Objective and perceived availability of physical activity opportunities: differences in associations with physical activity behavior among urban adolescents.

Richard G Prins,Klazine Van Der Horst,Anke Oenema,Johannes Brug

doi:10.1186/1479-5868-6-70

Abstract

BackgroundThis study examined the associations of the perceived and objective environment with adolescent engagement in sports activities and walking and cycling in leisure time. It also explored the degree of agreement between objective and perceived availability of physical activity (PA) facilities in neighborhoods.MethodsCross-sectional data on physical activity, the perceived availability of physical activity opportunities (perceived physical environment) was assessed through a questionnaire and the objective availability of PA opportunities (objective physical environment) was obtained through GIS data. The final sample included 654 adolescents with a mean age of 14.1 (SD = 1.2) years.ResultsPerceived availability of sports facilities and parks was significantly associated with engaging in sports (OR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.16-2.56) and with walking and cycling in leisure time (OR: 1.66; 95% CI: 1.07-2.57) respectively. Agreement between objective and perceived environment was low to moderate with Kappa values ranging from -0.005 to 0.053.ConclusionThe perceived environment was the stronger correlate of PA behavior among adolescents. There were substantial differences between assessments of objective and perceived physical environment.

Highlights

This study examined the associations of the perceived and objective environment with adolescent engagement in sports activities and walking and cycling in leisure time
Associations of environmental factors with sports and with walking and cycling in leisure time Multivariate analyses (Table 2) show that adolescents who perceived that sports facilities were available in their neighborhood had higher odds to engage in sports activities more than three times a week (OR:1.7, 95% confidence intervals (CI): 1.22.6)
No associations were found between objective measures of the environment and sports or walking and cycling during leisure time

Summary

Introduction

This study examined the associations of the perceived and objective environment with adolescent engagement in sports activities and walking and cycling in leisure time. The health benefits of regular PA for adolescents include a lower risk of becoming overweight or obese [2,11], higher bone density [2,11], a lower risk of depression [2] and healthier cardiovascular risk profiles [11]. These benefits may be experienced earlier as well as later in life [12]. To be able to increase PA levels, it is important to develop interventions that target the most important determinants of PA

Methods

Results

Conclusion