Abstract

CANCELA CARRAL, José María; LAGO BALLESTEROS, Joaquín; AYAN PEREZ, Carlos  and  MOSQUERA MORONO, María Belén. Analysis of the reliability and validity of three self-report questionnaires to assess physical activity among Spanish adolescents. Gac Sanit [online]. 2016, vol.30, n.5, pp.333-338. ISSN 0213-9111.  https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gaceta.2016.04.009.

Objective: To analyse the reliability and validity of the Weekly Activity Checklist (WAC), the One Week Recall (OWR), and the Godin-Shephard Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire (GLTEQ) in Spanish adolescents. Methods: A total of 78 adolescents wore a pedometer for one week, filled out the questionnaires at the end of this period and underwent a test to estimate their maximal oxygen consumption (VO₂max). The reliability of the questionnaires was determined by means of a factor analysis. Convergent validity was obtained by comparing the questionnaires' scores against the amount of physical activity quantified by the pedometer and the VO₂max reported. Results: The questionnaires showed a weak internal consistency (WAC: alpha = 0.59-0.78; OWR: alpha = 0.53-0.73; GLTEQ: alpha = 0.60). Moderate statistically significant correlations were found between the pedometer and the WAC (r = 0.69; p <0.01) and the OWR (r = 0.42; p <0.01), while a low statistically significant correlation was found for the GLTEQ (r = 0.36; p = 0.01). The estimated VO₂max showed a low level of association with the WAC results (r = 0.30; p <0.05), and the OWR results (r = 0.29; p <0.05). When classifying the participants as active or inactive, the level of agreement with the pedometer was moderate for the WAC (k = 0.46) and the OWR (r = 0.44), and slight for the GLTEQ (r = 0.20). Conclusion: Of the three questionnaires analysed, the WAC showed the best psychometric performance as it was the only one with respectable convergent validity, while sharing low reliability with the OWR and the GLTEQ.

Keywords : Motor activity; Adolescent; Self-report; Psychometrics; Exercise test.

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