Citation

Craft LL, Perna FA, Freund KM, Culpepper L. J. Phys. Act. Health 2008; 5(3): 469-480.

Affiliation

Dept of Preventive Medicine, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Human Kinetics Publishers)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

18579923

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Exercise effectively reduces symptoms of depression. However, correlates of regular exercise in depressed women are unknown. This study assessed psychosocial determinants of exercise in a sample of women with depressive symptoms. METHODS: Sixty-one women completed demographic, depression, and exercise-related questionnaires. RESULTS: The average Primary Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) depression score was 12.1 (SD = 5.0), indicating moderate depressive symptoms. In the previous week, the women reported 12.8 metabolic equivalents (METs) of exercise. Low levels of self-efficacy and social support for exercise were also reported. Depressive symptoms were positively associated with barriers to exercise (r = .35, P < .01), and barriers were inversely related to exercise METs (r = -.37, P < .05). Barriers to activity and education level were significant determinants of exercise. CONCLUSIONS: Women with depressive symptoms report minimal exercise involvement, numerous barriers to exercise, and low exercise self-efficacy and social support for exercise.

Language: en