Personal beliefs and perceptions of environment and their association with college students' engagement in physical activity and healthy eating

Current research indicates that nearly 35 percent of college students may be overweight or obese. Furthermore, the greatest increase in obesity rates is among the college-age population. This study tested the hypotheses that dietary and physical activity habits could be explained by students' perceptions of their environment and their personal beliefs. A paper-based survey was administered to 169 undergraduate students. Regression analysis was performed to examine the relationship between physical activity/healthy dietary habits and perceptions of body weight, self efficacy to create a physical activity program/choose nutritious foods, perceived threat of experiencing a weight-related health problem, awareness of and satisfaction with campus services, and on/off campus living. Additionally, students' perceptions of the availability of junk food and nutritious campus food availability were included in the model explaining healthy dietary habits. Students who reported that it was unlikely they would suffer from a weight-related health problem in the future (ß=-.191, p=.021) and that they were confident they could create their own physical activity program (ß=.320, p=.000) reported greater levels of physical activity. Students who reported greater self efficacy for choosing nutritious foods (ß=.327, p=.000) reported maintaining healthier diets. Implications of these findings will be discussed.