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Relationships between maturity status, physical activity, and physical self-perceptions in primary school children
Stuart J Fairclough1, Nicola D Ridgers
1REACH Group, Faculty of Education, Community & Leisure, Liverpool John Moores University, Barkhill Road, Liverpool, UK. s.j.fairclough@ljmu.ac.uk
Journal of Sports Sciences
|December 17, 2009
Summary
Maturity status significantly impacts physical activity and self-perceptions in children. Advanced maturity boosts boys' self-perceptions, while it decreases girls', highlighting gender-specific effects.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Exercise Science
- Child Development
- Sports Psychology
Background:
- Understanding factors influencing physical activity and self-perception in children is crucial for promoting healthy lifestyles.
- Maturity status, a key developmental marker, may play a significant role in these aspects during childhood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the influence of maturity status on physical activity levels and physical self-perceptions in primary school children.
- To explore potential gender differences in the relationship between maturity status, physical activity, and self-perceptions.
Main Methods:
- 175 primary school children (10.6 ± 0.3 years) participated.
- Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was measured using ActiGraph accelerometers over five days.
- Maturity status was estimated using anthropometric measures, and data were analyzed using multi-level modeling.
Main Results:
- Boys exhibited higher physical activity and more favorable physical self-perceptions than girls, but these differences diminished when controlling for maturity status.
- Maturity status significantly influenced physical self-perceptions, with advanced maturity enhancing boys' perceptions while decreasing girls'.
- The interaction between gender and maturity status was significant for most physical self-perception sub-domains.
Conclusions:
- Maturity status is a critical factor that can explain or reduce observed gender differences in physical activity and physical self-perceptions among children.
- The findings suggest that maturity status differentially affects boys' and girls' physical self-perceptions, underscoring the need for gender-specific considerations in interventions.
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