Social and Cultural Influences on Physical Activity

Whether older adults participate in regular exercise is strongly influenced by individual, relationship, community, and society factors. Older adults from traditionally minoritized and underserved locations are even less likely to engage in recommended physical activity than other older adults. This is due to the intersections of many complex barriers, such as social, cultural, institutional, and environmental. To assist older adults in attaining the health benefits provided by regular exercise, a deeper understanding is needed of both the factors influencing participation as well as the evidence-based strategies shown to be successful in maintaining physical activities in these older adults.