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122 factor that encourages participation, which is a contrast to the barriers of strict start times and class registration processes that some PCU Fitness Center classes require. One additional convenience factor considered in participant interviews was the absence or presence of PCU students in a workout class. For four of the six participants (66%), the presence of students was an inconvenience and presented a barrier to motivation, particularly noted by those who worked directly in student service roles. In talking about the offerings at the PCU Fitness Center, Carla expressed her preference to avoid students, saying, “There’s a lot of students. It’s just awkward as a staff…I don’t want to see my students at the gym. (laughs) I love them, but once I get out of work, it’s a different story.” Ellen shared Carla’s assessment that seeing your students at the gym would not be ideal, describing it as “super awkward,” but she also went on to describe the disruption to the peer group that students would cause, which connects to collective efficacy. Of the benefit of a student-free environment, Ellen said: It's a completely different life and age…. Part of …it being all staff and one of the things I've mentioned…just like, having that diversity and age is what can help people feel more comfortable because it's like, if this 60-year-old man can do it, then I can do it. And yes, we do have 60-year-old men show up sometimes. Ellen’s reflections on students’ disruption to motivation and the equalizing effect of an all-staff class offering were echoed by Francesca and Bess. For Francesca, students presented a barrier to joining the PCU Fitness Center. She described this in contrast to Get Fit, saying: I have considered joining…in the past, but I’m always like, I don’t want to be around a bunch of like, skinny 20-year-olds when I’m like an old mom. [At Get Fit] there’s also like, you just have built-in things in common, like you have a similar workday structure often and it’s just helpful.
Object Description
Title | Physical activity interventions to reduce rates of sedentary behavior among university employees: a promising practice study |
Author | DeFrank, Ginny Mary |
Author email | ginnydefrank@gmail.com;defrank@usc.edu |
Degree | Doctor of Education |
Document type | Dissertation |
Degree program | Organizational Change and Leadership (On Line) |
School | Rossier School of Education |
Date defended/completed | 2020-06-19 |
Date submitted | 2020-08-11 |
Date approved | 2020-08-11 |
Restricted until | 2020-08-11 |
Date published | 2020-08-11 |
Advisor (committee chair) | Malloy, Courtney |
Advisor (committee member) |
Canny, Eric Stowe, Kathy |
Abstract | The purpose of this study was to understand factors influencing employee participation in a university-offered physical activity program to inform recommendations for other institutions of higher education seeking to address high rates of university employee sedentary behavior with physical activity programming. The instructor-led program was held four times per week beginning at noon each day and lasted one hour in duration on a university campus in the western United States. The program, which was offered at no cost to employees, typically served 20-30 participants each week. The Clark and Estes Gap Analytic Framework (2008) was employed to assess relevant knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences affecting university employee engagement with the physical activity program. The study utilized a convergent parallel mixed methods design, engaging 24 university employees by means of a fifty-four-item quantitative survey. Six survey respondents also participated in interviews. Research findings revealed the importance of the interplay of employee factual and metacognitive knowledge, as well as motivation influences including self-efficacy and expectancy value within the organization’s cultural models and settings. Recommendations for other institutions seeking to engage employees in physical activity were informed by the findings and supported by a review of literature. Recommendations include the use of training, communication strategies, information guides, modeling, and opportunities for reflection to meet employee knowledge and motivational needs. Evaluating and changing organizational policies, cultural values, and existing physical activity programming was recommended to ensure employees understand an organization’s support for participation in physical activity. Additionally, implications for practice involved a focus on the role of instructors and the development of communities of continuity to support and improve rates of university employee engagement in physical activity during the workday. |
Keyword | sedentary behavior; physical activity; workplace physical activity; physical activity intervention; university physical activity; exercise |
Language | English |
Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
Type | texts |
Legacy record ID | usctheses-m |
Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
Rights | DeFrank, Ginny Mary |
Physical access | The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the author, as the original true and official version of the work, but does not grant the reader permission to use the work if the desired use is covered by copyright. It is the author, as rights holder, who must provide use permission if such use is covered by copyright. The original signature page accompanying the original submission of the work to the USC Libraries is retained by the USC Libraries and a copy of it may be obtained by authorized requesters contacting the repository e-mail address given. |
Repository name | University of Southern California Digital Library |
Repository address | USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 7002, 106 University Village, Los Angeles, California 90089-7002, USA |
Repository email | cisadmin@lib.usc.edu |
Filename | etd-DeFrankGin-8921.pdf |
Archival file | Volume13/etd-DeFrankGin-8921.pdf |
Description
Title | Page 131 |
Full text | 122 factor that encourages participation, which is a contrast to the barriers of strict start times and class registration processes that some PCU Fitness Center classes require. One additional convenience factor considered in participant interviews was the absence or presence of PCU students in a workout class. For four of the six participants (66%), the presence of students was an inconvenience and presented a barrier to motivation, particularly noted by those who worked directly in student service roles. In talking about the offerings at the PCU Fitness Center, Carla expressed her preference to avoid students, saying, “There’s a lot of students. It’s just awkward as a staff…I don’t want to see my students at the gym. (laughs) I love them, but once I get out of work, it’s a different story.” Ellen shared Carla’s assessment that seeing your students at the gym would not be ideal, describing it as “super awkward,” but she also went on to describe the disruption to the peer group that students would cause, which connects to collective efficacy. Of the benefit of a student-free environment, Ellen said: It's a completely different life and age…. Part of …it being all staff and one of the things I've mentioned…just like, having that diversity and age is what can help people feel more comfortable because it's like, if this 60-year-old man can do it, then I can do it. And yes, we do have 60-year-old men show up sometimes. Ellen’s reflections on students’ disruption to motivation and the equalizing effect of an all-staff class offering were echoed by Francesca and Bess. For Francesca, students presented a barrier to joining the PCU Fitness Center. She described this in contrast to Get Fit, saying: I have considered joining…in the past, but I’m always like, I don’t want to be around a bunch of like, skinny 20-year-olds when I’m like an old mom. [At Get Fit] there’s also like, you just have built-in things in common, like you have a similar workday structure often and it’s just helpful. |