Research articlePhysical Activity and Screen Time in Adolescents and Their Friends
Introduction
Physical activity levels suffer a marked decline during adolescence, especially for girls, with the most dramatic decline occurring between ages 15 and 18 years.1 Using longitudinal data from Project EAT (Eating and Activity among Teens), Nelson et al.2 reported significant declines (especially for girls/women) in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in adolescents who were followed from age 16 years to age 20 years. This decline in MVPA is an important and timely issue, given currently low levels of adequate physical activity in youth,3 high levels of screen time,4 and recent increases in pediatric obesity and related chronic diseases.5, 6, 7, 8 There remains uncertainty, however, regarding the social factors associated with adolescent physical activity and screen time.
The social influences on adolescent physical activity primarily have been assessed by adolescents' perception of the social support they receive for being physically active from friends, family, and other adults who are important in their lives. Generally, perceived social support for physical activity is positively associated with higher physical activity in adolescents.9, 10, 11 However, some studies have found no association12, 13 or observed that the association is stronger for girls than boys.14 Although social support tells us about the supportive behaviors of friends, it does not tell us how active or inactive the friends are.
Even less is understood about the correlates and/or determinants of screen time or sedentary behavior in youth; only parent support for reduced screen time has been associated with child, but not adolescent, physical activity.15, 16, 17 A deeper understanding of social factors associated with adolescent physical activity and screen time behavior is warranted for several reasons. First, individuals become more autonomous from their parents and rely more heavily on behavioral cues from friends during adolescence.18, 19 Second, physical activity significantly declines during adolescence. Lastly, although peer social support for physical activity has been observed in previous studies, there is very limited research on the actual associations between peer and adolescent physical activity and screen time.
Using nominated-friend data represents a new approach to studying adolescents' social environments related to physical activity and screen time. Related to physical activity and screen time, a small number of studies20, 21, 22 using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) support the social causation spread of obesity in adolescents. The results, however, are not conclusive.23, 24 Even if obesity does indeed spread, to some extent, through social causation, researchers and health practitioners still need to understand the behaviors that directly contribute to that excess weight gain (e.g., physical activity and screen time for the current study). Therefore, focusing attention on the behavioral precursors of excess weight gain will provide more applicable information that can be used to develop obesity-prevention efforts.
Studies examining other behaviors such as substance use18, 25, 26, 27 have suggested a pattern of social causation but, to our knowledge, very limited research has been done with adolescent physical activity and screen time. There are only a limited number of studies that specifically investigated adolescent peer associations28, 29, 30, 31, 32 or influences33 on physical activity. Cross-sectional studies by Ali et al.28 using data from the Add Health study and by de la Haye et al.29 using data from 8th- and 9th-grade Australian students both observed associations between individual and peer physical activity.28, 29 Associations between individual and peer “other” screen time (not including TV/movies) also were reported.29 The association between individual and friend physical activity and screen time is especially relevant since time spent being physically active or in front of a screen can often involve social interactions with friends (e.g., sports teams, exercise partner, watching movies, or playing video games).
The Ali et al. study28 used a large nationally representative sample, but the analyses were not stratified by gender, limiting the interpretation of the results for future intervention development. The data in de la Haye et al.29 were stratified, and similar findings were observed across gender. Still, the sample was a relatively small sample (N=378) from Australia and did not include any older adolescents. A recent systematic review34 presents more-detailed information on research in this area.
The purpose of the current study was to examine whether friends' physical activity and screen time was related to an individual adolescent's (the “ego's”) physical activity and screen time by using data provided by nominated friends. The authors hypothesized that associations between ego and friend physical activity and screen time behavior would be significant between egos and friends of the same gender. In addition, it was hypothesized that because of increases in autonomy and greater reliance on behavioral cues from peers,18, 19 associations between ego and friend behaviors would be stronger for high school versus middle school students.
