Reliability and validity of a physical activity questionnaire in children

Abstract

Background: valid and appropriate assessment of physical activity in children is still needed. Aim: to determine the test–retest reliability and validity of the Arabic version of the Questionnaire l'Activite Physique en Altitude Chez les Enfants. Methods: Population: 6- to 9-year-old children were recruited in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. Reliability: questionnaire was administered twice, 3 weeks apart. Intraclass correlation coefficients and 95% confidence interval calculated. Validity: comparison between the questionnaire and pedometer. Spearman's correlation coefficients were calculated. Bland–Altman method was used to detect potential bias. Results: a fair-to-good reliability was found, with the highest values for running during breaks at school and total active time during weekdays. No significant difference between the two measurements was observed. The validity was acceptable for total active time during weekdays. Discussion: for the first time, a questionnaire was identified as very promising to assess physical activity in Arabic children.

Keywords::

• validation
• questionnaire
• pedometer
• youth

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their sincere appreciation to the Universal Private School in Al Ain for its collaboration.

Declaration of interest: No financial disclosures were reported by the authors of this paper. The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.