Assessing and Promoting Physical Activity in African American Barbershops: Results of the FITStop Pilot Study

• Main Authors: Laura A. Linnan ScD, Paul L. Reiter PhD, Courtney Duffy BA, Derek Hales PhD, Dianne S. Ward EdD, Anthony J. Viera MD
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: SAGE Publishing 2011-01-01
• Series: American Journal of Men's Health
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1177/1557988309360569

This study assessed the feasibility of recruiting African American men in barbershops, assessing their physical activity, conducting physical measurements, and gauging their interest in barbershop-based health research. The authors recruited African American shop owners ( n = 4), barbers ( n = 6), and customers ( n = 90) from four barbershops in Raleigh and Durham, North Carolina, during 2009. The participation levels were high among owners (100%), barbers (67%), and customers (81%). In addition to completing a self-administered survey, 57% (51/90) of the customers completed physical measurements. According to self-reported data, 34% (30/88) of the customers met national physical activity recommendations within the last week. Customers expressed moderately high interest in learning more about health at barbershops and joining a barbershop-based physical activity contest. The estimated recruiting cost per customer was $105.92. Barbershops offer an effective setting for recruiting African American men and conducting physical measurements as well as an interesting possible location for conducting future interventions.