Citation

Stanley RM, Boshoff K, Dollman J. J. Phys. Act. Health 2013; 10(1): 33-41.

Affiliation

School of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Human Kinetics Publishers)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

22397802

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The after school period is potentially a "critical window" for promoting physical activity in children. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore children's perceptions of the factors influencing their engagement in physical activity during the after school period as the first phase in the development of a questionnaire. METHODS: Fifty four South Australian children aged 10-13 years participated in same gender focus groups. Transcripts, field notes and activity documents were analysed using content analysis. Through an inductive thematic approach, data were coded and categorised into perceived barriers and facilitators according to a social ecological model. RESULTS: Children identified a number of factors, including: safety in the neighbourhood and home settings; distance to and from places; weather; availability of time; perceived competence; enjoyment of physical activity; peer influence; and parent influence. New insights into bullying and teasing by peers and fear of dangerous animals and objects were revealed by the children. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, hearing children's voices allowed the emergence of factors which may not be exposed using existing surveys. These findings are grounded in children's perceptions and therefore serve as a valuable contribution to the existing literature, potentially leading to improved intervention and questionnaire design.

Language: en