Activity behaviors of university staff in the workplace : A pilot study
- Authors: Bird, Marie-Louise , Shing, Cecilia , Mainsbridge, Casey , Cooley, Dean , Pedersen, Scott
- Date: 2015
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Physical Activity and Health Vol. 12, no. 8 (2015), p. 1128-1132
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- Description: Background: Sedentary behavior is related to metabolic syndrome and might have implications for the long-term health of workers in a low activity environment. The primary aim of this pilot study was to determine activity levels of adults working at a University during work hours. A secondary aim was to determine the relationship between actual and perceived activity levels. Methods: Activity levels of university staff (n = 15, male = 7, age = 53 ± 7 years, BMI = 26.5 ± 2.5kg•m2) were monitored over 5 consecutive workdays using SenseWear accelerometers, then participants completed a questionnaire of their perception of workplace sedentary time. Results: Each participant spent 71.5 ± 13.1% (358 ± 78 min) of their workday being sedentary (< 1.5 METs), 15.6 ± 9.0% involved in light activity (1.5-3 METs), 11.7 ± 10.0% in moderate activity (3-5 METs), and 1.1 ± 1.3% in vigorous activity (> 5 METs) (P <.0001). The mean difference between actual (SenseWear < 1.5 METs) and perceived sitting time was-2 ± 32%; however, perceived sedentary time was reported with a range of under-to-over estimation of-75% to 51%. Conclusion: This pilot study identifies long periods of low metabolic activity during the workday and poor perception of individual sedentary time. Interventions to reduce sedentary time in the workplace may be necessary to ensure that the work environment does not adversely affect long-term health. © 2015 Human Kinetics, Inc.
We should know better – high rates of sedentary behaviours in a University workplace
- Authors: Bird, Marie-Louise , Shing, Cecilia , Cooley, Dean , Mainsbridge, Casey , Pedersen, Scott
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: Australian Physiotherapy Association Conference, 17-20 October 2013, Melbourne, Australia
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Assessment of the impact of a workplace intervention to reduce prolonged occupational sitting time
- Authors: Cooley, Dean , Pedersen, Scott , Mainsbridge, Casey
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Qualitative Health Research Vol. 24, no. 1 (2014), p. 90-101
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- Description: We aim to provide a better picture of the outcomes associated with implementing a nonpurposeful, physical activity, e-health intervention in a professional workplace. There is a need for health professionals to evaluate physical-activity-based workplace health interventions with a full range of measures. Using a social ecological model as a basis, we identify a range of subjective outcomes from 15 interviews of a cross section of participants. We document that not only did participants report a range of positive outcomes across multiple systems of influence, but they experienced some negative outcomes because of disruption to work flow and a changing of work habit. We conclude that using subjective evaluations provides a comprehensive picture of the factors that influence judgments of the efficacy of a workplace health intervention. © The Author(s) 2013.
