Ambiguous effect of healthy lifestyle promotion on behavioral health indicators of students
- Authors: Zhuravleva I.V.1
-
Affiliations:
- Federal Center of Theoretical and Applied Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences
- Issue: Vol 24, No 3 (2025)
- Pages: 161-171
- Section: MEDICAL SOCIOLOGICAL STUDIES
- URL: https://journals.rcsi.science/1728-2810/article/view/363341
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.17816/socm688105
- EDN: https://elibrary.ru/YDVFXZ
- ID: 363341
Cite item
Abstract
The healthy lifestyle (HLS) concept has been extensively promoted over the past 10 years to improve public health. However, this did not result in the consistent improvement of the behavioral indicators in young people. This fact may open a discussion about the effectiveness of this concept implementation in some cities. The paper presents a comparative study of students’ attitudes towards health in cities with a population of over one million (Nizhny Novgorod and Ufa) in 2009–2023 in the context of existing healthy lifestyle promotion systems.
This work aimed to analyze the effectiveness of healthy lifestyle promotion in two cities (regions) in 2009–2023 based on behavioral health parameters of students to identify possible areas for improvement. To achieve the aim, both studies, Student Health (2009, n = 4850) and Digital Transformation in the Life of Students (2023, n = 10,360), used customized questions developed by the Section of Social Health Problems of the Institute of Sociology of the Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The data were processed using SPSS Statistics 22.
A comparison of statistics and information for the two cities with the surveys shows minor changes in students’ self-assessment of health and variable behavioral indicators (physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, search for information on a healthy lifestyle). The importance of a subject aimed at raising awareness of health in the university curriculum has slightly changed with a negative trend in both cities.
A study of the effectiveness of healthy lifestyle promotion based on a behavioral analysis of students over a 14-year period does not provide grounds for concluding that health promotion in these cities is successful. However, the findings of the two studies may not be decisive for a comprehensive assessment of all healthy lifestyle promotion activities in these regions. The obtained data may be used to facilitate a deeper study of this process. An obvious promising area is encouraging the population to lead a healthy lifestyle by developing a health culture since the childhood in the general education system.
About the authors
Irina V. Zhuravleva
Federal Center of Theoretical and Applied Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Author for correspondence.
Email: zhuriv@mail.ru
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-7758-3940
SPIN-code: 7626-8611
Dr. Sci. (Sociology), Professor
Russian Federation, MoscowReferences
- Nikiforov GS, Dudchenko ZF. The concept of a healthy lifestyle: the history of the formation. Scientific notes journal of St. Petersburg state institute of psychology and social work. 2017;27(1):99–106. EDN: YTXPCB
- Petrash MD, Murtazina IR. The definition of "healthy lifestyle" in psychological research. Vestnik of Saint Petersburg University. Psychology. 2018;8(2):152–165. doi: 10.21638/11701/spbu16.2018.204 EDN: XSKASL
- Students' Health: A Sociological Analysis. Zhuravleva IV, Ivanova LYu, Ivakhnenko GA, et al., editors. Moscow: INFRA-M Publishing House; 2014. 272 p. (In Russ.) doi: 10.12737/735 ISBN: 978-5-16-009142-6 EDN: UFEITN
- Licina D. Negative health behavior, a personal responsibility or not? US Army Med Dep J. 2012:14–18. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/231175980_Negative_health_behavior_a_personal_responsibility_or_not
- Leichter HM. "Evil habits" and "personal choices": assigning responsibility for health in the 20th century. Milbank Q. 2003;81(4):603–626. doi: 10.1046/j.0887-378X.2003.00296.x EDN: EUILNV
- Oussova EV, Popovich MV, Manshina AV, Drapkina OM. Responsibility of citizens for their health (focus group research). Part 1. Russian journal of preventive medicine and public health. 2021;(1):35–43. doi: 10.17116/profmed20212401135 EDN: ZYXINF
- Ivakhnenko GA. History of student health research in Russia: sociological analysis. Sociology of medicine. 2021;20(1):21–28. doi: 10.17816/1728-2810-20-1-23 EDN: QTLNPG
- Puzanova ZhV, Tertyshnikova AG. Special aspects of Russian student”s lifestyle and attitude to health (evidence from the Moscow State University and udn university). Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya. 2017;(8(401)):88–94. doi: 10.7868/S0132162517080104 EDN: ZGOXSD
- Reshetnikov AV, Prisyazhnaya NV, Reshetnikov VA, Achkasov EE. GTO system in perception of medical university students of Russia. Teoriya i pracktika fizicheskoy kultury. 2020;(8):64–65. EDN: AVIZEG
- Tautiev TV, Tkachenko YuA. Student’s health care as an important direction of activity of a modern university. Nauchnaya mysl'. 2019;6(2):30–35. Available from: http://www.sced.ru/ru/index.php?Itemid=15&id=39&option=com_content&view=category
- Reshetnikov AV, Prisyajnaya NV, Reshetnikov VA, Efimov IA. The features of healthy life-style perception by students of medical universities. Problems of social hygiene, public health and history of medicine. 2018;26(4):201–206. doi: 10.32687/0869-866X-2018-26-201-206 EDN: YOVEKT
- Maksimova TM. Current state, trends and prospective assessments of population health. Moscow: PER SE; 2002. 192 p. (In Russ.) ISBN: 5-9292-0060-2
- Kozyreva PM, Smirnov AI. Russian citizens' health self-assessment dynamics: relevant trends of the post-soviet era. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya. 2020;(4):70–81. doi: 10.31857/S013216250009116-0 EDN: MLJZHL
- Bolliger LV, Varykhanova KV, Marchukova SF. Psychology of professional activity: a textbook. Irkutsk: Izd-vo Irkutskogo gosudarstvennogo tekhnicheskogo universiteta; 2012. (In Russ.)
Supplementary files

