Firstly, published systematic reviews on physical activity questionnaires [9 (link)–11 ] as well as the review of the scientific literature and international projects accomplished by the Estonian study group in the Phase 1 of the project (see Fig. 1 ) [5 ] were used to identify available PA questionnaires. A booklet was produced sorting the PA questionnaires according to the instrument types: (a) total PA, (b) occupational PA and (c) leisure-time PA questionnaires. In addition, information from the validation studies for each instrument was collected and included in the booklet.
Secondly, a systematic search for PA survey questions was conducted using the ‘HIS/HES Database’ [12 ]. The HIS/HES Database presents an inventory of national and multi-country health surveys implemented in EU Member States as well as EFTA countries, EU Candidate Countries and USA, Canada and Australia. The research question was: Which PA questions have been used so far in international HIS/HES surveys? The eligibility criteria were that we searched for (a) ‘all surveys’ including health interview surveys (HIS), health examination survey (HES) and HIS/HES combined, (b) in ‘all regions’ , (c) in ‘national and international surveys’ , and (d) for ‘survey years 1992 until 2008’ because the HIS/HES Database at the time of study covered this period. While searching in the HIS/HES Database, we reviewed all questions in the area of ‘life style factors’ with topic codes ‘411- daily activities’ , ‘412 - physical activity’ , ‘413 - leisure time activities’ and in the area ‘Living and working conditions’ with the topic codes ‘502 - working conditions’ and ‘504 - workplace exposures’. The identified questions were sorted according to the PA question types: work-related PA 1994–2007 (n = 56), household PA 1992–2008 (n = 28), transport-related PA 1997–2008 (n = 30), leisure-time PA 1992–2008 (n = 106), sedentary behavior 1995–2008 (n = 24), and generic and other PA questions 1992–2008 (n = 122). Six booklets were produced (one for each question type) which are presented in the Additional file1 .
The PA questionnaire collection booklets were used to produce a short list of questions for the PA domains being covered by the instrument proposal. The main instrument eligibility criteria were that the questions should be short and easy to understand, suitable for different cultural contexts and various modes of data collection, reliable and valid and they should have already been used before in large-scale population surveys. Two researchers screened all identified PA questionnaires for the eligibility criteria. The amount of questionnaires was reduced and a short list of questions for each PA domain (work-related PA, n = 10; transport-related PA, n = 6; and leisure-time PA, n = 14) was compiled. The short list was used to develop a domain-specific PA instrument proposal. In the development process the experiences from the cognitive testing round 1 (the major problems respondents had when answering the IPAQ-SF) were used to design a user-friendly questionnaire.
Secondly, a systematic search for PA survey questions was conducted using the ‘HIS/HES Database’ [12 ]. The HIS/HES Database presents an inventory of national and multi-country health surveys implemented in EU Member States as well as EFTA countries, EU Candidate Countries and USA, Canada and Australia. The research question was: Which PA questions have been used so far in international HIS/HES surveys? The eligibility criteria were that we searched for (a) ‘all surveys’ including health interview surveys (HIS), health examination survey (HES) and HIS/HES combined, (b) in ‘all regions’ , (c) in ‘national and international surveys’ , and (d) for ‘survey years 1992 until 2008’ because the HIS/HES Database at the time of study covered this period. While searching in the HIS/HES Database, we reviewed all questions in the area of ‘life style factors’ with topic codes ‘411- daily activities’ , ‘412 - physical activity’ , ‘413 - leisure time activities’ and in the area ‘Living and working conditions’ with the topic codes ‘502 - working conditions’ and ‘504 - workplace exposures’. The identified questions were sorted according to the PA question types: work-related PA 1994–2007 (n = 56), household PA 1992–2008 (n = 28), transport-related PA 1997–2008 (n = 30), leisure-time PA 1992–2008 (n = 106), sedentary behavior 1995–2008 (n = 24), and generic and other PA questions 1992–2008 (n = 122). Six booklets were produced (one for each question type) which are presented in the Additional file
The PA questionnaire collection booklets were used to produce a short list of questions for the PA domains being covered by the instrument proposal. The main instrument eligibility criteria were that the questions should be short and easy to understand, suitable for different cultural contexts and various modes of data collection, reliable and valid and they should have already been used before in large-scale population surveys. Two researchers screened all identified PA questionnaires for the eligibility criteria. The amount of questionnaires was reduced and a short list of questions for each PA domain (work-related PA, n = 10; transport-related PA, n = 6; and leisure-time PA, n = 14) was compiled. The short list was used to develop a domain-specific PA instrument proposal. In the development process the experiences from the cognitive testing round 1 (the major problems respondents had when answering the IPAQ-SF) were used to design a user-friendly questionnaire.
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