Concurrent and Convergent Validity of a Single, Brief Question for Physical Activity Assessment

Antonio Moreno-Llamas, Jesús García-Mayor and Ernesto De la Cruz-Sánchez
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Antonio Moreno-Llamas: San Javier Campus, University of Murcia, 30720 San Javier, Spain
Jesús García-Mayor: San Javier Campus, University of Murcia, 30720 San Javier, Spain
Ernesto De la Cruz-Sánchez: San Javier Campus, University of Murcia, 30720 San Javier, Spain

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 6, 1-6

Abstract: An extensive number of self-reported methods for physical activity (PA) measurement are available, including short and long recall questionnaires ranging from a few to tens of questions. Due to the fact that simple, time-saving methods could be more practical and desirable for use in a busy clinical context, as well as in public health surveys, we evaluated how a single-item question might be a useful and cost-effective method for assessing compliance with PA guidelines. Using multiple receiver operating characteristics (ROC), we assessed the classification performance of a single brief question, employing the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire as criterion instrument, in a total of 55,950 people (30,601 women and 25,349 men). Both those who practice PA almost daily and a few times a week presented an upper threshold (1042.5 metabolic equivalent minutes (MET) minutes/week) to the established compliance PA guidelines (600 MET minutes/week) with high specificity and sensitivity, using a sedentary group as reference. Otherwise, the occasionally physically active group did not reach the minimum (349.5 MET minutes/week) and obtained a poorer classification performance. A single brief question is a pragmatic and alternative method for assessment of compliance with PA guidelines.

Keywords: physical activity; questionnaires; validation studies; epidemiology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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