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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Investigating The Health Meanings Of Young Saudi Women, Tagreed Alnajjar Sep 2017

Investigating The Health Meanings Of Young Saudi Women, Tagreed Alnajjar

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Women’s structural position within society and their family roles significantly influence their health. Previous studies have shown women hold lower health and socioeconomic status because of their gender within the Saudi culture. This study aimed to provide an understanding of how Saudi women value health and define being healthy within their social contexts. Adopting an ethnographic perspective, three focus groups (31 participants in total) were conducted with volunteer undergraduate Saudi female students on campus during a nine-week field trip to the participants’ university, King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Three themes were generated from this study that characterize the …


The Development And Evaluation Of A Smartphone Nutrition Intervention For Adolescents, Sarah A. Cappuccitti Aug 2017

The Development And Evaluation Of A Smartphone Nutrition Intervention For Adolescents, Sarah A. Cappuccitti

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

A diet high in fruit and vegetables is associated with the prevention of many chronic diseases; however, only one in ten Canadian students in grades 6 to 12 consume the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables. Using smartphones to deliver nutrition interventions is an emerging area of research, although to-date these interventions typically limit their focus to weight loss. The overarching purpose of this research is to redevelop and evaluate an existing smartphone application for an adolescent population. This thesis used a mixed-methods approach to gain adolescent perspectives on how to redevelop the app and to evaluate its use …


Promoting Benefits Of Physical Activity Through Persuasive Communication, Priynka Patil Apr 2017

Promoting Benefits Of Physical Activity Through Persuasive Communication, Priynka Patil

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Inactivity early in life can lead to inactively later in life, which can result in negative outcomes. The primary purpose was to determine if gain- or loss-framed messages about physical activity would change the attitudes, intentions, and behaviours of students in the contemplation or preparation stage of the Transtheoretical model. The secondary purpose was to determine if framing the message in terms of the physical health benefits, appearance/social benefits, or mental health benefits (benefit condition) would change attitude, intention and behaviour. Undergraduate female students (N=60) between the ages of 18 and 36 were recruited from the university. The results found …


Examining The Impact Of A Population-Based Intervention On Children's Physical Activity Levels: The Grade 5 Act-I-Pass Program In London, Ontario, Christine E. Smith Mar 2017

Examining The Impact Of A Population-Based Intervention On Children's Physical Activity Levels: The Grade 5 Act-I-Pass Program In London, Ontario, Christine E. Smith

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Childhood obesity is a major public health concern caused in part by decreasing levels of physical activity (PA). Identification of effective population level strategies for increasing children’s PA levels is critical for improving overall health. This thesis is comprised of two studies. Study 1 examines how naturally-occurring population-level PA interventions with children have been evaluated in previous studies by conducting a systematic review. A total of 15 papers were included for review and results suggest that naturally-occurring population-based PA interventions are generally effective in improving PA levels of children in a variety of PA domains. Eleven studies included additional evaluation …