Marie H Murphy

Ulster University · Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Institute

Background Current literature reports a gap between development of effective interventions to promote physical activity and the systematic uptake into real-world settings. Factors relating to implementation and scale-up of physical activity interventions have been examined, however the perspectives of multiple stakeholders from different domains ar...

For the first time, data on children and adolescents with disabilities in Ireland are reported based on the Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance Para Report Card methodology. The most recent data from the last 10 years were used in the grading process (A+ to F), and indicators with insufficient data were graded as incomplete. Of the 10 indicators fr...

Despite a clear distinction between aerobic and muscle strengthening (MS) components in the physical activity guidelines, public health surveillance has largely focused only on aerobic components, limiting the reach of epidemiological research on the physical activity guidelines. Hence, this study investigated the association between adherence to b...

Background: The Global Matrix 4.0 on physical activity (PA) for children and adolescents was developed to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the global variation in children’s and adolescents’ (5–17 y) PA, related measures, and key sources of influence. The objectives of this article were (1) to summarize the findings from the Global Matrix 4...

Background Higher levels of sedentary behaviour (SB) and screen-time are associated with greater symptoms of depression in adolescents, but the effect of the type and context of SB and screen-time remains underexplored. As part of a nationally-representative observational study, the current cross-sectional study examined associations between SB, sc...

Background Regular physical activity is associated with physiological and mental health benefits for adolescents including improved fitness and cardiometabolic health, increased muscle and bone strength and reduced risk of obesity. Despite this, globally, many adolescents (81%) fail to meet physical activity guidelines. Physical activity levels dec...

Background Physical activity for adolescents with disabilities (AWD) are reported to have even greater health benefits than for adolescents without disabilities (AWoD). The settings for organised physical activity opportunities can include physical education, extra-curricular activities and community sport. Few studies have reported whether there a...

Background Young people have the right to be informed and consulted about decisions affecting their lives. Youth Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) should be encouraged to ensure research is carried out ‘with' or ‘by' young people rather than ‘to', ‘about' or ‘for' them. PPI can ensure research is relevant, results are accessible and recruitment...

Background Walking interventions, delivered within the school setting, have the potential to increase physical activity (PA) in adolescents. Previous research has shown that walking is an acceptable form of PA for adolescent girls, and that walking interventions may be effective at increasing PA in this group. Findings from the Walking In ScHools (...

To prepare the 2022 Ireland North and South Physical Activity Report Card, the strengths and weakness of the 2016 & 2014 Report Cards were reviewed. One of the primary strengths the 2022 edition was the inclusion of representatives in the research working group from across the island of Ireland, as this builds connections and allows for continued c...

Background Developing physical literacy at population levels provides a transformative appeal for those working in sport, health, education, recreation and physical activity settings. Interdisciplinary approaches to development of policy in this area is recommended. The purpose of this study was to gather empirical data from key stakeholders workin...

In Northern Ireland (NI), many children do not meet the recommended levels of physical activity (PA). To reduce the prevalence of physical inactivity and associated health conditions, it is important to understand the influences on children's PA, which in turn has the potential to inform future intervention design. The purpose of this formative stu...

Effective physical activity messaging plays an important role in the pathway towards changing physical activity behaviour at a population level. The Physical Activity Messaging Framework (PAMF) and Checklist (PAMC) are outputs from a recent modified Delphi study. This sought consensus from an international expert panel on how to aid the creation an...

Background People with severe mental illness (SMI) are less physically active and more sedentary than healthy controls, contributing to poorer physical health outcomes in this population. There is a need to understand the feasibility and acceptability, and explore the effective components, of health behaviour change interventions targeting physical...

Physical activity (PA) promotion is a complex challenge, with the Global Action Plan on Physical Activity (GAPPA) endorsing a systems approach and recommending countries assess existing areas of progress which can be strengthened. This paper reports a process facilitating a systems approach for identifying current good practice and gaps for promoti...

Background Over the past decade several physical activity (PA) interventions have been shown to be efficacious in a controlled research setting, however there is a continued lack of evidence for how to successfully implement these PA interventions in real-world settings such as the community. This review aims to explore the barriers and facilitator...

This study investigated if music tempo can prompt a desired walking cadence, and if music can provide a stimulus to regulate physical activity intensity in a longitudinal physical activity intervention with free-living adults. Overweight adults (n = 37; 94.26 ± 17.11 kg; 49.63 ± 12.37 years) were randomly assigned to an intervention (IG, n = 17) or...

Background Office work generally consists of high amounts of sedentary behaviour (SB) which has been associated with negative health consequences. We developed the “WorktivIty” mobile app to help office workers reduce their SB through self-monitoring and feedback on sedentary time, prompts to break sedentary time, and educational facts. The aim of...

This study evaluated the effectiveness of strategies used to recruit and retain overweight, inactive adults with intermediate hyperglycaemia (IHG) to a novel walking programme. Participant compliance to the nine-month randomised controlled trial (RCT) is also presented. Inactive overweight (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2) adults (N = 42; n = 19 male, n = 23 female...

