TY - JOUR

T1 - Tackling physical inactivity in Scandinavia: a narrative review of reviews supplemented by expert interviews

AU - Ryom, Knud

AU - Simonsen, Camilla Bakkær

AU - Eshøj, Signe

AU - Nielsen, Glen

AU - Troelsen, Jens

AU - Maindal, Helle Terkildsen

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © Author(s) 2021.

PY - 2023

Y1 - 2023

N2 - Aims: This study aims to identify physical inactivity-related challenges and motives, based on reviews and supplemented by expert interviews with Danish national experts on physical inactivity, providing a general discussion of the subject ultimately generating knowledge useable in a Scandinavian context.Methods: This study is framed as a narrative review of scientific review literature on physical inactivity, limited to the general population. The review is supplemented by expert interviews with Danish national experts on physical inactivity. We used thematic coding of the included reviews, while using hermeneutic interpretation analysis for the expert interviews. Results: Based on 11 included reviews, we highlighted four themes based on our analysis of reviews: (a) socioeconomic determinants of physical activity; (b) life-course perspective; (c) physical inactivity and older adults aged 60+ years; and (d) intervention recommendations. The supplementary expert interviews revealed three additional themes: (a) the individual history with physical activity; (b) sporting organisation importance; and (c) society responsibility for physical inactivity. Conclusions: Collectively this study concludes, based on review and expert interviews, that a number of determinants and correlations for physical inactivity affect the individual from various socioecological levels. Based on this review, we suggest moving beyond the ‘upstream’ public health approach of randomised controlled trials and consider complex interventions targeting physical inactivity from several levels. Physical inactivity should be acknowledged as a ‘wicked problem’ that requires a systems-based approach instead of a single quick fix. Future work with physical inactivity would profit from focus on the life-course perspective, sporting clubs’ responsiveness and physical literacy.

AB - Aims: This study aims to identify physical inactivity-related challenges and motives, based on reviews and supplemented by expert interviews with Danish national experts on physical inactivity, providing a general discussion of the subject ultimately generating knowledge useable in a Scandinavian context.Methods: This study is framed as a narrative review of scientific review literature on physical inactivity, limited to the general population. The review is supplemented by expert interviews with Danish national experts on physical inactivity. We used thematic coding of the included reviews, while using hermeneutic interpretation analysis for the expert interviews. Results: Based on 11 included reviews, we highlighted four themes based on our analysis of reviews: (a) socioeconomic determinants of physical activity; (b) life-course perspective; (c) physical inactivity and older adults aged 60+ years; and (d) intervention recommendations. The supplementary expert interviews revealed three additional themes: (a) the individual history with physical activity; (b) sporting organisation importance; and (c) society responsibility for physical inactivity. Conclusions: Collectively this study concludes, based on review and expert interviews, that a number of determinants and correlations for physical inactivity affect the individual from various socioecological levels. Based on this review, we suggest moving beyond the ‘upstream’ public health approach of randomised controlled trials and consider complex interventions targeting physical inactivity from several levels. Physical inactivity should be acknowledged as a ‘wicked problem’ that requires a systems-based approach instead of a single quick fix. Future work with physical inactivity would profit from focus on the life-course perspective, sporting clubs’ responsiveness and physical literacy.

KW - Complex interventions

KW - Ecological model

KW - Health promotion

KW - Life-course

KW - Physical literacy

KW - Responsiveness

KW - Systems-based approaches

U2 - 10.1177/14034948211042956

DO - 10.1177/14034948211042956

M3 - Review

C2 - 34628984

AN - SCOPUS:85116769422

VL - 51

SP - 125

EP - 136

JO - Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, Supplement

JF - Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, Supplement

SN - 1403-4956

IS - 1

ER -