ERIC Number: EJ915168
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2006-Dec
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0268-1153
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Taking Part Counts: Adolescents' Experiences of the Transition from Inactivity to Active Participation in School-Based Physical Education
Brooks, Fiona; Magnusson, Josefine
Health Education Research, v21 n6 p872-883 Dec 2006
Identifying ways to increase and sustain active living among young people represents a priority for health promotion interventions. This qualitative study explored the experiences of adolescent boys and girls in the United Kingdom (aged 14-15 years) who had made the transition from inactivity to active participation in physical education (PE). The setting was a secondary school that had modified the PE programme, with the aim of increasing participation rates. Thirty-one, self-identified, formerly "PE adverse" students were interviewed in focus groups in the school setting. Previously, respondents felt that they had been constructed as physically marginal individuals. Having a physically "marginal body" was perceived as being detrimental to emotional health. The new PE resulted in respondents possessing a performing and achieving physical identity. Boys gained a sense of security in their physical identity and cultural change had removed the aggression from interacting with other physically active peers. Girls spoke of increased self-confidence, including acquiring the psychological resources to participate in community-based activities. Effective health promotion interventions for inactive adolescents are likely to move beyond solely endorsing the benefits of physical activity or increasing choice and instead address the potential emotional risks and value of participation from the adolescents' perspective.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Physical Education, Physical Activities, Health Promotion, Females, Focus Groups, Mental Health, Adolescents, Males, Secondary School Students, Attitude Change, Health Behavior, Health Education, Child Health, Adolescent Attitudes, Intervention, Program Effectiveness, Student Attitudes, Affective Behavior
Oxford University Press. Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP, UK. Tel: +44-1865-353907; Fax: +44-1865-353485; e-mail: jnls.cust.serv@oxfordjournals.org; Web site: http://her.oxfordjournals.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A