Aidan Holz

Applied Psychology. SUNY Canton

PSYC 300: Cultural Psychology

Dr. Marcella Chiromo

October 6, 2023
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Individuals across cultures vary in the upkeep of their physical health. This can depend

on various factors such as cultural beliefs, access to specific resources, influences such as

authority figures or the media, environment, socioeconomic status, and much more. These

factors can pave the way for different lifestyles across cultures—some of which consist of a

sedentary, mobile, stress-ridden, or comfortable way of living.

Within the culture that I am exposed to and have been in for the entirety of my life, a

significant emphasis is placed on the importance of physical health. It is emphasized that

maintaining physical health is critical in maximizing how long one lives. In Western cultures,

there are a lot of resources that can be readily accessed that can contribute to the physical health

of an individual in a positive manner.

Some of these resources consist of advanced health care systems, gyms, clean water, and

fresh foods with good nutritional value. Growing up, I was taught that drinking plenty of water

was necessary for hydration to keep your body's organs functioning properly. I was shown that If

I got ill, I would go to the doctor's office to get checked out by a professional and receive input

on how to get better.

Nonetheless, I was introduced to many opportunities to keep my body physically healthy.

It is important to note that this was a learned process. Positive parental influences showed me

how to maintain my physical health properly. Furthermore, the educational system that I was a

part of allowed me to learn about the importance of healthy eating and exercise, the dangers of

smoking or abusing drugs/alcohol, and how to be sanitary.

Depending on the culture that an individual is a part of, they may have different beliefs

about physical health or less opportunity to sustain a healthy lifestyle. This can be seen in

Western cultures too. Socioeconomic status can be a determining factor in how someone treats
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their physical health. Individuals with a lower socioeconomic status may struggle to afford

healthy food, pay for a gym membership, or afford healthcare. This can contribute to the

consumption of unhealthy foods because they are cheaper, less motivation to exercise because

they cannot afford to go to a gym, or not being evaluated by a physician regularly because they

do not have healthcare.

However, in Western cultures there are various ways around the struggles that can affect

an individual's physical health. There are programs that allow individuals access to healthcare for

free, one in particular is Medicaid. Food pantries allow individuals who have financial restraints

to acquire food free of charge, and this food is oftentimes healthier than cheap unhealthy foods

such as fast foods.

Other difficulties impacting physical health can be avoided as well. This surrounds the

idea of motivation, and the norms that are seen within Western cultures. For example, an

individual who may not have enough money to pay for a gym membership or may not have

access to transportation to a gym may choose to not exercise at all. Even though there may be

some roadblocks in the way of their preference to be healthy, other options still exist. Some of

these include running outside, or doing bodyweight exercises in their home.

The incompleteness of healthy habits (such as exercise) and low motivation can lead to a

sedentary lifestyle. This lifestyle consists of inactiveness, little to no exercise, which can

jeopardize an individual's health.

For myself, it was always encouraged to have a backup option that is just as effective as

the first option, in case the first option was not available. This would ensure that I can still do

something that is healthy for my body, such as going for a walk if the gym was closed.
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Unfortunately, in Western culture and as of present, it may be considered a normal behavior to be

faced with a challenge, and shy away from it.

An example would be diet. If someone is attempting to lose weight and adopt a healthy

lifestyle but is faced with a challenge, it may be easier for them to stop their attempts at being

healthier all together than to come up with a way to overcome this challenge. A challenge may

be not knowing how to start or achieve results. They may be confused on what foods to eat, how

much to eat, what types of exercise or how much exercise.

One of my cultural beliefs is that if I do not know something, to look it up. In today's

society and across many cultures, a majority of individuals have access to a smartphone or

computer and can complete research on a topic of their choosing. This goes along with the idea

of my culture that if we do not know, we should ask. This applies to our physical health. If we

are not sure about how to be healthy or what to do if we are ill it would be common practice to

reach out to a healthcare provider.

