Factors influencing Cypriot children's physical activity levels

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present selected findings from a larger study, which set out to examine the physical activity levels of Cypriot primary school children and determinants of their activity. Twenty parents of children who obtained high and low activity scores based on pedometer counts and self-reports scores were interviewed. By comparing data obtained from parents of children with high activity scores with the data obtained from parents of children with low activity scores, conclusions were drawn regarding influences of physical activity. Factors considered by parents to influence their children's physical activity levels included experiences from sports club attendance, parental participation in physical activity with their child, time spent in sedentary pursuits, availability of friends of similar age in the neighbourhood, and availability of safe space in the neighbourhood. Results from this study may be used to inform intervention programmes for promoting children's physical activity levels.

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the headteachers of the participating schools and to the parents that devoted their valuable time for the interviews. This paper is dedicated to the memory of my uncle, Mr. Christos Papas, a headteacher in one of the participating schools.