Epidemiology Council

The ISPAH Epidemiology Council was formed in 2019, with the overarching aim to advance the science of physical activity epidemiology.

Since the 1990s, a range of new statistical approaches have been developed to improve causal inference in observational research and quantitatively estimate the impact of measurement error, exposure misclassification and selection bias on the results of observational studies. Physical activity epidemiology has not kept pace with these methodological advances.

Adapted from Can Stock Photo, ©

The Epidemiology Council will promote awareness and knowledge of contemporary causal inference and quantitative bias assessment methods.

It aims to:

Contribute to evidence-informed advocacy by helping to build a stronger and more robust evidence base to better inform public health guidelines.
Contribute to education of ISPAH members by facilitating training opportunities, hosting online webinars and journal clubs, and providing input into the biannual ISPAH Congress and associated workshops.
Build capacity by fostering the development of physical activity epidemiology internationally, by developing the Physical Activity Cohort Study Repository (PACE). This resource will facilitate researchers returning to existing cohort studies with multiple assessment time points and using contemporary causal inference methods to provide stronger evidence.

PACE Project

The Physical Activity Cohort Repository (PACe) project was initiated by the Epidemiology Council of International Society of Physical Activity (ISPAH). The project aims to create a central database of cohort studies that have prospectively collected data on physical activity and/or sedentary behaviour (self-report and/or device-based measurement) at two or more timepoints.

You can download the original protocol here and the revised protocol here.

We have chosen to publish this protocol on the ISPAH website for methodological transparency. This protocol was not eligible for publication on PROSPERO, as the project is not a systematic review of the effect of an exposure on an outcome.

Joining the Council

You can select to join The Epidemiology Council when joining or renewing your ISPAH membership. If you are already an ISPAH member and would like to be a member please go to your membership dashboard to join the council.

Terry Boyle

CO-CHAIR OF EPIDEMIOLOGY COUNCIL

Terry is Senior Lecturer in Cancer Epidemiology, Australian Centre for Precision Health, School of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide

Barbara Jefferis

CO-CHAIR OF EPIDEMIOLOGY COUNCIL

Barbara leads the Physical Activity Research Group (PARG) at University College London