Date Approved
2020
Degree Type
Open Access Senior Honors Thesis
Department or School
Health Promotion and Human Performance
First Advisor
Andrew Cornett
Second Advisor
Christopher Herman
Third Advisor
Christopher Herman
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not athletes are able to self-report accurate, unbiased height and weight. Fifty-seven Eastern Michigan University athletes and forty EMU non-athlete students volunteered for this study. After completing an informed consent, the participants filled out an online questionnaire in which they self-reported their heights and weights. Then, a member of the research team measured the participants’ heights and weights in a private room. Paired samples t-tests were used to compare the self-reported heights and weights to the measured values. Results were categorized by sport, gender and body size of the participants. This study provides evidence that competitive athletes are capable of self-reporting accurate heights and weights. However, the athletes in this sample consistently reported being taller and lighter than they actually were. There was not a significant difference between the self-reporting bias of athletes and non-athletes for height, weight, or BMI.
Recommended Citation
Hausch, Jacob, "Accuracy of self-reported height and weight in collegiate athletes" (2020). Senior Honors Theses and Projects. 689.
https://commons.emich.edu/honors/689