Multi-actor support received by children for physical activity: hearing children's voices

Area of Science:

• Child Development
• Sports Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Childhood physical activity (PA) levels are insufficient, necessitating research into factors influencing engagement.
• Children's perspectives on support for PA are under-researched, despite support's critical role.
• Understanding support dynamics is crucial for promoting lifelong physical activity habits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the sources, extent, and types of support children perceive for their physical activity (PA).
• To investigate how different support actors and styles influence children's engagement in PA.
• To identify patterns of support that are reinforcing or detrimental to children's PA.

Main Methods:

• Mixed-methods approach combining local interviews (n=36) and surveys (local n=114, national n=1765) with 11-year-old children in Finland.
• Utilized accelerometer data to characterize the physical activity levels of interview participants.
• Data collection occurred between 2021 and 2022.

Main Results:

• Children receive support from multiple sources, including parents, teachers, coaches, and friends.
• Support styles range from coercive to enabling, participatory, and encouraging.
• The combination of support from various actors can be reinforcing, remedial, or destructive, depending on its nature and the child's experience.

Conclusions:

• Shared responsibility and congruent support strategies are essential for fostering positive PA experiences in children.
• Interventions should aim to reinforce positive support and mitigate destructive combinations.
• Coordinated efforts among support providers can enhance children's sustained engagement in physical activity.