Physical Activity in Youth with Multiple Sclerosis receiving the ATOMIC intervention: Social connectedness above all...

Within the pediatric MS population, physical activity (PA) has been associated with positive health outcomes such as lower lesion and relapse rates (Grover et. al., 2015). Recently, associations between variables from a social-cognitive theory (SCT) and levels of PA in youth with multiple sclerosis have been reported (Sikes & Motl, 2020), suggesting a SCT-based intervention may be efficacious in changing PA. We developed and delivered a 12-week SCT-based intervention and sought to gain an understanding of youth's perspectives on PA over time.

We performed a qualitative analysis on 34 coaching call transcripts from 13 participants as part of a theory-based intervention promoting PA in youth with MS (NCT03137602). Coaching calls were semi-structured and each participant was scheduled to have three coaching calls spaced monthly for three months. We used an inductive content analysis approach to analyze the data (Elo and Kyngas, 2008).

General themes from the calls aligned with the SCT constructs. Youth consistently discussed facilitators for changing PA over time, including a positive attitude, goal setting and social connectedness. There was increasing conversation around PA barriers over time including the environment and a lack of time.

Youth perceptions on PA can be either positive or negative and can change over time. There is an underlying emergence and importance of social connectedness within PA behaviours. Increases in coaching call content related to goal setting suggest a positive effect of coaching and SCT in these areas. Future studies will focus on interactions between SCT constructs, particularly social connectedness and increased physical activity.