Section snippets
Sample
The EAT-2010 study was designed to examine dietary intake, physical activity, weight control behaviors, weight status, and factors associated with these outcomes in adolescents. Participants were adolescents (mean age 14.4±2.0 years) recruited from 20 public schools in Minneapolis and St. Paul MN. Six schools were traditional middle schools (6th–8th grade), eight were traditional high schools (9th–12th grade), three were kindergarten (K)–8th grade, one was K–12th grade, one was 6th–10th grade,
Results
Male adolescents reported more hours per week of MVPA than female adolescents (6.83±4.84 vs 4.98±4.40, p<0.001), but they also reported more hours per week of screen time (45.15±28.85 vs 36.51±23.92, p<0.001). MVPA among male adolescents was associated with MVPA of female friends (Table 2). On average, for every additional hour per week of female-friend MVPA, there were approximately six additional minutes of MVPA per week for male adolescents. MVPA in female adolescents was associated with the
Discussion
Several associations were observed between ego and friend MVPA and screen time, indicating that, to some extent, these behaviors are shared among friends. More associations were found among female adolescents for MVPA than among male adolescents, suggesting the importance of social relationships and social support for MVPA in female adolescents. The current study used the novel technique of ego-centric analysis to obtain data from the adolescents and the friends that they nominated, rather than
References (54)
- et al.
Screen time, physical activity, and overweight in U.S. youth: National Survey of Children's Health 2003
J Adolesc Health
(2010) - et al.
Correlates of physical activity in a national sample of children aged 9-13 years
Prev Med
(2006) - et al.
Evaluating a model of parental influence on youth physical activity
Am J Prev Med
(2003) - et al.
Can school-related factors predict future health behavior among young adolescents?
Public Health
(2002) - et al.
Parental correlates of physical activity in a racially/ethnically-diverse adolescent sample
J Adolesc Health
(2002) - et al.
Estimating peer effects on health in social networks
J Health Econ
(2008) - et al.
Peer effects in adolescent overweight
J Health Econ
(2008) - et al.
Is obesity contagious?Social networks vs. environmental factors in the obesity epidemic
J Health Econ
(2008) - et al.
Obesity-related behaviors in adolescent friendship networks
Social Networks
(2010) - et al.
School-based friendship networks and children's physical activity: a spatial analytical approach
Soc Sci Med
(2011)
How physical activity shapes, and is shaped by, adolescent friendships
Soc Sci Med
Social network analysis of childhood and youth physical activity
Am J Prev Med
Ethnic/racial differences in weight-related concerns and behaviors among adolescent girls and boys: findings from Project EAT
J Psychosom Res
Do friends share similar body image and eating problems?The role of social networks and peer influence in early adolescence
Behav Res Ther
Couch potatoes or French fries: are sedentary behaviors associated with body mass index, physical activity, and dietary behaviors among adolescents?
J Am Diet Assoc
Motivational factors associated with sports program participation in middle school students
J Adolesc Health
Grade changes in peer influence on adolescent cigarette smoking: a comparison of two measures
Addict Behav
The developmental pattern of resistance to peer influence in adolescence: will the teenager ever be able to resist?
J Adolesc
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance—U.S., 2007
MMWR Morb Mortal Weekly Rep
Longitudinal and secular trends in physical activity and sedentary behavior during adolescence
Pediatrics
Physical activity in the U.S. measured by accelerometer
Med Sci Sports Exerc
Activity, dietary intake, and weight changes in a longitudinal study of preadolescent and adolescent boys and girls
Pediatrics
Physical activity, TV viewing, and weight in U.S. youth: 1999 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
Obes Res
2008 physical activity guidelines for Americans
High body mass index for age among U.S. children and adolescents, 2003–2006
JAMA
Correlates of time spent in physical activity and television viewing in a multi-racial sample of adolescents
Pediatr Exerc Sci
Agreement between student-reported and proxy-reported physical activity questionnaires
Pediatr Exerc Sci
Cited by (63)
An overview of the Connect through PLAY trial to increase physical activity in underserved adolescents
2022, Contemporary Clinical TrialsCitation Excerpt :Previous work by our group has indicated that the declines observed in PA engagement within ASPs during the adolescent years has resulted, in part, because ASPs do not directly address youth social developmental needs [40,65,66]. An increasing evidence base suggests that social connections with peers and program staff is a primary goal of action underpinning youth PA behavior and thus, a key mechanism to target for sustained behavior change [8–12]. This trial expands on our previous ASP feasibility trial [67] with a novel translational approach that works with pre-existing ASPs (e.g., Boys and Girls Clubs of America) and targets staff as instrumental for fostering social connections and affiliation goals within the ASP setting for increasing the daily PA of underserved adolescents.
The influence of technology on physical activity in adolescents
2020, Technology and Adolescent Health: In Schools and Beyond
Meg Bruening was employed at the University of Minnesota when this research was completed.