School-based interventions are promising for targeting a change in obesity-related behaviours in children. However, the efficacy of school-based interventions to prevent obesity remains unclear. This review examined the effectiveness of school-based interventions at changing obesity-related behaviours (increased physical activity, decreased sedenta...

Physical activity (PA) is associated with a range of health benefits for adolescents. Few adolescents meet one hour daily of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). The World Health Organisation (WHO) now recommends an ‘on average’ accumulation. In light of these updates, comparing correlates associated with meeting versus not meeting the PA...

Background: To suppress the transmission of coronavirus, many governments, including that of the island of Ireland, implemented a societal lockdown, which included school closures, limits on social gatherings, and time outdoors. This study aimed to evaluate changes in physical activity (PA), mental health, sleep, and social media use among adolesc...

Background: The current study was the largest physical activity (PA) surveillance assessment of youth undertaken in Ireland in recent years. The purpose of this research was to assess the impact of social support, while controlling for age and screen time, on PA and sport participation, across a representative sample of Irish female youth. Methods:...

Periods of absence from supervised group exercise while maintaining physical activity might be a frequent pattern in adults' exercise habits. The aim of the present study was to determine detraining effects on musculoskeletal outcomes after a 3-month detraining period in early post-menopausal, osteopenic women. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we term...

Adherence is important for an exercise program’s efficacy. This study aims at investigating whether the COVID-19 lockdown had different consequences on the adherence to an exercise program specifically designed for women with postmenopausal osteoporosis when administered as individual home training (IHT) or gym group training (GGT). At the start of...

Background Intelligent personal assistants such as Amazon Echo and Google Home have become increasingly integrated into the home setting and, therefore, may facilitate behavior change via novel interactions or as an adjunct to conventional interventions. However, little is currently known about their potential role in this context. Objective This...

Background The aim of this study was to understand how physical activity and sedentary behaviour levels of pregnant women with gestational diabetes in the UK have been affected by COVID-19. Methods An online survey exploring physical activity and sedentary behaviour levels of pregnant women with gestational diabetes during COVID-19 was distributed...

Background: High levels of sedentary behaviour (SB) are associated with poor health outcomes in children, but the effects on mental health are less clear. This study explored the relationship between SB and psychosocial aspects of health in children, and what influence key role models, including parents and schoolteachers, have on the SB levels of...

Background: Adults spend a majority of their time outside the workplace being sedentary. Large amounts of sedentary behaviour increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and both all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality. Objectives: Primary • To assess effects on sedentary time of non-occupational interventions for reduci...

Approximately one quarter of children living in Northern Ireland are overweight or obese. Intelligent personal systems (IPS) such as Amazon Echo and Google Home have become increasingly integrated into the home setting and therefore, may facilitate behaviour change via novel interactions or as an adjunct to conventional interventions. However, litt...

Osteoporosis is a major health problem in post-menopausal women (PMW). Exercise training is considered a cost-effective strategy to prevent osteoporosis in middle aged-older people. The purpose of this study is to summarize the effect of exercise on BMD among PMW. A comprehensive search of electronic databases was conducted through PubMed, Scopus,...

Background: Adolescent girls in the UK and Ireland are failing to meet current physical activity guidelines. Physical activity behaviours track from childhood to adulthood and it is important that adolescent girls are provided with opportunities to be physically active. Walking has been a central focus for physical activity promotion in adults and...

Introduction: As high amounts of occupational sitting have been associated with negative health consequences, designing workplace interventions to reduce sedentary behaviour (SB) is of public health interest. Digital technology may serve as a cost-effective and scalable platform to deliver such an intervention. This study describes the iterative d...

BACKGROUND Physical activity trackers (PATs), such as applications (Apps) and wearable devices (e.g. sport watches and heart rate monitors), are increasingly being used by young adolescents. Despite the potential to monitor and improve moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) behaviours, there is a lack of research that confirms an association...

Background: Physical activity trackers (PATs), such as applications (Apps) and wearable devices (e.g. sport watches and heart rate monitors), are increasingly being used by young adolescents. Despite the potential to monitor and improve moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) behaviours, there is a lack of research that confirms an associati...

Objective: Employee and employer views regarding how technology-supported strategies can best meet their needs to reduce occupational sitting are not well known. This study explored target user and key stakeholder beliefs regarding strategies to reduce occupational sitting focusing on technology-supported approaches. Methods: Nine focus groups a...

BACKGROUND Intelligent personal assistants such as Amazon Echo and Google Home have become increasingly integrated into the home setting and, therefore, may facilitate behavior change via novel interactions or as an adjunct to conventional interventions. However, little is currently known about their potential role in this context. OBJECTIVE This...

This paper presents a study into the use of wearable technologies by pregnant women with Type one diabetes (T1D). The World Health Organisation estimates the incidence of T1D globally to be more than 422 million. Wearable technologies can potentially improve decisions around self-management by providing regular feedback on physiological processes....

