Predicting Factors on Exercise Behaviors among Older Adults at the Third Age University in Chiang Rai

Abstract

This predictive research aimed to: 1) examine exercise behaviors among older adults at the Third Age University, Chiang Rai Municipality; 2) investigate the relationships between personal factors, including age, gender, marital status, chronic diseases, duration of participation, and attitudes toward exercise with exercise behaviors; and 3) predict the influence of these factors on exercise behaviors based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). The sample consisted of 217 older adults enrolled in the 2021 academic year, selected via simple random sampling. The research instruments included a general information questionnaire, an attitude toward exercise questionnaire, and an exercise behavior questionnaire. These instruments were validated by three experts, yielding a content validity index (CVI) of 0.95. Reliability testing revealed Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of 0.87 for the attitude questionnaire and 0.89 for the behavior questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-squared test, Spearman’s rank correlation, and binary logistic regression analysis.

The results indicated that the participants' overall exercise behavior was at a low level, with a mean score of 1.63 (S.D. = 0.34). Factors significantly correlated with exercise behaviors included age (x²(2) = 13.02, p < .01, negative correlation) and duration of participation (ρ = 0.187, p = .006, positive correlation), whereas attitudes toward exercise showed no significant correlation (ρ = −0.050, p = .500). Binary logistic regression analysis confirmed that age (B = −0.223, p = .001, OR = 0.800, 95% CI = 0.701–0.913) and duration of participation (B = 0.187, p = .005, OR = 1.206, 95% CI = 1.058–1.373) significantly predicted exercise behaviors. Conversely, overall attitude did not significantly predict exercise behaviors (B = −0.098, p = .841). The model explained 12.5% of the variance (Nagelkerke R² = 0.125). These findings suggest that age serves as the primary risk factor reducing exercise behaviors, whereas continuous participation enhances them. This aligns with research in the Thai context indicating that social support within older adult communities plays a crucial role. Therefore, health promotion programs should be tailored to specific age groups and encourage long-term engagement to mitigate physical limitations and improve the quality of life for older adults in similar contexts.