Movement Intensities Across Screen and Nonscreen-Based Contexts in Children: A Proof-of-Concept Study Using Wearable Cameras and Accelerometers

Source abstract

Introduction : While accelerometers capture movement behavior intensity, they lack context, limiting insights into children’s behavior patterns. This proof-of-concept study combined wearable cameras (to identify behavioral contexts) and accelerometers (to assess movement intensity) to examine children’s movement intensity within selected everyday behavioral contexts. Methods : Eighteen children ( M age : 10.3 ± 0.6 years) wore hip-mounted accelerometers and wearable cameras on a neck-worn lanyard for seven consecutive days, yielding 38 monitoring days. Using a structured annotation protocol, we identified screen- and nonscreen-based episodes from camera data and time-aligned them with accelerometer data. Movement intensity during episodes was analyzed using Freedson cut points. Descriptive statistics summarized PA intensity across camera-identified sedentary contexts. Results : In nonscreen contexts, playing quietly was the most active behavior, comprising 25% sedentary behavior (SB) intensity, 72% light PA (LPA) intensity, and 3% moderate- to vigorous-intensity PA. In contrast, writing was highly sedentary with 73% SB and 27% LPA, while reading showed a similar pattern with 69% SB, 29% LPA, and 2% moderate-to-vigorous intensity PA. In screen-based contexts, music player use was the most sedentary activity, with 79% of time classified SB, and 21% as LPA. Movement patterns during TV viewing, tablet use, and mobile phone use were relatively similar. Specifically, TV viewing comprised 70% SB and 30% LPA, tablet use included 67% SB and 33% LPA, and mobile phone use showed 66% SB and 34% LPA. Conclusion : Movement intensity within selected everyday behavioral contexts was not uniformly low. Combining wearable cameras and accelerometers provides complementary information on behavioral context and movement intensity.