Motivational factors and barriers to physical activity among college students

Physical activity promotes health and enhances physical and psychological well-being. According to the national guidelines, adults should perform at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity on most days of the week. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the amount of physical activity among college students and to also determine if any motivating or barrier factors were responsible for promoting or hindering physical activities among college students. The Health Belief Model was used as the theoretical framework for this study. The sample for this study was a convenience sample of college students at a large urban university. A 16-item questionnaire was developed to address the demographic variables, the number of days and time spent in each physical activity session, as well as motivating and barrier factors to exercise. The findings showed that the majority of students were not adhering to the national recommendation guidelines of at least 30 minutes of exercise on most days of the week. In depth description of the results will be provided in this presentation including the demographic characteristics, graduate versus undergraduate status, and most significant motivating factors and barriers to exercise among college students. These research findings and the application of the Health Belief Model would be useful to public health professionals and the college campus community for promoting exercise through development of strategies to increase motivation and decrease barriers to exercise among college students.