Correlates Among Younger Children
Among young children (* 3 – 8 years), several factors are consistently associated
with physical activity: (1) sex—boys are more active than girls; (2) parental
physical activity—children with active parents are more likely to be active;
(3) parental involvement—if parents are active with their children, the children will
more likely be active; and (4) time outdoors (not considered in the systematic
reviews)—time spent outdoors is positively associated with physical activity. Given
variation in living conditions, factors which influence opportunities for outdoor play
are relevant for physical activity. Among preschool children, the odds of going
outdoors to play were higher for boys than girls, higher when there were three or
more playmates, and also higher when parents were active. On the other hand, the
odds of going outdoors to play were lower for girls, for children whose mothers
were working, and for children of Asian, Black, and Hispanic compared to White
mothers (Tandon et al. 2012 ).
There is a need for study of the role of siblings and peers, day care and preschool
attendance, and caregivers/teachers as factors affecting physical activity among
young children. Children enrolled in head start, for example, spent 63 min per day
outdoors (Tandon et al. 2013 ), but only 58% of children not enrolled in day care
went outdoors daily (Tandon et al. 2012 ).
Correlates Among Adolescents
Major factors positively affecting physical activity among adolescents 13–18 years
included (1) sex—boys were more likely to be active than girls; (2) history of
physical activity—those active as children were more likely to be active as ado-
lescents; (3) access to sports, both formal and informal—youth involved in sport
were more likely to be active; (4) parental and peer support—youth with more
support were more likely to be active; (5) self-efficacy—youth with higher
self-concept, perceived competence, motivation, achievement orientation, etc., were
more likely to be active (Sallis et al. 2000 ; Van der Horst et al. 2007 ). On the other
hand, age, non-White ethnicity, barriers to activity, and time spent sedentary after
school or on weekends were negative correlates of physical activity among
adolescents.
The fact that individuals with a history of physical activity during childhood are
more likely to be active as adolescents relate to the tracking of activity. Tracking
refers to the tendency of individuals to maintain their rank or position within a
group over time (Malina2001a,b). Estimates of tracking require longitudinal
observations for at least two points in time. Relationships between physical activity
during childhood and activity in adolescence, as well as tracking of activity during
adolescence, tend to be moderate at best (Malina2001a,b,c). The associations
should be viewed in the context of different meanings attached to activity by
82 R.M. Malina et al.