An important review paper by Folkins and Sime (1981) went beyond stating the claim that exercise enhances psychological functioning. They showed how fitness training has a specific beneficial effect on mood, performance at work, cognitive function, and overall self-concept; yet another term to set alongside those of self-efficacy and self-esteem. These authors were quite critical of research that merely examines differences between fit and unfit individuals, but applauded that which compares psychological changes as a concomitant of pre- and post-training. However, they believed that the best studies are those in which psychological change is compared alongside those of physical fitness and high-lighted the need for investigations which do not generate results that are confounded by a range of variables such as sampling procedures, social support, and interventions other than specifically-prescribed fitness programmes.
While there is a considerable amount of research clearly describing the widespread inactivity of adults, the evidence base concerning the nature and scope of physical activity among children and young people is weaker. Psychosocial and environmental factors associated with physical activity in young people have been documented in a number of quantitative investigations (Wold and Hendry, 1998). There have been a number of more qualitative studies of young people and physical activity, examining perceptions, beliefs and attitudes among other variables, but the majority of studies to date have tended to focus on involvement in exercise and sport, rather than physical activity as more broadly defined.
It would appear that, on the whole, children and young people enjoy being in a team, playing with friends and engaging in sports at which they feel competent. The most commonly reported benefits of physical activity are health and fitness, as well as helping to keep in shape. Friendship groups may have an important role to play in encouraging participation in sports and exercise. It has been observed that sport is often just one feature of belonging to a group and being with friends is often considered more important than the sport itself. Boyfriends have, however, been reported as having a negative influence on the sport and leisure activities of young women.
Young people’s enjoyment of group physical activities could be exploited as a promotional tool to less active young people. However, the use of group activities enjoyed by a particular gender and age group is an important consideration, for example in organised dance or trampolining activities for young women, and football and basketball sessions for young men. Young people also prefer to take part in less structured activities, often valuing spontaneity and greater autonomy and choice in decision making.
Young people’s involvement in physical activity is clearly influenced by a variety of factors. Central among these are the experiences and attitudes of parents, peers and teachers, the opportunities made available at school and in the community. Because the determinants of young people’s involvement in physical activity are complex, and vary over time, programmes and interventions to encourage higher levels of participation should ideally be multi-levelled and differentiated according to factors such as gender and age. Furthermore, without an understanding of how conceptions of “femininity” and “masculinity” make it logical for a substantial number of young women to lose interest in school-based physical activities by late adolescence, and a substantial number of young men to remain committed to them, any successful re-orientation of existing programmes and activities will be difficult to achieve.
It was assumed that personal self-perceptions would be significantly and positively correlated with sport/exercise. Furthermore, the competence-based sub-domains of sport/athletic competence, physical condition competence and strength competence, along with the domain of physical self-worth, were expected to show the strongest relationships. No significant positive relationships were expected between competence-based personal self-perceptions and lifestyle moderate intensity physical activity frequencies. All of these outcomes occurred when the group was assessed as a whole.
The characteristics of this sample are highly specific in respect to age and geo-cultural background. This, in combination with the paucity of studies that have examined the relationship between personal self-perceptions and different activity types, means that findings should be generalised with caution. However, despite the need for further research, this study has demonstrated the importance of considering different activity contexts, given that variations were found in the relationship between personal self perception, sport/exercise and lifestyle moderate intensity physical activity. Indeed, differentiating between activity types was a strength of the study, in contrast to others in the area which have only examined the relationship between personal self perceptions and moderate intensity physical activity per se.
In addition to examining perceived parental influence, this investigation sought to explore the self-perceptions of athletes. Female athletes who had higher expectations and placed greater importance on doing well at the tournament exhibited higher levels of confidence than those female athletes who had lower expectations and placed less importance on doing well. This finding demonstrates that self-expectancies paralleled perceived parental expectancies in their relationship to confidence. However, individual perceptions of the importance of success and perceived parental importance of success differed in their relationship with confidence and anxiety. Specifically self-perceptions of the importance of success were not subject to the evaluative effects of parental views of importance and therefore were not associated with cognitive anxiety.
The present findings hold implications for theory. The results extend information on barriers to activity participation to include the perceptions of early adolescents into a knowledge base that heretofore has included data gathered primarily from late adolescents and adult populations. Additionally, the present results may prove useful in examinations of the influence of others on future leisure activity involvement. Rather than assume that social agency is limited to parental influence and ‘s always positive, it may be useful to investigate further the role of others–peers and non-parental adults–as well as the negative influence of parents on youth as they progress through adolescence. The results reported in this study suggest that of the various social agents, parental influence is apparent among early adolescents in the decision not to join activities. Although differences among those moving through early adolescence do exist, the study showed a relatively internally homogeneous group relative to the perception of parental influence on the decision to join new activities. Parental influence decreases as one moves into adolescence. The effects of various social agents appear to entwine as a child matures, with no singular influence being dominant upon entrance into the high school years.
The present research findings may also have practical utility by providing activity programmers with insight into how early adolescents perceive the influence of others in their decisions not to participate. Activity involvement is considered a key element in the maturation process. Participation in activities is primarily to have fun and learn new skills (Ewing & Seefeldt, 1991). Peer activities provide opportunities for shared interests, a sense of accomplishment and belonging, personal identity and mastery over the environment. Those who are encouraged to derive satisfaction solely from vicarious, solitary, passive pursuits (e.g., television, reading) may suffer as adults because they were denied the opportunity to fulfill a need for the optimal arousal and incongruity present in many organized, peer-centered activities.
Although parental influence is often positive in the socialization of youth and early adolescents, applied research might consider methods to mediate the potentially negative influence of parents (e.g., discouraging participation in activities because of a personal dislike for participation; keeping youth away from other youth of different cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds; discouraging participation in any form of competitive activities; stereotyping activities by gender based on personal beliefs) through educational efforts. For example, an experimental study might examine the effects of a parents’ fact sheet distributed in conjunction with membership application forms. Such a sheet, it might be hypothesized, could allay parental concerns relative to areas tangential to involvement such as transportation, injury prevention, financial assistance, and the importance of participation in the maturation process. Similarly, the effects of leaders on decisions not to participate might be examined relative to various levels of training provided for leaders prior to their contact with youth. In addition, research could focus on the specific types of social agent constraints perceived by youth as influences on their leisure behaviors. Emphasis might focus on what these constraints are and how are they manifested.
Descriptive Profile of the Respondents
Method
Materials
Design and Procedure
Results
Discussion
Social influence, particularly that of parents, has been proposed as a critical element in the development achievement related choices and performance.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment