Sitting as a moral practice: Older adults' accounts from qualitative interviews on sedentary behaviours

Palmer, Victoria J., Gray, Cindy M., Fitzsimons, Claire, Mutrie, Nanette, Wyke, Sally, Der, Geoff, Chastin, Sebastien F. M. and Skelton, Dawn A. and the Seniors USP Team (2021) Sitting as a moral practice: Older adults' accounts from qualitative interviews on sedentary behaviours. Sociology of Health and Illness, 43 (9). pp. 2102-2120. ISSN 0141-9889

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Abstract

Amidst public health campaigns urging people to sit less as well as being more physically active, this paper investigates how older adults make sense of their sedentary behaviour. Using an accounts framework focusing on how people rationalise their sitting practices, we analysed data from 44 qualitative interviews with older adults. All interviewees had received information about sedentary behaviour and health, visual feedback on their own objectively measured sitting over a week and guidance on sitting less. Participants used accounts to position sitting as a moral practice, distinguishing between ‘good’ (active/‘busy’) and ‘bad’ (passive/‘not busy’) sitting. This allowed them to align themselves with acceptable (worthwhile) forms of sitting and distance themselves from other people whose sitting they viewed as less worthwhile. However, some participants also described needing to sit more as they got older. The findings suggest that some public health messaging may lead to stigmatisation around sitting. Future sedentary behaviour guidelines and public health campaigns should consider more relatable guidelines that consider the lived realities of ageing, and the individual and social factors that shape them. They should advocate finding a balance between sitting and moving that is appropriate for each person.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Funding Information: This work was supported by the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) as part of the Lifelong Health and Wellbeing Initiative (LLHW; MR/K025023/1). Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 data collection was supported by Age UK (Disconnected Mind Grant) and MRC (MR/M01311/1) and undertaken within the University of Edinburgh Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology supported by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and MRC as part of the LLHW (MR/K026992/1). West of Scotland Twenty‐07 data collection was supported by the MRC and undertaken by the MRC Social and Public Health Sciences Unit (MC_A540_53462).
Uncontrolled Keywords:	health(social science),health policy,public health, environmental and occupational health ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/3300/3306
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Dementia & Complexity in Later Life
Related URLs:	http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	13 Aug 2024 09:30
Last Modified:	13 Aug 2024 09:30
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/96218
DOI:	10.1111/1467-9566.13383

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