AUTHOR=Qi Meiling , Gao Yiming , Zhao Xiangyu , Jones Cindy , Moyle Wendy , Shen Shiyu , Li Ping 

TITLE=Development and validity of a mentally-passive and mentally-active sedentary time questionnaire in nursing college students

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=11

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1180853

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2023.1180853

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=<sec id="sec1"><title>Objective</title><p>This study aimed to develop and validate a questionnaire to evaluate nursing college students’ mentally-passive and mentally-active sedentary time (M-PAST) in China.</p></sec><sec id="sec2"><title>Methods</title><p>An initial M-PAST questionnaire with mentally-passive and mentally-active sedentary behaviors was developed with content validity undertaken through a consensus panel and pilot test where a convenience sample of six nursing students was recruited to assess the relevance, comprehensiveness, and comprehensibility of the refined questionnaire after expert panelists’ responses. A cross-sectional online survey using a self-reported questionnaire was distributed to nursing students by email and then conducted using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to assess the construct validity of the M-PAST questionnaire and factor structures. Finally, the criterion validity was examined by exploring the associations between the M-PAST and the IPAQ sitting time, psychological distress, and insomnia.</p></sec><sec id="sec3"><title>Results</title><p>Eight items regarding learning and leisure were included in the final version of the M-PAST questionnaire. A group of 650 nursing college students in China completed the study. Principal component analysis revealed two factors (i.e., mentally-passive and mentally-active sedentary behaviors), which explained 41.98% of the variance contributing to the questionnaire. The CFA reached the adaptive standard. Cronbach’s <italic>α</italic> ranged from 0.730 to 0.742. The correlations between M-PAST and IPAQ total sitting time were significant (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01, <italic>r</italic> = 0.125–0.396). Mentally-passive sedentary time was associated with psychological distress and insomnia (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.01, <italic>r</italic> = 0.078–0.163), while no significant associations were found in mentally-active sedentary behaviors.</p></sec><sec id="sec4"><title>Conclusion and implications for practice</title><p>The M-PAST questionnaire appears to be a reliable and valid tool that reported both mentally-passive and mentally-active sedentary behaviors in nursing college students in China. However, future studies may need to further examine its validity among international nursing college students. This study further confirmed that mentally-passive sedentary behavior was positively associated with psychological distress and insomnia. Effective strategies are needed to reduce nursing college students’ mentally-passive sedentary time to improve their health and wellbeing in China.</p></sec>