Development of a Local Health-Enhancing Physical Activity Policy Analysis Tool in France: CAPLA-Santé.

The promotion of health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA) has become a key objective in public health policy. Therefore, based on the national HEPA Policy Audit Tool Version 2 (HEPA PAT v2) of the World Health Organization, a tool was designed to support local governments in assessing HEPA policies. This study aims to describe the adaptation and testing of the HEPA policy analysis tool (CAPLA-Santé) at the local level in France. The work was conducted in three stages: (1) an intersectoral group of experts was constituted, and the group adapted each item of the HEPA PAT v2 tool to the local level; (2) a testing phase with seven local governments helped to collect data and feedback on the tool; and (3) a final workshop was organized to adjust and finalize the tool. The final version of CAPLA-Santé contains 21 items divided into six major sections: overview of HEPA stakeholders in the local government area, policy documents, policy contents, funding and political engagement, studies and measures relating to physical activity in the local government area, and progress achieved and future challenges. CAPLA-Santé allows the collection and in-depth analysis of local level policies to assess the progress in promoting HEPA and intersectoral collaboration as well as identifying successful policy levers and remaining challenges.

[Feedback on the implementation of a departmental physical activity project for the elderly]. / Retour d'expérience sur la mise en œuvre d'une action départementale d'activité physique pour les seniors.

INTRODUCTION: Regular physical activity is nowadays recognized as one of the keys for ageing well. A number of interventions are therefore developed for this target group. The goal of this study was to examine the establishment and impact of a structured physical activity program for subjects aged 60 or more on a departmental scale and according to the point of view of different actors engaged. METHODS: The PAS Project (Prévention Active Senior), coordinated by a resource and expertise center, consisted of conceiving and implementing a structured physical activity program for subjects aged 60 or more. In every municipality, the program was conducted by a local sports instructor in partnership with a municipal representative. It consisted of 3 weekly sessions of physical activity (2 supervised and 1 individual) over a period of 3 months. The data was collected thanks to the tools developed for the evaluation. RESULTS: The program was conducted in 27 municipalities. A total of 586 participants enrolled in the program and 439 completed the final evaluation. This project allowed for the improvement of three main physical capacities (endurance, muscular strength, and balance) for most of the participants. At the end of the program, more than 50% of municipalities created or supported a long term physical activity offer for elderly. DISCUSSION: This study highlights the need of adapting this kind of intervention to the local context. It confirmed the interest of a combined individual and more general approach, as well as a cross-sectorial work in order to create the conditions for sustainable daily physical activity for the target group.

[Physical exercise health promotion in the workplace: participative experimentation in a private company]. / Promotion de la santé par l'activité physique sur les lieux de travail : expérimentation participative dans une entreprise privée.

CONTEXT: The objective of this study was to identify collaborative processes involved in a physical activity health promotion project in companies, conducted through a participatory approach in a cross-sectoral partnership, and to estimate the preliminary effects in terms of employee health. METHODS: Action research was conducted in an industrial company comprising 240 employees over a 2-year period. This research was based on 4 criteria: description of the actors' network, the opportunities and constraints of the project, the implementation of physical activities, the participation of employees in the various activities, the impacts observed (after 3 months of activities) on physical parameters and quality of life. RESULTS: Six work groups selected two activities : muscle-development exercise and Taïchi. We evaluated muscle strengthening activity. The participation rate in the activity was 16%. A higher age, female gender and being a manager or employee rather than a worker were significantly associated with participation. A tendency towards increased physical and mental scores of SF12 was observed. We identified two major barriers: logistic and communicational. CONCLUSION: The participatory approach, based on a cross-sectoral partnership, is the determining element of the project's success in a context of local opportunities. Two factors were identified to perpetuate this dynamic and improve the system: rationalization of the structuring of the service and greater resources, particularly financial resources.

Development and validity of a very short form of the Eating Disorder Inventory.

