The social experience of exercise in public places: an exploratory qualitative study

Abstract

Background: Much exercise occurs in public places, such as a gym, pool, class, or park. Social psychology shows that the real or perceived presence of others influences behaviour and experience. However, this has rarely been studied with exercise except for specific constructs such as social physique anxiety and a small literature on social anxiety. These have a negative effect; there may also be benefits, but research here has been limited except for social support. We aim to create a richer picture of the experience of exercise in public places and effects on behaviour. Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with 27 exercisers (median age 34, range 20 to 55 years, 40% male), recruited at city leisure centres and on campus. Exercise activities varied and settings included gyms, pools, parks, classes and sports facilities. Using thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke, 2006) from a critical realist epistemology, data will be analysed inductively, providing a rich description of the dataset. Expected Findings: Themes identified suggesting positive, negative or no effects of public setting. Current Stage of Work: Interviews are being transcribed. Discussion: Social influences feature in few of health psychology’s theories or play a limited role (e.g. subjective norm), so rarely inform interventions. These exploratory findings will inform further qualitative and quantitative research. They may contribute to understanding maintenance of exercise (currently poorly understood) and content of theoretical constructs that explain behaviour. Findings may inform behavioural interventions by suggesting appropriate social opportunities to create, and coping strategies for social stressors or barriers.