Terminology for describing the 24-h cycle of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep: a scoping review

@article{balbim2026terminology,
  title = {{Terminology for describing the 24-h cycle of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep: a scoping review}},
  author = {Guilherme Balbim and Ryan Falck and Teresa Liu-Ambrose and Chuidan Kong and David Zimmon and Daniel Elesin and Cassandra D’amore and Jennifer Davis and Nucharapon Liangruenrom and Madeline Crowley and Natan Feter and Matthew Ahmadi and Francisco Ortega and Jairo Migueles and Jean-Philippe Chaput and Meijun Hou and Kaiqi Guan and George Thomas and Tahlia Alsop and Damian Mcclymont and Emmett Morgante and Rui Cao and Yujie Liu and Xun Luo and Zijun Liu and Connor Graham and Lauren Centeno Scherer and Maya Nagaishi and Linjing Zhou and Rebeca Hernández Gamboa and Yeon Soo Seo and Matthew Noseworthy and Liye Zou and Lora Giangregorio and Karen Spruyt and Sjaan Gomersall and Yiqun Gan and Robert Schinke and Shigeru Inoue and Takumi Abe and Yu-Kai Chang and Amy Shirong Lu and Åsa Tornberg and Frank Hookin Fu and Zhaowei Kong and Kirk Erickson and Ester Cerin and Ashleigh Smith and Jasper Schipperijn and Jannique van Uffelen and António Palmeira and Michelle Voss and David Dunstan and David Lubans and Linda Li and Jennifer Tomasone and Miao Miao and Keerthana Swaminathan and Varadayini Gorhe and Maurelle D’sa},
  journal = {International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity},
  year = {2026},
  month = aug,
  doi = {10.1186/s12966-026-01945-6},
  url = {https://hal.science/hal-05791074v1},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}

TY  - JOUR
TI  - Terminology for describing the 24-h cycle of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep: a scoping review
AU  - Guilherme Balbim
AU  - Ryan Falck
AU  - Teresa Liu-Ambrose
AU  - Chuidan Kong
AU  - David Zimmon
AU  - Daniel Elesin
AU  - Cassandra D’amore
AU  - Jennifer Davis
AU  - Nucharapon Liangruenrom
AU  - Madeline Crowley
AU  - Natan Feter
AU  - Matthew Ahmadi
AU  - Francisco Ortega
AU  - Jairo Migueles
AU  - Jean-Philippe Chaput
AU  - Meijun Hou
AU  - Kaiqi Guan
AU  - George Thomas
AU  - Tahlia Alsop
AU  - Damian Mcclymont
AU  - Emmett Morgante
AU  - Rui Cao
AU  - Yujie Liu
AU  - Xun Luo
AU  - Zijun Liu
AU  - Connor Graham
AU  - Lauren Centeno Scherer
AU  - Maya Nagaishi
AU  - Linjing Zhou
AU  - Rebeca Hernández Gamboa
AU  - Yeon Soo Seo
AU  - Matthew Noseworthy
AU  - Liye Zou
AU  - Lora Giangregorio
AU  - Karen Spruyt
AU  - Sjaan Gomersall
AU  - Yiqun Gan
AU  - Robert Schinke
AU  - Shigeru Inoue
AU  - Takumi Abe
AU  - Yu-Kai Chang
AU  - Amy Shirong Lu
AU  - Åsa Tornberg
AU  - Frank Hookin Fu
AU  - Zhaowei Kong
AU  - Kirk Erickson
AU  - Ester Cerin
AU  - Ashleigh Smith
AU  - Jasper Schipperijn
AU  - Jannique van Uffelen
AU  - António Palmeira
AU  - Michelle Voss
AU  - David Dunstan
AU  - David Lubans
AU  - Linda Li
AU  - Jennifer Tomasone
AU  - Miao Miao
AU  - Keerthana Swaminathan
AU  - Varadayini Gorhe
AU  - Maurelle D’sa
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/08/05
JO  - International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
DO  - 10.1186/s12966-026-01945-6
UR  - https://hal.science/hal-05791074v1
AB  - Background Physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep are three behaviours which occupy the 24-h cycle and interact to influence a multitude of health outcomes. Different terms are currently used to describe these behaviours collectively (e.g., movement behaviours or physical behaviours ). The lack of clear and consistent terminology makes it hard to compare, interpret, and build on research findings. As a first step towards developing consensus on what terminology to use for discussing the 24-h cycle of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep, we conducted a scoping review to identify the breadth of terminology used to describe this phenomenon. Methods All searches occurred between September 18th – 20th 2024. We searched nine databases: Medline, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycInfo, Web of Science, Scopus, ERIC, Education Source, and Compendex from inception to September 18th 2024. The Journal of Activity, Sedentary and Sleep Behaviors and the International Network of Time-Use Epidemiologists (INTUE) publication lists were manually searched on September 19th – 20th 2024. Peer-reviewed articles were included if they 1) were published in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Chinese, Korean, or Japanese; 2) focused on humans; and 3) describe physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep in an integrated manner. We identified different terminologies used for collectively discussing physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep across the 24-h cycle. Results Our search identified 10,749 articles of which 979 articles met our inclusion criteria. Across all articles, 199 different terms were used to describe physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep collectively. The term movement behaviours was used in 673 articles, 24-h movement behaviours was used in 457 articles, physical behaviours was used in 58 articles, 24-h activity cycle was used in 36 articles, and time-use behaviours was used in 31 articles. Conclusions The two most popular terms for describing the collective interaction of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep are movement behaviours and 24-h movement behaviours . However, there is not yet an internationally recognized and agreed-upon term for holistically describing the 24-h cycle of physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep. Developing a homogeneous and widely accepted set of terminology and definitions is thus critical if we hope to ensure clarity, enhance reproducibility, and enable the translation of future research into coherent guidelines, policies, and practices for these behaviours.
SN  - 1479-5868
ER  -