Cited by 449Physical Activity and HealthContext-Aware Activity Recognition SystemsBalance, Gait, and Falls Prevention

Accelerometry and physical activity questionnaires - a systematic review

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Skender, Stephanie, Ose, Jennifer, Chang-Claude, Jenny, Paskow, Michael, Brühmann, Boris, Siegel, Erin M., Steindorf, Karen, Ulrich, Cornelia M.·2016·BMC Public Health

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to review accelerometer wear methods and correlations between accelerometry and physical activity questionnaire data, depending on participant characteristics. METHODS: We included 57 articles about physical activity measurement by accelerometry and questionnaires. Criteria were to have at least 100 participants of at least 18 years of age with manuscripts available in English. Accelerometer wear methods were compared. Spearman and Pearson correlation coefficients between questionnaires and accelerometers and differences between genders, age categories, and body mass index (BMI) categories were assessed. RESULTS: In most investigations, requested wear time was seven days during waking hours and devices were mostly attached on hips with waist belts. A minimum of four valid days with wear time of at least ten hours per day was required in most studies. Correlations (r = Pearson, ρ = Spearman) of total questionnaire scores against accelerometer measures across individual studies ranged from r = 0.08 to ρ = 0.58 (P < 0.001) for men and from r = -0.02 to r = 0.49 (P < 0.01) for women. Correlations for total physical activity among participants with ages ≤65 ranged from r = 0.04 to ρ = 0.47 (P < 0.001) and from r = 0.16 (P = 0.02) to r = 0.53 (P < 0.01) among the elderly (≥65 years). Few studies investigated stratification by BMI, with varying cut points and inconsistent results. CONCLUSION: Accelerometers appear to provide slightly more consistent results in relation to self-reported physical activity among men. Nevertheless, due to overall limited consistency, different aspects measured by each method, and differences in the dimensions studied, it is advised that studies use both questionnaires and accelerometers to gain the most complete physical activity information.

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  1. [1]World Health Organization Global recommendations on physical activity for health 2010 Geneva World Health Organization 26180873

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Authors
Skender, S., Ose, J., Chang-Claude, J., Paskow, M., Brühmann, B., Siegel, E. M., Steindorf, K., & Ulrich, C. M.
Affiliations
  • German Cancer Research Center (DE)
  • University of Utah (US)
  • Moffitt Cancer Center (US)
Corresponding author
Ulrich, Cornelia M.
Venue
BMC Public Health
Published
2016-06-16
Volume
16
Issue
1
Pages
515-515
ISSN
1471-2458 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2426662935
Cited by
449
References
97
Citations by year
2026: 39 · 2025: 63 · 2024: 58 · 2023: 53 · 2022: 51 · 2021: 56 · 2020: 65 · 2019: 33 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 4
FWCI
2.55
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • BMC Public Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
Huntsman Cancer Foundation
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition › Context-Aware Activity Recognition Systems
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation › Balance, Gait, and Falls Prevention
Keywords
accelerometry, physical activity questionnaire, accelerometer wear time, hip-worn accelerometers, self-reported physical activity, accelerometer validity, sex differences, age differences, body mass index, older adults, physical activity measurement
MeSH terms
Humans, Surveys and Questionnaires, Reproducibility of Results, Exercise, Self Report, Accelerometry

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