Racial discrimination as a sociocultural barrier to leisure-based physical activity among West African immigrant children: proposing an adaptation model

ABSTRACT

Racism is a determining factor for health disparities and has an impact on leisure-based physical activity, particularly for recent immigrants adapting to socio-environmental systems in a host country. The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of the sociocultural environment on active living among African adolescent children and further explore related pre- and post-migration experiences. Using purposive sampling, parents and children from Western-African families were interviewed. A constructivist grounded theory was used to create an adaptation model, which portrayed an idealized representation of internal, external, and transitional factors shaping physical activity engagement and opportunities of the children’s active living. The adaptation model demonstrated the role of structural external factors such as perceived discrimination on leisure participation, with an interconnection with intrinsic motivation and resiliency, while elucidating the moderating effect of transitional factors such as cultural adaptations between pre- and post-migration experiences.

Résumé

Le racisme est un facteur déterminant des disparités en matière de santé et a une incidence sur l’activité physique de loisir, en particulier pour les immigrants récents qui s’adaptent aux systèmes socio-environnementaux du pays d’accueil. L’objectif de cette étude était de mieux comprendre l’incidence de l’environnement socioculturel sur la vie active des adolescents africains, et d’explorer plus en profondeur les expériences avant et après la migration. En procédant à un échantillonnage dirigé, des parents et des enfants issus de familles d’Afrique de l’Ouest ont été interrogés. Une théorie ancrée constructiviste a été utilisée pour créer un modèle d’adaptation, qui présente une représentation idéalisée des facteurs internes, externes et de transition qui façonnent la participation à l’activité physique et les possibilités de vie active des enfants. Le modèle d’adaptation a démontré le rôle des facteurs structurels externes tels que la discrimination perçue sur la participation aux loisirs, avec une interconnexion avec la motivation et la résilience intrinsèques, tout en élucidant l’effet modérateur des facteurs de transition tels que les adaptations culturelles entre les expériences avant et après la migration.

KEYWORDS:

• Racism
• leisure-based physical activity
• African immigrant children
• adaptation model

Mots-clés:

• Racisme
• activité physique de loisir
• enfants immigrants africains
• modèle d’adaptation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Regina.

Notes on contributors

Oluwasegun B. Hassan

Dr. Oluwasegun B. Hassan teaches in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Health Studies at the University of Regina. He is also a Senior Performance Measurement Specialist with the Government of Saskatchewan.

Twyla Salm

Dr. Twyla Salm is a full professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Regina. Her research focuses on teaching and learning in higher education, with specific interests in developing the professional educator, socially just health education, and curriculum studies.

Daniel Kikulwe

Dr. Daniel Kikulwe is an associate professor at the School of Social Work, York University. His area of academic interest is in child welfare practices, policies, families, and immigration. Other areas of research interests relate to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children and its applicability to the global south, as well as kinship care trends in Canada.

M. Rebecca Genoe

Dr. Rebecca M. Genoe is a professor in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Health Studies at the University of Regina.

Shanthi Johnson

Dr. Shanthi Johnson is Vice President – Research and Innovation and Professor (Human Kinetics) at the University of Windsor. Previously, she served as the Dean of the School of Public Health, University of Alberta. Her community-engaged research program focusses on falls/injury prevention, aging in place in rural communities, and social isolation among immigrant and refugee seniors.