Adolescent’s movement behaviors and built environment: a latent class analysis

BACKGROUND: Latent class analysis (LCA) is an alternative and innovative approach to verify the relation of the various combinations of the constructed environment and movement behavior (levels of physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep) characteristics. This study aimed to identify latent classes based on the characteristics of the neighborhood environment perceived by adolescents and their association with gender, socioeconomic status (SS), body composition and movement behaviors. METHODS: This cross-sectional study includes 309 Brazilian adolescents (14 to 16 years old, 57% female). The characteristics of the neighborhood environment perceived were analyzed by the Neighborhood Walkability for Youth Scale. Accelerometers were used for a week to evaluate the movement behaviors. Questionnaires assessed the screen times, total sitting time (TST), and sociodemographic characteristics. LCA was used for modeling the “Perceived Enviroment” variable, having been conducted in the poLCA (Polychromous Variable Latent Class Analysis) package of the R statistical software. RESULTS: Three classes were recognized: class 1, “Best Perceived Environment” with 23.03% of adolescents; class 2, “Moderate Perceived Environment”, 63.33%; and class 3, “Worst Perceived Environment”, 13.67%. Light physical activity (LPA), TST, and SS were associated with class prevalence. The adolescents with medium and low SS were, respectively, 3.42 (95% CI 1.62–7.21) and 4.18 (95% CI 1.66–10.50) more likely to belong to class 2, and those with low SS were 5.21 (95% CI 1.35–20.13) more likely to belong to class 3. Class 1 adolescents were associated with a lower chance (OR: 0.09, 95% CI 0.02–0.55) of involvement in ‘adequate LPA time’ compared to class 3. Class 1 adolescents were associated with a lower chance (OR: 0.31, 95% CI 0.12–0.79) of involvement in ‘adequate TST’ compared to class 2. There was a difference between the LPA and TST classes; class 3 presented a longer time in LPA than class 1; class 1 had higher TST than the other classes. CONCLUSION: The findings highlight the influence of neighborhood classes on adolescents’ LPA and TST. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-021-11974-4.