Concept Analysis of Relatedness in Physical Activity Among Adolescents

This analysis seeks to clarify the concept of relatedness in physical activity (PA) among adolescents.

Health-related behavior research highlights the importance of focusing on individual psychological needs such as relatedness in PA to improve adolescents' motivation toward PA. Although relatedness in PA has been associated with PA participation among adolescents, a thorough analysis of the concept is lacking. Conceptual clarification of relatedness in the context of PA is needed for promoting consistency between conceptual and operational definitions and refining empirical measurement.

The 6-steps of Rodgers' (2000) evolutionary method of concept analysis was used to analyze the data and identify attributes, surrogate/related terms, antecedents, and consequences of the relatedness concept.

Several databases were used to extract relevant articles. A total of 113 were identified. Forty articles met the inclusion criteria. In addition, twenty-six articles were included through other sources. The review process yielded a final set of 66 articles.

A refined definition of relatedness in PA is an adolescent's perception of feeling socially connected with significant people in a reciprocal, caring, and trusting relationship that is a self-system process and promotes a sense of belonging and internalization within PA contexts. Attributes, surrogate/related terms, antecedents and consequences of relatedness in PA were identified from extant literature.

This comprehensive analysis provides a clarification of the conceptual definition of relatedness in PA among adolescents. The concept can guide nurses in designing interventions to improve health behavior or promoting changes in health policy. Future research is needed to refine operational definitions of relatedness so that they represent the defining attributes of the concept.