A workplace intervention designed to interrupt prolonged occupational sitting: Self-reported perceptions of health from a cohort of desk-based employees over 26 weeks
- Authors: Mainsbridge, Casey , Cooley, Dean , Fraser, Sharon , Pedersen, Scott
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Workplace Health Management Vol. 9, no. 2 (2016), p. 221-237
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- Description: Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effectiveness of a workplace intervention designed to interrupt prolonged occupational sitting time (POST) and its impact on the self-reported health of a cohort of desk-based employees. Design/methodology/approach - In total, 43 participants received an interactive computer-based software intervention for 26 weeks. For the first 13 weeks the intervention passively prompted the participants to interrupt POST and perform brief bouts of non-purposeful movement. The second 13 weeks involved the passivity of the intervention being removed, with the intervention only accessible voluntarily by the participant. This approach was adopted to determine the sustainability of the intervention to change workplace health behaviour. Findings - ANOVA results revealed a significant interaction between group and test occasion, F(2, 42)=2.79, p<0.05, such that the experimental group increased their total health from pre-test to post-test (13 weeks), and to second post-test (26 weeks) with a medium effect size of Cohen's d=0.37. Research limitations/implications - An action research approach was implemented for this study, and hence the participants were organised into one group. Based on a communitarian model, the intervention aimed to monitor how desk-based employees adapted to specific health behaviours, and therefore a control group was not included. Practical implications - Passively prompting desk-based employees to interrupt POST and perform non-purposeful movement at work improved self-reported health. Participant perceptions of health were maintained following the removal of the passive feature of the intervention. Social implications - Interventions predicated on a social ecological model that modify how employees interact with the workplace environment might provide a framework for health behaviour change in populations where sitting is customary. Originality/value - The passive approach used in this study removed the individual decisionmaking process to engage in health behaviour change, and established a sustainable effect on participant health. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
The effect of an e-health intervention designed to reduce prolonged occupational sitting on mean arterial pressure
- Authors: Mainsbridge, Casey , Cooley, Dean , Fraser, Sharon , Pedersen, Scott
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine Vol. 56, no. 11 (2014), p. 1189-1194
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- Description: Objective: To evaluate the effect of a workplace health intervention designed to reduce prolonged occupational sitting on the mean arterial pressure (MAP) of desk-based employees. Methods: This randomized controlled trial involved an experimental group who received an e-health intervention and a control group who did not. The 13-week intervention passively prompted participants to stand and engage in short bouts of office-based physical activity by interrupting prolonged occupational sitting time periodically throughout the workday. Mean arterial pressure was measured at pretest and posttest. Results: Between pretest and posttest the experimental group significantly reduced their MAP, whereas MAP in the control group did not. Conclusions: A workplace e-health intervention designed to reduce prolonged occupational sitting was effective in decreasing MAP in desk-based employees.
Blood pressure response to interrupting workplace sitting time with non-exercise physical activity: Results of a 12-month cohort study
- Authors: Mainsbridge, Casey , Ahuja, Kiran , Williams, Andrew , Bird, Marie-Louise , Cooley, Dean , Pedersen, Scott
- Date: 2018
- Type: Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine Vol. 60, no. 9 (2018), p. 769-774
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- Description: OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the blood pressure (BP) effects of a yearlong e-health solution designed to interrupt prolonged occupational sitting time. METHODS:BP data of 228 desk-based employees (45.1 ± 10.5 years) were analyzed at baseline, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. RESULTS:Systolic BP significantly reduced from baseline for the first 9 months (1.0 to 3.4 mmHg P < 0.01) while diastolic and mean arterial pressure decreased for the full 12-months (4 to 5 mmHg for diastolic pressure and 3.6 to 4.2 mmHg for MAP all P < 0.01).Participants used the e-health solution 5.5 ± 2.0 times/day in the first 3 months which reduced to 4.2 ± 2.5 times/day by the end of the study (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS:An e-health solution designed to increase non-exercise physical activity by interrupting sitting time in the workplace is feasible and produced long-term reductions in blood pressure.
The effect of a computer-based workplace health and wellbeing program on workplace health culture
- Authors: Mainsbridge, Casey , Cooley, Dean , Pedersen, Scott , Fraser, Sharon , Cosgrove, Michael
- Date: 2011
- Type: Text , Conference paper
- Relation: 2011 Australian Association for Research in Education Conference, 27 November - 1 December 2011, Hobart, Tasmania, pp. 1-14.
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- Description: Increasingly workplaces have become the primary site for health and wellbeing education for adults. The current zeitgeist for this education is the workplace health and wellbeing program (WHWP). Advocates of WHWP list a plethora of outcomes associated with their implementation. Nonetheless, evaluation of WHWP tend to focus on objective measures such as cardiovascular fitness and participation levels at the expense of less tangible measures such as organisational culture and climate. Common oversights like this often lead to organisations and participants losing interest and disengaging with various WHWPs (McKay et al., 2001). In turn, this leads to false positive results and low sustainability with such programs. We propose that effective evaluation of WHWPs, should incorporate employee perspectives about any changes in workplace health culture.
