Barriers to physical activity in Spanish adolescents: gender differences

Given the concerning levels of physical inactivity among adolescents, particularly girls, the aim of this study was to identify gender differences in perceived barriers to physical activity (PA). A representative sample of 3,159 secondary school students in Spain (1,580 girls and 1,579 boys; mean age = 13.7 ± 0.7 years) completed the Perceived Barriers Scale to PA. The structure of the scale was examined to ensure its suitability for this population. While the original version included four types of barriers, two of them (contextual and safety) were found to be closely related. These were therefore combined into a single "environmental barriers" category, resulting in a revised model that fit the data well. The analysis showed that girls perceived more temporal and intrapersonal barriers to PA than boys. Additionally, regardless of gender, students who did not participate in extracurricular physical activities reported higher levels of all three types of barriers. These findings suggest that promotion strategies should pay special attention to the challenges faced by girls and less active adolescents in order to foster greater equity in physical activity.