INTRODUCTION: The main objective of the present series of studies was to develop and validate a 16-item very short form of the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI-VS) for use as a short assessment tool in large-scale comprehensive or longitudinal studies, as well as in-depth idiographic studies. METHOD: The EDI-VS was developed, and validated, through a series of five studies based on independent community samples including a total of 1372 French adolescents. RESULTS: The results supported the reliability, content validity, factor validity, convergent validity, and criterion-related validity of the EDI-VS. CONCLUSIONS: The EDI-VS comprises 16 items assessing the eight original dimensions of the conceptual model for the EDI. Recommendations for future practice and research on the EDI-VS are outlined.

Modeling the Development of Local Health-Enhancing Physical Activity Policies from Empirical Data and Policy Science Theories.

Physical inactivity is considered a pandemic, requiring strong policy responses to address this major health issue. However, research on the development of Health-Enhancing Physical Activity policies (HEPA) remains scarce, particularly at the local level. There is a need to produce evidence to better understand the process to develop local HEPA policies. This study aims to model the development of HEPA policy promotion in French municipalities from empirical data and policy science theories. This research was undertaken in three steps: (1) assess the level of development of HEPA policies from 10 French municipalities using a local HEPA analysis tool, (2) provide a brief overview of core political science theories applied in health promotion, and (3) from these empirical and theoretical perspectives, model a conceptual framework to better understand the development of HEPA policy promotion in French municipalities. Based on empirical data and the Multiple Streams, policy cycles and Institutional Rational Choice theories, a conceptual framework of the development of municipal HEPA policy promotion was modeled. This conceptual framework is comprised of five stages describing the development of municipal HEPA policies. This paper contributes to a better understanding of the development of municipal HEPA policies.

Effects of technology-based physical activity interventions for women after bariatric surgery: study protocol for a three-arm randomised controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION: A recent meta-analysis provided proof of efficacy for mobile technology to increase physical activity or weight loss in the short term. Videoconferencing may also be effective, especially as it reduces the barriers related to face-to-face physical activity interventions. Both technologies seem particularly interesting for bariatric surgery management, but their long-term effects on physical activity maintenance are unknown. Moreover, the mechanisms underlying their effectiveness, such as technology acceptability and motivational processes, have not been examined.The objectives of this study are to determine the effects of two technology-based (mobile technology and videoconferencing) physical activity programmes after bariatric surgery compared with standard care and to assess the contribution of acceptability and motivational mechanisms in explaining these effects on physical activity, physiological measures and health indicators. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: One hundred and twenty young women who have undergone bariatric surgery in the last 3-6 months will be included. The volunteers will be randomly assigned to one of three arms: CONTROL (standard care), ACTI-MOBIL (mobile technology) or ACTI-VISIO (videoconferencing). The primary outcome is the distance travelled during a 6 min walk test relativised according to Capadaglio's theoretical distance. Secondary outcomes are behavioural measures of physical activity, physiological measures, health indicators, technology acceptability and motivational concepts. Data will be collected at baseline (T0), 3 months (T3) and 6 months (T6). The technology groups will receive a physical activity programme for 12 weeks (between T0 and T3). A mixed model approach will be used to analyse the change in outcomes over time for each group. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study protocol was reviewed and approved by the French East 1 Protection of Persons Ethics Committee (number: 2020.A00172-37) and the French National Commission for Information Technology and Civil Liberties (number: UCA-R20-034). The results will be disseminated through conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT04478331.

Construct validity of the Social Physique Anxiety Scale in a French adolescent sample.

We conducted a series of studies to investigate the psychometric properties of the Social Physique Anxiety Scale (SPAS; Hart, Leary, & Rejeski, 1989) among a total sample of 1,563 nonclinical French adolescents. The, first study provided support for the item content of the preliminary version of the French SPAS for adolescents. Then, the second study supported the convergent validity of the English and French version of the SPAS. Finally, Studies 3 to 6 provided support for the factor validity, measurement invariance (across genders, age groups and samples), latent mean structure invariance (across age category and samples), reliability, convergent validity, and criterion-related validity of a 7-item version of the SPAS.

