (P = .002) and total fat distribution (P = .003).
Conclusions
Findings confirmed protective relationships between PA and CVD risk, suggesting the importance of increasing PA among African Americans.
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