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Logo of bmcmrmBioMed Centralsearchsubmit a manuscriptregisterthis articleBMC Medical Research Methodology
 
BMC Med Res Methodol. 2012; 12: 20.
Published online 2012 February 28. doi:  10.1186/1471-2288-12-20
PMCID: PMC3313867
Copyright ©2012 Gill et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
Using a single question to assess physical activity in older adults: a reliability and validity study
Dawn P Gill,corresponding author1 Gareth R Jones,2 Guangyong Zou,3,4 and Mark Speechley3
1National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center, Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
2School of Health and Exercise Sciences, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, BC, Canada
3Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
4Robarts Clinical Trials of Robarts Research Institute, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
corresponding authorCorresponding author.
Dawn P Gill: dpgill2/at/uw.edu; Gareth R Jones: Gareth.Jones/at/ubc.ca; Guangyong Zou: GuangYong.Zou/at/schulich.uwo.ca; Mark Speechley: Mark.Speechley/at/schulich.uwo.ca
Received September 12, 2011; Accepted February 28, 2012.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Background
Single-item physical activity questions provide a quick approximation of physical activity levels. While recall questionnaires provide a more detailed picture of an individual's level of physical activity, single-item questions may be more appropriate in certain situations. The aim of this study was to evaluate two single-item physical activity questions (one absolute question and one relative question) for test-retest reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity, in a sample of older adults.
Methods
Data was obtained from the Project to Prevent Falls in Veterans, a fall risk-factor screening and modification trial. One question measured absolute physical activity (seldom, moderately, vigorously active) and one measured relative physical activity (more, about as, less active than peers). Test-retest reliability was examined using weighted Kappa statistics (κ) in a sample of 43 subjects. Validity was assessed using correlation coefficients (r) in participants who received clinical assessments (n = 159).
Results
The absolute physical activity question was more reliable than the relative physical activity question (κ = 0.75 vs. κ = 0.56). Convergent validity, however, was stronger for the relative physical activity question (r = 0.28 to 0.57 vs. r = 0.10 to 0.33). Discriminant validity was similar for both questions. For the relative physical activity question, there was moderate agreement when this question was re-administered seven days later, fair to moderate/good associations when compared with indicators of physical function, and little to no associations when compared with measures hypothesized to be theoretically not related to physical activity.
Conclusions
The relative physical activity question had the best combination of test-retest reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity. In studies requiring a measure of physical activity, where physical activity is not the primary focus and more detailed measures are not feasible, a single question may be an acceptable alternative.
Keywords: Physical activity, self-report, single-item measure, assessment, validity, reliability, older adults
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