Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Physical activity: a synopsis and comment on “community-wide interventions for increasing physical activity”

  • Synopses and Guidelines
  • Published:
Translational Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

In this synopsis, we summarize and comment on Baker and colleagues’ Cochrane review of studies on the population-level impact of community-wide physical activity (PA) interventions. Insufficient PA remains a major public health problem. Community-wide interventions offer an opportunity to extend reach by increasing the proportion of the population experiencing the intervention. A previous Cochrane review of community-wide PA interventions concluded that evidence for effectiveness was mixed. Hence, Baker and colleagues incorporated new data about community-based PA interventions. This Cochrane review concluded there is an overall lack of evidence that community-wide interventions improve PA outcomes at the population level. Recommendations are that future research should use high quality research design, more explicitly test ways to increase reach, and utilize objective measurements of PA to increase validity. We suggest that future research should first optimize the intervention by systematically evaluating treatment components and selecting a maximally efficient and effective treatment package.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Baker PRA, Francis DP, Soares J, Weightman AL, Foster C. Community wide interventions for increasing physical activity (intervention review). Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015; 1: CD008366. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD008366.pub3.

  2. Heath G, Parra D. Evidence-based intervention in physical activity: lessons from around the world. Lancet. 2012; 380: 272–281.

  3. Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee. Physical activity guidelines advisory committee report. US Department of Health and Human Services; 2008: 683

  4. Kahn EB, Ramsey LT, Brownson RC, Heath GW, Howze EH, Powell KE, ... & Corso P. The effectiveness of interventions to increase physical activity: a systematic review. Am J Prev Med. 2002;22(4): 73–107.

  5. Baker PR, Francis DP, Soares J, Weightman AL, Foster C. Community wide interventions for increasing physical activity. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2011; 13: CD008366. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD008366.pub2.

  6. Wilson DK, Van Horn ML, Siceloff ER, Alia KA, George SMS, Lawman HG, ... & Gadson B. The results of the “positive action for today’s health” (PATH) trial for increasing walking and physical activity in underserved African-American communities. Ann Behav Med. 2015;49(3): 398–410. doi:10.1007/s12160-014-9664-1.

  7. Jiang B, Wang W, Wu S. The effects of community intervention measures on prevention and control of hypertension. Chin J Prev Control Chron Non-communicable Dis. 2008; 16(6): 254–257.

  8. Gao F, Liu QM, Ren YJ, He PP, Lv J, Li LM. Assessment on the short-term impact regarding the community-based interventions to improve physical activities in three urban areas of Hangzhou city]. [Chinese]. Chung-Hua Liu Hsing Ping Hsueh Tsa Chih Chinese Journal of Epidemiology. 2013; 34: 582–585.

  9. Rissel CE, New C, Wen LM, Merom D, Bauman AE, Garrard J. The effectiveness of community-based cycling promotion: findings from the cycling connecting communities project in Sydney, Australia. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2010; 7: 8.

  10. Simon C, Schweitzer B, Oujaa M, Wagner A, Arveiler D, Triby E, ... & Platat C. Successful overweight prevention in adolescents by increasing physical activity: a 4-year randomized controlled intervention. Int J Obes. 2008; 32(10): 1489–1498.

  11. De Cocker KA, De Bourdeaudhuij IM, Brown WJ, Cardon GM. Effects of “10,000 steps Ghent”: a whole-community intervention. Am J Prev Med. 2007; 33(6): 455–463.

  12. Kamada M, Kitayuguchi J, Inoue S, Ishikawa Y, Nishiuchi H, Okada S, … & Shiwaku K. A community-wide campaign to promote physical activity in middle-aged and elderly people: a cluster randomized controlled trial. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2013; 10: 44. doi:10.1186/1479-5868-10-44.

  13. Phillips G, Bottomley C, Schmidt E, Tobi P, Lais S, Yu G, … & Renton A. Well London Phase-1: results among adults of a cluster-randomised trial of a community engagement approach to improving health behaviours and mental well-being in deprived inner-city neighbourhoods. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2014; 68(7): 606–264. doi:10.1136/jech-2013-202505

  14. Solomon E, Rees T, Ukoumunne OC, Metcalf B, & Hillsdon M. The devon active villages evaluation (DAVE) trial of a community-level physical activity intervention in rural south-west England: a stepped wedge cluster randomised controlled trial. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2014; 11: 94. doi:10.1186/s12966-014-0094-z.

  15. Chen KY, & Bassett DR. The technology of accelerometry-based activity monitors: current and future. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2005; 37(11): S490–S500. doi:10.1249/01.mss.0000185571.49104.82.

  16. Chen KY, Janz KF, Zhu W, & Brychta RJ. Re-defining the roles of sensors in objective physical activity monitoring. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2012; 44: S13–S23. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e3182399bc8.

  17. Prince SA, Adamo KB, Hamel ME, Hardt J, Connor Gorber S, & Tremblay M. A comparison of direct versus self-report measures for assessing physical activity in adults: a systematic review. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2008; 5: 56. doi:10.1186/1479-5868-5-56.

  18. Suminski RR, Petosa RL, Jones L, Hall L, & Poston CWSC. Neighborhoods on the move: a community-based participatory research approach to promoting physical activity. Prog Community Health Partnersh Res Educ Action. 2009; 3(1): 19–29.

  19. Collins LM, Murphy SA, & Stretcher V. The multiphase optimization strategy (MOST) and the sequential multiple assignment randomized trial (SMART): new methods for more potent eHealth interventions. Am J Prev Med. 2007; 32(5): S112–S118.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Preventive Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, 680 N. Lake Shore Drive, Suite 1400, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA

    Sara A Hoffman BA, Elena Garza BA & Bonnie Spring PhD

  2. Department of Clinical Health and Psychology, The University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA

    Jennifer L Warnick BA

Authors
  1. Sara A Hoffman BA
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jennifer L Warnick BA
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Elena Garza BA
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Bonnie Spring PhD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sara A Hoffman BA.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Key Question: How effective are community-wide, multi-strategic interventions for improving physical activity at the population level?

Implications:

Researchers: To increase confidence in the validity of evidence about the effectiveness of community-wide physical activity interventions, researchers should continue to improve the research design, reporting, and outcome assessment quality of relevant studies.

Practitioners: Because physical activity has clear health benefits, practitioners should encourage their patients to be active and should support research to evaluate community-wide physical activity interventions.

Policymakers: Policymakers should monitor the findings of research about multi-strategic, community wide interventions and be thoughtful about programs for which they advocate.

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hoffman, S.A., Warnick, J.L., Garza, E. et al. Physical activity: a synopsis and comment on “community-wide interventions for increasing physical activity”. Behav. Med. Pract. Policy Res. 7, 39–42 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-016-0419-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-016-0419-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation