How well do physical activity questions perform? A European cognitive testing study

Abstract

BackgroundOnly few studies have focused on the cognitive processes of the respondents that are involved when answering physical activity questionnaires (PAQs). This study aimed at examining whether two PAQs work as intended with different segments of the survey population in different cultural settings in Europe.MethodsThe International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF) and the US National Health Interview Survey - Adult Core Physical Activity Questionnaire (NHIS-PAQ) were tested in Belgium, Estonia, Germany and the UK using a standardized cognitive interviewing procedure. IPAQ-SF measures total vigorous physical activity (PA), moderate PA, walking and sitting. NHIS-PAQ measures leisure-time vigorous PA, light and moderate PA and muscle-strengthening PA. In total 62 persons completed cognitive interviews, at least 15 interviews were conducted in each country.ResultsBoth PAQs performed as intended with young and high-skilled persons and those having a regular exercise schedule. For the others, however, the testing revealed that problems occurred with both PAQs relating to understanding the concepts of ‘(light and) moderate’ and ‘vigorous’ PA, classifying activities into the provided answer options of different PA intensities, recalling instances of ‘normal’ activities such as walking and sitting, and calculating the total duration of more than one activity or instance of an activity. The revealed problems with the questionnaires were quite similar in different countries; profound cultural differences were not observed.ConclusionsBoth questionnaires were difficult to answer for many respondents and rather user-unfriendly. They are designed to measure an exactness of PA quantity (frequency and duration) and intensity which would be desirable to obtain from a scientific point of view; however, respondents can hardly provide this information for cognitive reasons. Studies investigating the respondents’ perspective are useful for improving physical activity information based on self-reports.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13690-015-0109-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Does squatting need attention?—A dual-task study on cognitive resources in resistance exercise

“…Each participant was asked to visit the laboratories for two sessions at least 48 hours apart. At the first session, the participants were informed about the experimental procedures and had to complete the German version of the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PARQ) which screens for individuals at increased health risk when exercising physically [14][15][16]. All individuals interested in participating in this study verified by self-reports that they were not suffering from musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and/or neurological disorders.…”

The efficacy of school-based interventions to increase MVPA and MBSE outcomes in adolescent males. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…This review only included objective measures and did not include those studies that utilised PA questionnaires. Past research has shown that misreporting of PA levels in around 50% of adolescents [89] and the possibility of misinterpretation for PA questionnaires [90]. With evidence suggesting that questionnaires and the reporting of PA levels may not be accurate, such data was negated from this systematic review and meta-analysis.…”

Prevalência de adolescentes fisicamente ativos nas capitais brasileiras: Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde do Escolar 2012 e 2015

“…The use of accelerometers would provide objective and detailed measures of physical activity, but would not be practical in such a large sample. In addition, it has been reported that, during the evaluation of physical activity practice with questionnaires, one should avoid joining different physical activity domains, as it makes it difficult for respondents to remember the activities performed, increasing error in the measurement 50,51 . However, questions similar to the one used in the present study were compared with the accelerometry, providing a reliable estimate of the physical activity behavior of adolescents 52,53 .…”