SynthesisThe international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity2021
A systematic review of qualitative studies exploring the factors influencing the physical activity levels of Arab migrants.
Synthesis in The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Migrant parents' perceptions of the benefits, barriers, and facilitators of young children's physical activity and sedentary behavior: A systematic review of qualitative studies.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2025Pooled it
- Feasibility and acceptability of a culturally tailored physical activity intervention for Arab-Australian women.BMC women's health · 2021Trial
- Moving together to facilitate equity and inclusion in research. The co-production of interventions for clinical trials to facilitate participation of people from ethnically diverse communities.Health research policy and systems · 2026Article
- How can we encourage engagement in physical activity among older adults in Chinese diasporas? Mixed methods evidence synthesis using the COM-B model.European review of aging and physical activity : official journal of the European Group for Research into Elderly and Physical Activity · 2025Review
- Factors Influencing Health Promoting Behaviours Among Arab-Australians: Perspectives of Health and Community Workers.Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals · 2025Article
- 'We Need Equitable Exercise Opportunities': The Complexity of Leisure-Time Physical Activity and Its Relationship to Mental Health among Arab Canadians: The CAN-HEAL Study.Journal of immigrant and minority health · 2025Article
- Association between peer relationships and exercise self-efficacy among college students: the mediating role of physical activity commitment.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- An Outdoor Walking Program for Immigrant Muslim Older Adults: A Community-Based Participatory Intervention.Nursing open · 2024Article
- It's about time to exercise: development of the Exercise Participation Explained in Relation to Time (EXPERT) model.British journal of sports medicine · 2024Review
- Unravelling the complex interplay of factors behind exercise limitations and physical inactivity in COPD.Breathe (Sheffield, England) · 2024Review
- Article
- A Scoping Review of the Relationship Between Physical Activity and Mental Health Among Immigrants in Western Countries: An Integrated Bio-Psycho-Socio-Cultural Lens.Journal of immigrant and minority health · 2023Article
- "I wouldn't have joined if it wasn't online": understanding older people's engagement with teleyoga classes for fall prevention.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2022Article
- The Role of Religion and Religiosity in Health-Promoting Care for the Body During the Lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic in Egypt, Poland and Romania.Journal of religion and health · 2022Article
- Enabling Better Physical Activity and Screen Time Behaviours for Adolescents from Middle Eastern Backgrounds: Semi-Structured Interviews with Parents.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Physical activity participation among Arab immigrants and refugees in Western societies: A scoping review.Preventive medicine reports · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEvidence suggests that Arab migrant populations engage in low levels of physical activity. To our knowledge, there are no reviews that explore the perspectives of Arab migrant populations on the factors influencing physical activity. The aim of this systematic review was to thematically synthesise qualitative literature on the factors influencing physical activity among Arab migrant populations.
methodsFive electronic databases (CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, PsychoInfo, MEDLINE, Embase) were searched in July 2018 and searched again in April 2020. A manual search in Google Scholar was also performed using keywords and the reference lists of included studies were also screened to identify further articles. The eligibility criteria for inclusion were studies that sampled adult (≥18 years) Arab migrant populations, used qualitative methodology, explored the factors influencing physical activity as a primary aim, and were published in English. The 10-item Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklist was used to assess methodological quality of individual studies. The results of the studies were thematically synthesised using the qualitative software Quirkos v1.6.
resultsA total of 15 studies were included, with the largest proportion of studies conducted in Australia, followed by the United States, Netherlands, Sweden, and then Canada. Five studies exclusively sampled Arab migrant populations in their study. A total of 7 major themes influencing physical activity among Arab migrants emerged from the synthesis: culture and religion, competing commitments and time, social factors, health-related influences, accessibility issues, outdoor environment, and the migratory experience.
conclusionsThe findings of this review highlighted the various factors influencing the physical activity levels of Arab migrant adults. While many of the factors influencing physical activity are shared with those experienced by other populations (e.g., time constraints), for Arab migrant populations there are other more unique factors closely associated with culture and religion that appear to influence their levels of physical activity. The findings of this review could be used to inform the design of physical activity interventions targeting Arab migrant populations.
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