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Comparison of social variables for understanding physical activity in adolescent girls
Ruth P Saunders1, Robert W Motl, Marsha Dowda
1Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA. rsaunders@sc.edu
Objective:
To evaluate social support and theory of planned behavior (TPB) constructs in explaining physical activity in adolescent girls.
Methods:
One thousand seven hundred ninety-seven 8th-grade girls completed a survey measuring social provisions, family support, TPB constructs, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), and team sport involvement (TSI).
Results:
Structural equation modeling (SEM) indicated statistically significant direct effects from TPB constructs and social provisions to intention; social provisions, family support, and intention to MVPA; and social provisions and family support to TSI.
Conclusions:
Social variables play a greater role in explaining TSI than in explaining MVPA in this sample.
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