Associations Among Wearable Activity Tracker Use, Exercise Motivation, and Physical Activity in a Cohort of Cancer Survivors: Secondary Data Analysis of the Health Information National Trends Survey
Authors: De La Torre Steven , Spruijt-Metz Donna , Farias Albert J 
Published: February 2021

Background

Cancer survivors who meet physical activity (PA) recommendations (≥150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity [MVPA] per week) experience better health outcomes. With the growing availability of wearable activity trackers (WATs), it may be easier to track PA. However, it is unknown what motivates survivors to use these devices.

Objective

The aim of this study is to investigate the associations among motivations for exercise, previous WAT use for tracking a health goal or activity, and meeting the recommended amount of PA among a cohort of cancer survivors.

Methods

Data on WAT users who reported having a previous cancer diagnosis were analyzed from the National Cancer Institute’s Health Information National Trends Survey 5 Cycle 3. All survivors with complete information on demographics, exercise motivations (internal guilt, external pressure, physical appearance, and exercise enjoyment), previous WAT use (yes or no), and minutes of MVPA per week (N=608) were included. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to test these associations. A separate cluster analysis was conducted to identify the profiles of exercise motivation that were associated with reporting WAT use.

Results

The mean age of the cohort was 66.9 years (SD 12.1). The majority were non-Hispanic White (473/608, 78.8%) and female (322/608, 54.9%), and skin cancer was the most commonly reported diagnosed cancer (154/608, 27.8%). Survivors who reported using WATs to track a health goal or activity were 1.6 times more likely to meet MVPA recommendations than those who did not use WATs (odds ratio [OR] 1.65, 95% CI 1.03-2.65; P=.04). When exercise motivations were assessed independently, survivors who reported not feeling any internal guilt as an exercise motivation were 73% less likely to report having used a WAT than those who felt any internal guilt (OR 0.27, 95% CI 0.14-0.54; P<.001). A total of 3 distinct motivational profiles emerged from the cluster analysis. WAT users had an increased probability of membership in profile 3, which was characterized as being strongly motivated to exercise by internal guilt, physical appearance, and exercise enjoyment (OR 4.5, 95% CI 2.1-9.7; P<.001).

Conclusions

Among this cohort, survivors who reported using WATs to track a health goal or activity were significantly more likely to report meeting PA recommendations. Survivors who reported feeling internal guilt as an exercise motivation were significantly more likely to report using WATs to track a health goal or activity. When examining clusters of motivation, survivors who reported previous WAT use were more likely to report being motivated to exercise by a mix of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations, including internal guilt, exercise enjoyment, and physical appearance. Given the health benefits of PA for cancer survivors, technology-focused interventions that use WATs and target exercise motivation may aid in cancer survivors meeting the level of recommended PA.