Assessing sitting across contexts: development of the multicontext sitting time questionnaire

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Sedentary behavior is a growing public health concern.
• Accurate measurement of sitting time across different contexts is crucial for research and interventions.
• Existing questionnaires may have limitations in capturing the nuances of daily sitting patterns.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and conduct a preliminary evaluation of the Multicontext Sitting Time Questionnaire (MSTQ).
• To improve the accuracy of sitting time assessment by utilizing contextual recall cues.
• To differentiate between occupational and discretionary sitting behaviors.

Main Methods:

• Developed the MSTQ using contexts and domains as recall cues, distinguishing between "workday" and "nonworkday" sitting.
• Assessed content validity via an expert panel.
• Evaluated test-retest reliability (ICCs) and convergent validity against accelerometer data and activity logs in 25 participants.

Main Results:

• Web-based MSTQ administration proved rapid, scalable, and cost-effective.
• Most MSTQ items demonstrated acceptable test-retest reliability (ICCs > .70).
• Convergent validity showed a low correlation with accelerometer data on workdays (r = .34) and a moderately high correlation on nonworkdays (r = .61).

Conclusions:

• The systematic development of the MSTQ offers improvements over existing tools and can serve as a model for questionnaire design.
• The MSTQ shows promise for assessing sitting time, particularly nonworkday behaviors.
• Further validation studies are necessary to confirm the MSTQ's overall utility in diverse populations.