Is self-reporting workplace activity worthwhile? Validity and reliability of Occupational Sitting and Physical Activity Questionnaire in desk-based workers BMC Public Health
- Authors: Pedersen, Scott , Kitic, Cecilia , Bird, Marie-Louise , Mainsbridge, Casey , Cooley, Dean
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: BMC Public Health. Vol. 16, no. 1 (2016), p.1-6
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- Description: Background: Accelerometers can obtain precise measurements of movements during the day. However, the individual activity pattern varies from day-to-day and there is limited evidence on measurement days needed to obtain sufficient reliability. The aim of this study was to examine variability in accelerometer derived data on sedentary behaviour and physical activity at work and in leisure-time during week days among Danish office employees. Methods: We included control participants (n = 135) from the Take a Stand! Intervention; a cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in 19 offices. Sitting time and physical activity were measured using an ActiGraph GT3X+ fixed on the thigh and data were processed using Acti4 software. Variability was examined for sitting time, standing time, steps and time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) per day by multilevel mixed linear regression modelling. Results: Results of this study showed that the number of days needed to obtain a reliability of 80% when measuring sitting time was 4.7 days for work and 5.5 days for leisure time. For physical activity at work, 4.0 days and 4.2 days were required to measure steps and MVPA, respectively. During leisure time, more monitoring time was needed to reliably estimate physical activity (6.8 days for steps and 5.8 days for MVPA). Conclusions: The number of measurement days needed to reliably estimate activity patterns was greater for leisure time than for work time. The domain specific variability is of great importance to researchers and health promotion workers planning to use objective measures of sedentary behaviour and physical activity.
An e-health intervention designed to increase workday energy expenditure by reducing prolonged occupational sitting habits
- Authors: Pedersen, Scott , Cooley, Dean , Mainsbridge, Casey
- Date: 2014
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Work Vol. 49, no. 2 (2014), p. 289-295
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- Description: Methods: Over a 13-week period participants (n=17) in the intervention group were regularly exposed to a passive prompt delivered through their desktop computer that required them to stand up and engage in a short-burst of physical activity, while the control group (n=17) was not exposed to this intervention. Instead, the control group continued with their normal work routine. All participants completed a pre- and post- intervention survey to estimate workplace daily energy expenditure (calories). Background: Desk-based employees face multiple workplace health hazards such as insufficient physical activity and prolonged sitting. Objective: The objective of this study was to increase workday energy expenditure by interrupting prolonged occupational sitting time and introducing short-bursts of physical activity to employees' daily work habits. Results: There was a significant 2 (Group) × 2 (Test) interaction, F (1, 32)=9.26, p < 0.05. The intervention group increased the calories expended during the workday from pre-test (M=866.29 ± 151.40) to post-test (M=1054.10 ± 393.24), whereas the control group decreased calories expended during the workday from pre-test (M=982.55 ± 315.66) to post-test (M=892.21 ± 255.36). Conclusions: An e-health intervention using a passive prompt was an effective mechanism for increasing employee work-related energy expenditure. Engaging employees in regular short-bursts of physical activity during the workday resulted in reduced sitting time, which may have long-term effects on the improvement of employee health.
Changing workplace health culture
- Authors: Pedersen, Scott , Mainsbridge, Casey , Cooley, Dean
- Date: 2012
- Type: Text , Book chapter
- Relation: Engaging Wellness : Corporate wellness programs that work, Chapter 10: Interventions and Best Practices, p. 298-308
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- Description: Prolonged occupational sitting time (POST) is a silent killer for even the healthiest of working adults. Currently, an office-based worker spends an average of 80,000 hours sitting during the course of their working life. Recent data suggests that POST of four hours or more is a health risk for all desk-based employees. Exposure to this hazard increases the risk of suffering from diseases related to increased morbidity and mortality. Moreover, a worker's increased level of fitness may only ameliorate some of the risk. That is, even workers with high levels of physical fitness may still be at risk if they sit for more than four hours per day. Research from the Baker IDI institute showed an association between POST and increases in waist girth, weight, body mass index and negative blood lipid profiles (i.e., blood glucose, lipoprotein lipase [LPL]), irrespective of current fitness level.