Asian American Midlife Women's Ethnic Specific Attitudes toward Physical Activity

Background: Asian American midlife women's ethnic-specific attitudes toward physical activity have rarely been incorporated into physical activity promotion programs, which may make it difficult for health care providers to promote physical activity among this specific population.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore Asian American midlife women's ethnic-specific attitudes toward physical activity using a feminist perspective.

Methods: This was a qualitative online forum study among 17 Asian American midlife women. The participants were recruited using a convenience sampling method, and a 6-month qualitative online forum was conducted using 17 online forum topics. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis by Braun and Clarke.

Findings: Three major themes were extracted from the data analysis process: (a) “keeping traditions,” (b) “not a priority,” and (c) “not for Asian girls.” Asian American midlife women were busy in keeping their cultural traditions, which made it difficult for them to find time for physical activity. The women gave the highest priority on their children, and physical activity was placed in the lowest priority in their busy life. Also, the women were rarely encouraged to participate in physical activity from their childhood, and they themselves perceived that their weak and small bodies were not appropriate for physical activity.

Conclusions: The findings suggest that physical activity promotion programs for this specific population need to provide some strategies that could include the family members in their physical activity.