Division of Interdisciplinary Research and Practice, School of Health and Social Care, Colchester CO4 3SQ, UK.
Department of Gerontology and Geriatrics, Africa Centre for Epidemiology, Accra North P.O. Box AN 18462, Ghana.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Feb 14;20(4):3341. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20043341.
The available evidence suggests that social networks can contribute to physical activity (PA) enjoyment, which is necessary for the maintenance of PA over the life course. This study assessed the associations of active and sedentary social networks with PA enjoyment and ascertained whether walkability moderates or modifies these associations. A cross-sectional design compliant with STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) was employed. The participants were 996 community-dwelling older Ghanaians aged 50 years or older. A hierarchical linear regression analysis was used to analyse the data. After adjusting for age and income, the study found that the active social network size (β = 0.09; < 0.05) and sedentary social network size (β = 0.17; < 0.001) were positively associated with PA enjoyment. These associations were strengthened by walkability. It is concluded that active and sedentary social networks may better support PA enjoyment in more walkable neighbourhoods. Therefore, enabling older adults to retain social networks and live in more walkable neighbourhoods may be an effective way to improve their PA enjoyment.
现有证据表明，社交网络可以促进身体活动（PA）的享受，这对于维持整个生命周期中的 PA 非常重要。本研究评估了活跃和久坐的社交网络与 PA 享受的关联，并确定了步行友好性是否调节或改变了这些关联。采用符合 STROBE（加强观察性研究的报告）的横断面设计。参与者是 996 名居住在社区的年龄在 50 岁或以上的加纳老年人。使用分层线性回归分析来分析数据。在调整了年龄和收入后，研究发现活跃的社交网络规模（β=0.09；<0.05）和久坐的社交网络规模（β=0.17；<0.001）与 PA 享受呈正相关。这些关联在步行友好性的作用下得到了加强。结论是，在更适合步行的社区中，活跃和久坐的社交网络可能更能支持 PA 的享受。因此，使老年人能够保留社交网络并生活在更适合步行的社区中，可能是提高他们 PA 享受的有效途径。