Another area impacting the physical health of individuals in Western culture is the

accessibility of fast foods. Fast foods are a contributing factor to obesity, which is associated

with medical conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. A lot of individuals consume fast

food because it is just that, fast and easy. In addition, and as discussed above it is a cheaper

option than most healthy foods.

Fast food is something that is advertised to a great extent. Within advertisements comes

unrealistic depictions of products, catchy names, slogans, colors, and discounts/deals. This tends

to draw consumers to these products. In the meantime it has the ability to take away the idea that

these foods are not healthy.

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At the same time, some cultural ideas that I have adopted are consistent with the saying

“everything in moderation”. This stresses the importance that fast food can be utilized as a

reward or something to supplement dinner when there is a lack of groceries in the house. I

recognize that fast food can contribute to serious health diseases if consumed regularly.

I believe it is important to be mindful of what can contribute to a healthy lifestyle. Other

than being mindful of diet and exercising regularly, this includes bathing regularly, washing my

hands with soap and water after the bathroom, taking vitamins, getting a sufficient amount of

sleep. Still, people from the same culture may disagree with this. They may adopt a different

perception of what it means to be healthy.

One cross-cultural study was performed to examine what prevents adolescents from

having a healthy diet and exercising (Musaiger et al., 2013). The research method for this study

consisted of a self-reported survey (Musaiger et al., 2013). The questionnaire consisted of 10-14

statements pertaining to roadblocks to a healthy diet and physical activity (Musaiger et al.,

2013). There were three categories that these roadblocks were separated into, which is as

follows; personal, social, or environmental (Musaiger et al., 2013).

The response options for these roadblocks were “not a barrier”, “somewhat important

barrier”, and “a very important barrier” (Musaiger et al., 2013). This study consisted of

adolescents from Arabian countries, in particular those from Algeria, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya,

Palestine, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates (Musaiger et al., 2013). There were 4,698

students selected by using a multistage satisfied sampling method, the age range was

15-18-year-olds (Musaiger et al., 2013).

Amongst the adolescents (both female and male) from every country, except males from

Palestine, it was discovered that one of the primary roadblocks is the lack of information about a
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healthy diet (Musaiger et al., 2013). 67% to 75% of males and 64% to 82% of females stated that

this was an “somewhat important barrier” or an “important barrier”(Musaiger et al., 2013).

Besides males in Palestine and Libya, the next most reported roadblock was the lack of

motivation to eat healthy, where 53% to 64% of males and 65% to 75% of females selected this

roadblock as either “somewhat important barrier” or an “important barrier” (Musaiger et al.,

2013).

The third relatively high response rate was reported for not having access to healthy

foods, where 50% to 69% of males and 51% to 64% of females states this was “somewhat

important barrier” or an “important barrier (Musaiger et al., 2013). In regards to the category of

social roadblocks, the most reported reason for this was the lack of time to prepare or eat healthy

foods due to school commitments (Musaiger et al., 2013).

In regards to physical activity, the roadblock of lacking motivation to do physical activity,

exercise, or sport was a “somewhat important barrier” or an “important barrier” to 50% of girls

(Musaiger et al., 2013). For men, the personal roadblocks to physical activity were all “not

important”, despite the men in Kuwait and Palestine who reported these roadblocks as

“somewhat important barrier” or an “important barrier” (Musaiger et al., 2013).

It was reported that not enjoying physical activity, exercise, or sport was “not an

important” roadblock for 56% to 74% of females (Musaiger et al., 2013). Minus males in

Kuwait, 53% to 70% of males and 44% to 61% of females, reported no parents support to be

physically active as “not an important” roadblock (Musaiger et al., 2013). In all countries, except

Jordan, it was reported that having no time to be physically active was an “somewhat important

barrier” or an “important barrier” for males (Musaiger et al., 2013).