Analysis of the Local Health-Enhancing Physical Activity Policies on the French Riviera.

Policy is a lever for initiating the structural and environmental changes that foster health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA) promotion. However, little is known about the evidence in support of local governments regarding their HEPA-promoting policies. The aim of this study was to collect comprehensive information on municipal HEPA policies on the French Riviera (Alpes-Maritimes and Var counties) to provide an overview of the development of these policies in this territory. Mid-sized cities from the two counties constituting the French Riviera were targeted (n = 17). In each city, a local tool for HEPA policy analysis, CAPLA-Santé, was used to gain information from key informants heading the departments of sports, health services, and social services. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and document analysis. Ten mid-sized cities volunteered to participate. Key informants from the sports (n = 10), health services (n = 5), and social services (n = 6) departments were interviewed. Written HEPA policy documents were formalized in six cities. These documents (n = 14) were mainly from the sports (n = 8) and health services (n = 4) sectors. The key informants reported that support from national policy, the commitment of elected officials, and large local stakeholder networks facilitated HEPA promotion, whereas the lack of intersectoral collaboration and limited resources were limitations. The results provide insight into the development of municipal HEPA policies, highlighting some of the barriers, facilitators, and perspectives. These findings could be valuable to scale up HEPA promotion at the local level.

The body image avoidance questionnaire: assessment of its construct validity in a community sample of French adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Among the few instruments used to measure the behavioral component of body image disturbances, the Body Image Avoidance Questionnaire (BIAQ) is the most widely used. Despite the wide utilization of this instrument, it is currently unknown whether it is appropriate for male and female adolescents from middle and junior high schools. PURPOSE: The main objective of the present series of studies was to test the construct validity of the BIAQ in a community sample of French adolescents. METHOD: The content, factor, and convergent validity of the BIAQ were verified in the context of four independent studies conducted on a total sample of 945 adolescents. RESULTS: The first study showed that the content and formulation of the French BIAQ items were adequate for children and adolescents. The following three studies provided support for the factor validity, measurement invariance (across sex), reliability, and convergent validity of the French BIAQ. Regarding the measurement invariance tests, the results revealed that the models were invariant up to the levels of the latent means structures. Post hoc probing of these differences showed a significant higher latent mean score of the global BIAQ scale in females (in samples 2 and 3). DISCUSSION: The present results provide preliminary evidence regarding the construct validity of the BIAQ in a community sample of French adolescents.

Construct validity of the Nutrition and Activity Knowledge Scale in a French sample of adolescents with mild to moderate intellectual disability.

The purpose of this study was to test the reliability (i.e. internal consistency and test-retest reliability) and construct validity (i.e. content validity, factor validity, measurement invariance, and latent mean invariance) of the Nutrition and Activity Knowledge Scale (NAKS) in a sample of French adolescents with mild to moderate Intellectual Disability (ID). A total sample of 260 adolescents (144 boys and 116 girls), aged between 12 and 18 years old, with mild to moderate ID was involved in two studies. In the first study, analysis of items' content reveals that many words from the original version were not understood or induced confusion. These items were reworded and simplified while retaining their original meaning. In the second study, results provided support for: (i) the factor validity and reliability of a 15-item French version of the NAKS; (ii) the measurement invariance of the resulting NAKS across genders and ID levels; (iii) the partial measurement invariance of the resulting NAKS across age groups and type of school placement. In addition, the latent means of the 15-item French version of the NAKS proved to be invariant across gender, age categories, and ID levels, but to vary across type of school placement (with adolescents schooled in self-contained classes from regular schools presenting higher levels of NAK than adolescents placed in specialized establishments). The present results thus provide preliminary evidence regarding the construct validity of a 15-item French version of the NAKS in a sample of adolescents with ID.