Increasing children’s voluntary physical activity outside of school hours through targeting social cognitive theory variables

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: James J. Annesi, Kennesaw State University; Stephanie Walsh, Emory University; Brittney L. Greenwood, YMCA of Metro Atlanta
• Language: English
• Date: 2016-10-01
• Publisher: SAGE Journals
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © The Author(s) 2016.
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2150131916656177
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Journal of Primary Care and Community Health
• Volume: 7
• Issue: 4
• Start Page: 234
• End Page: 241
• Grant/Funding Information: The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
• Keywords: social cognitive; Schools; Male; Humans; voluntary; Affect; Self Efficacy; Cognition; psychological; Child; youth; Female; Self-Control; Analysis of Variance; Case-Control Studies; Exercise; Motor Activity; physical activity
• Research Categories: Education, Physical; Psychology, Cognitive; Health Sciences, Human Development; Health Sciences, Public Health; Psychology, Developmental

Abstract

Introduction: Volume of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity completed during the elementary school day is insufficient, and associated with health risks. Improvements in theory-based psychosocial factors might facilitate increased out-of-school physical activity. Methods: A behaviorally based after-school care protocol, Youth Fit 4 Life, was tested for its association with increased voluntary, out-of-school physical activity and improvements in its theory-based psychosocial predictors in 9- to 12-year-olds. Results: Increases over 12 weeks in out-of-school physical activity, and improvements in self-regulation for physical activity, exercise self-efficacy, and mood, were significantly greater in the Youth Fit 4 Life group (n = 88) when contrasted with a typical care control group (n = 57). Changes in the 3 psychosocial variables significantly mediated the group–physical activity change relationship (R2 = .31, P < .001). Change in self-regulation was a significant independent mediator, and had a reciprocal relationship with change in out-of-school physical activity. In the Youth Fit 4 Life group, occurrence of 300 min/wk of overall physical activity increased from 41% to 71%. Conclusions: Targeting theory-based psychosocial changes within a structured after-school care physical activity program was associated with increases in children’s overall time being physically active. After replication, large scale application will be warranted.