Conclusions • A GDM diagnosis can negatively impact a woman's pregnancy experience • Women diagnosed with GDM require greater social support • Barriers to being physically active include sickness and fear around safety • It is hoped these data will facilitate the development of a theoretically underpinned woman-centred intervention.

Background Public health guidelines suggest that physical activity can be accumulated in multiple short bouts dispersed through the day. A synthesis of the evidence for this approach is lacking. Objective Our objective was to undertake a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine if exercise interventions consisting of a single bout of exercis...

Follow up to the original Children's Sport Participation and Physical Activity Study (2010). This surveillance study provides updated information of children's and adolescent's participation in physical activity, Physical Education and sport, as well as information on sedentary behaviour and active travel, across the entire island of Ireland.

Background: Men with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer can experience an array of treatment-related side effects. Accumulating evidence suggests exercise may alleviate some of these adversities and assist in disease management. However, empirical evidence in advanced prostate cancer patients remains limited. The purpose of this study i...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to test the effects of augmenting an evidence-based physical activity intervention within an existing commercial weight loss program to assess effects on increasing physical activity and reducing psychological distress. Design/methodology/approach The CONSORT guidelines were adopted for the study. In total, 49...

Purpose: With a range of interventions available for promoting physical activity (PA), it has become imperative to identify those that are both effective and feasible for real world application. The purpose of this study was to develop the first draft of a standardised evaluation framework (SEF) that aims to be useful for guiding practitioners, res...

Background: Exercise has proved effective in attenuating the unfavourable response normally associated with postprandial hypertriglyceridemia (PHTG) and accompanying oxidative stress. Yet, the acute effects of prior exercise and PHTG on DNA damage remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine if walking alters PHTG-induced oxidative da...

Background Levels of physical activity decline with age. Some of the most disadvantaged individuals in society, such as those with a lower rather than a higher socioeconomic position, are also the most inactive. Peer-led physical activity interventions may offer a model to increase physical activity in these older adults and thus help reduce associ...

Background: Although levels of physical activity (PA) have been researched, no information on how university students organize their PA across different life domains is available. The purpose of this study is to explore if and how students organize their PA across transport and recreational domains, and to identify the psychosocial factors related...

Schools have the potential to promote physical activity (PA) in adolescents through physical education (PE) and extra-curricular PA. The aims of this study were to firstly understand the experiences of adolescent females who participated in a school-based walking programme (the Walking In ScHools (WISH) study) and secondly, to assess the potential...

Background: Increasing proportions of the global population transition through a university setting, a setting associated with engagement in behaviors that diminish health such as high levels of physical inactivity. Increasing physical activity (PA) is a key element of health promotion strategies in many countries, but a better understanding of stu...

Public health physical activity (PA) guidelines are failing to increase levels of population PA, requiring a new approach. A national integrated marketing campaign was developed based on published literature and ethnographic research to get inactive lower socioeconomic 40–60 year olds to walk briskly for bouts of 10 or more minutes per day and move...

Background Students engage in risky health-related behaviours that influence their current and future health status. Health-related behaviours cluster among adults and differently based on sub-populations characteristics but research is lacking for university populations. Examining the clustering of health- related behaviours can inform our initiat...

Background Long and frequent bouts of sedentary behaviour pose a major risk to health and increase the incidence of hypokinetic diseases and mortality, independent of the risks caused by physical inactivity alone. The aim of this systematic review was to determine the effectiveness of interventions used by researchers in altering sedentary behaviou...

Introduction: The original Children’s Sport Participation and Physical Activity Study (CSPPA) examined the levels of physical activity (PA), including sedentary behaviour, in Irish children and youth. Based on previously acquired subjective data from Irish children and youth (n=5,397, 13.8 (±2) years), primary school children spent much less time s...

Purpose: Oxidative stress is associated with tissue cytokine secretion although the precise mechanism(s) underpinning this relationship during high intensity intermittent exercise remains unclear. This study investigates the acute response to a bout of high intensity intermittent walking (HIIW), compared to continuous moderate intensity walking (C...

Walking has become the cornerstone of physical activity promotion for public health. One of the attractions of this form of activity is that it can be recommended by health professionals but done with little or no supervision. The health benefits of walking depend at least in part, on the relative exercise intensity, determined by walking speed. Wh...

Background: Time spent in university represents a period of transition and may be an appropriate time to promote physical activity among young adults. The aim of this study was to assess participation of university students in sport and physical activity in Ireland and to explore the association between physical activity and perceptions of overall...

In this paper we introduce the Worktivity mobile app as a potential solution to help reduce occupational sitting in an office environment. Worktivity functions by sending hourly reminders to stand up or move in addition to showing factual information related to the benefits of being active within the office environment. The Worktivity app was used...

Background Levels of physical activity decline with age. Some of the most disadvantaged individuals in society, such as those from lower socio-economic position, are also the most inactive. Increasing physical activity levels, particularly among those most inactive, is a public health priority. Peer-led physical activity interventions may offer a m...