Friends, physical activity, and sedentary behavior in university students: A social network analysis

Introduction: Understanding the processes of socialization during youth and their association with healthy behaviors is crucial for university education. Objective: To explore the associations of the characteristics of friendship networks with being physically active and having a sedentary behavior in university students. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional study conducted in 475 university students and based on a social network analysis. Measurements included sociodemographic, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and friendship network variables. The associations between the characteristics of friendship networks and physical activity and sedentary behavior were explored using logistic regression models. Confidence intervals (95%) were estimated and a significance level of p<0.05 was considered. Results: In women, being part of at least a cluster of friends was significantly associated with being physically active (adjusted OR [aOR]: 2.3; 95%CI: 1.2-4.6), while being popular was significantly associated with a lower probability of being physically active (aOR: 0.3; 95%CI: 0.1-0.7). Also, a ten-percentage point increase in active friends was significantly associated with a higher probability of being physically active (aOR: 9.3; 95%CI: 3.5-24.6). Regarding sedentary behavior, a ten-percentage point increase in the number of sedentary friends was significantly associated with a higher probability of being sedentary (aOR: 5.5; 95%CI: 2.5-12.3). In men, none of the studied associations were statistically significant. Conclusion: Some characteristics of social network are relevant for female university students in relation to their physical activity levels and sedentary behaviors. These findings highlight the need to consider friendship network dynamics for designing initiatives aimed at physical activity promotion and sedentary behavior reduction.