Social and Behavioural Correlates of High Physical Activity Levels among Aboriginal Adolescent Participants of the Next Generation: Youth Wellbeing Study

Rona Macniven; Christopher D McKay; Simon Graham; Lina Gubhaju; Robyn Williams; Anna Williamson; Grace Joshy; John Robert Evans; Robert Roseby; Bobby Porykali; Aryati Yashadhana; Rebecca Ivers; Sandra Eades

doi:10.3390/ijerph20043738

Social and Behavioural Correlates of High Physical Activity Levels among Aboriginal Adolescent Participants of the Next Generation: Youth Wellbeing Study

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Feb 20;20(4):3738. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20043738.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ School of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine & Health, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
² Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia.
³ Department of Infectious Diseases, Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia.
⁴ Curtin Medical School, Curtin University, Perth, WA 6102, Australia.
⁵ National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, College of Health & Medicine, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
⁶ Moondani Toombadool Centre, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC 3122, Australia.
⁷ Department of Respiratory Medicine, Monash Children's Hospital, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia.
⁸ Department of Paediatrics, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC 3800, Australia.
⁹ Guuna-Maana (Heal) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Program, The George Institute for Global Heath, Sydney, NSW 2042, Australia.
¹⁰ Centre for Primary Health Care & Equity, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.

Abstract

Physical activity typically decreases during teenage years and has been identified as a health priority by Aboriginal adolescents. We examined associations between physical activity levels and sociodemographic, movement and health variables in the Aboriginal led 'Next Generation: Youth Well-being (NextGen) Study' of Aboriginal people aged 10-24 years from Central Australia, Western Australia and New South Wales. Baseline survey data collected by Aboriginal researchers and Aboriginal youth peer recruiters from 2018 to 2020 examined demographics and health-related behaviours. Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (OR) for engaging in high levels of physical activity in the past week (3-7 days; 0-2 days (ref), or 'don't remember') associated with demographic and behavioural factors. Of 1170 adolescents, 524 (41.9%) had high levels of physical activity; 455 (36.4%) had low levels; 191 (15.3%) did not remember. Factors independently associated with higher odds of physical activity 3-7 days/week were low weekday recreational screen time [55.3% vs. 44.0%, OR 1.79 (1.16-2.76)], having non-smoking friends [50.4% vs. 25.0%, OR 2.27 (1.03-5.00)] and having fewer friends that drink alcohol [48.1% vs. 35.2%, OR 2.08 (1.05-4.14)]. Lower odds of high physical activity were independently associated with being female [40.2% vs. 50.9%, OR 0.57 (0.40-0.80)] and some findings differed by sex. The NextGen study provides evidence to inform the co-design and implementation of strategies to increase Aboriginal adolescent physical activity such as focusing on peer influences and co-occurring behaviours such as screen time.

Keywords: demography; exercise; health priorities; healthy lifestyle; peer influence; screen time.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Australia
Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples*
Exercise
Female
Health Behavior*
Humans
Male
New South Wales

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia grant number 1089104. R.M. is supported by a Heart Foundation Post-Doctoral Fellowship (105211). S.G. is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council investigator grant (2009727).