Psychosocial and environmental determinants of physical activity in older adults

Purpose Physical activity (PA) is an important part of healthy ageing, yet a large majority of older adults do not engage sufficiently in PA. Effectively promoting PA requires understanding its determinants and according to socioecological models, PA determinants at different levels should be examined, including the environmental (e.g., walkability of the neighborhood) and individual level (e.g., self-efficacy), as well as their interactions. The present study investigated effects of the built environment and psychosocial variables on PA in older adults.

Methods Participants were 908 older adults (50.7% women), between age 65-75, who live in Bremen-Hemelingen. Participants filled in a survey, which included measures of neighborhood built environment, perceived barriers and benefits of PA, self-efficacy, and social support. PA was assessed with an accelerometer that participants wore for seven consecutive days.

Results Preliminary analyses revealed aspects of the built environment, such as safety and walkability are largely unrelated to PA. However, the extent to which many friends and acquaintances live in the neighborhood was positively related to PA. Regarding psychosocial variables, perceived barriers and benefits of PA were significantly related, while self-efficacy and social support were unrelated to PA. Moderation analyses showed little support for interactive effects of environmental and psychosocial variables, which are proposed by socioecological models.

Conclusions The preliminary findings suggest that some factors at the environmental and psychosocial level relate to PA in older adults. However, as there was little evidence for interactive effects, environmental and psychosocial factors may affect PA independently of each other.

Publication History

Article published online:
02 September 2021