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Though, 76% to 89% of females reported this roadblock to be “somewhat important

barrier” or an “important barrier” (Musaiger et al., 2013). For future research, it was

recommended that the questionnaire should have asked for more information regarding

sociocultural roadblocks, mainly for physical activity (Musaiger et al., 2013). In addition, the

questionnaire may need further validation (Musaiger et al., 2013).

Another cross-cultural study was conducted to compare obesity, physical activity, and

sedentary lifestyle amongst youth (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). The research method for this study

was self-report questionnaire (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). There were two cultures being studied,

British and Saudi Arabia (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). There were 2,290 males and females aged

15-17 (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). The participants were selected from three cities; Coventry,

Birmingham (both British) and Al-Ahsa (Saudi) (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012).

The questionnaire consisted of 47 items pertaining to patterns of physical activity,

sedentary lifestyles and eating habits (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). It covers all aspects of physical

activity, such as transport, household, fitness and sports demonstrating light, moderate, or

vigorous intensity of physical activities (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). The questionnaire allowed the

calculation of total energy expenditure per week based on metabolic equivalent (MET-min)

values of all the physical activity reported by participant (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012).

The total METs-min per week and the METs-min per week spent in vigorous and

moderate-intensity were used to measure the level of physical activity within the participant

(Al-Nakeeb, 2012). To formulate BMI, participants were weighed on a scale that was made sure

to read 0 before each weight, and the height was measured on a scale and rounded to the nearest

0.5 centimeter (Al-Nakeeb, 2012). The BMI was calculated using the BMI formula, which is

weight (kg) over height (in meters) (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012).

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The study found that youth from Al-Ahsa were remarkably less active than the youth in

both Birmingham and Coventry (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). The percentage of active youth, for

both males and females, were 72.3% in Birmingham, 77.2% in Coventry, and 26% in Al-Ahsa

(Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). There was no significant difference in sedentary behavior amongst

Birmingham, Coventry, and Al-Ahsa (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). Though, in Al-Ahsa there was a

difference in sedentary behaviors between males and females, with males reaching 5 hours a day

and females reaching 5.78 hours a day (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012)

It was found that the BMI of youth in Al-Ahsa (24.02 kg/m) was significantly higher than

the BMI of youth in Birmingham (22.38 kg/m) and Coventry (21.41 kg/m) (Al-Nakeeb et al.,

2012). Obesity percentages for women in Al-Ahsa were 36.6% and for men 36.4% (Al-Nakeeb

et al., 2012). Future recommendations consisted of addressing limitations such as maturation

status between youth and from the three cities, as this could have affected the classification of

obesity (Al-Nakeeb et al., 2012). In addition, a mixed approach could be utilized in regard to

data collection through both objective and self-report measures of physical activity (Al-Nakeeb,

2012).

In my culture, there are a lot of ways to lead a healthy lifestyle. The idea of how to

manage my physical health stems from what I was taught, and what I am exposed to. This idea

may differ from culture to culture, depending upon how other individuals perceive physical

health, what it is and how to maintain it. Western cultures have a great amount of resources that

allow individuals to better their health, though some lack motivation, self-discipline, money, and

knowledge to utilize them. It is important to note that other cultures may not have these same

resources, making their approach to a healthy lifestyle different.

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References

Musaiger, A. O., Al-Mannai, M., Tayyem, R., Al-Lalla, O., Ali, E. Y. A., Kalam, F.,

Benhamed, M. M., Saghir, S., Halahleh, I., Djoudi, Z., & Chirane, M. (2013,

November 14). Perceived barriers to healthy eating and physical activity among

adolescents in seven Arab countries: A cross-cultural study. The Scientific World

Journal. https://www.hindawi.com/journals/tswj/2013/232164/

Al-Nakeeb, Y., Lyons, M., Collins, P., Al-Nuaim, A., Al-Hazzaa, H., Duncan, M. J., &

Nevill, A. (2012, April 16). Obesity, physical activity and sedentary behavior

amongst British and Saudi youth: A cross-cultural study. MDPI.

https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/9/4/1490
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