Closing the Sedentary Lifestyle Gaps: Investigating the Factors Influencing Exercise and Physical Activity Habits among Sandwich Students of University of Education, Winneba

Abstract

In recent times, researchers have acknowledged the critical role of exercise and physical activity on the healthy wellbeing of an individual. Therefore, this study investigated the factors that influence exercise and physical activity habits of undergraduate sandwich students of the University of Education, Winneba (December-January, 2018/2019) session. A cross-sectional descriptive survey research design was employed to gather information on the respondents. The study sample was made up of one hundred and ninety-one (191) participants out of which 67 were males and 124 were females selected through census sampling. The findings of the study revealed that health and wellness factors predominantly influenced (M=3.60, SD=0.75) sandwich students exercise habits followed by psycho-social factors (M=3.31, SD=0.65), and other factors (M=3.13, SD=0.86). Besides, the t-test results also showed no statistically significant differences between male and female sandwich students on their perception of health and wellness factors [t (189) = 0.702, p=0.484, 2-tailed], psycho-social [t (189) = 1.134, p=0.258, 2-tailed], and other factors [t (189) = 0.885, p=0.377, 2-tailed] at 0.05 alpha level. Furthermore, the ANOVA results disclosed that there were no statistically significant differences in their perception of health and wellness factors [F (2, 188) = 1.049, p=0.352], psycho-social factors [F (2, 188) = 1.112, p=0.331], and other factors [F (2, 188) = 0.697, p=0.499] at 0.05 based on age. Therefore, it was recommended the University through its health directorate should conscientize and reorient students on the benefits of engaging in regular physical activity.