Women Undergraduate Students’ Perceptions of Father Involvement and the Connection to Physical Activity

ABSTRACT

Female physical activity (PA) declines significantly over the lifespan, and women in college do not meet PA recommendations. Father-daughter research focuses on psychological outcomes, but PA research is limited. Using a socio-ecological framework, the current study examines undergraduate female students’ perceptions of father involvement and the association with current PA behaviors. One hundred twenty undergraduate female students aged 18–25 attending a mid-Atlantic university volunteered to participate in the study. Data were collected via demographic questionnaire and Finley and Schwartz’s Father Involvement Scale; Fitbit^TM activity trackers measured PA. Descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, and multiple regression aided in data analyses. Father involvement was high, but only 22% of participants met PA step count recommendations for optimal health (≥10,000/day). Women in the highest PA father involvement group had higher PA than those in the lowest PA father involvement group; however, results were non-significant (t= −1.9, p= .07). Daughters report high father involvement rates and active engagement, but the multiple regression analysis did not associate father involvement with PA outcomes. Trends suggest that fathers influence their daughters’ PA; however, further exploration is needed.

KEYWORDS:

• Father impact
• female physical activity
• father-daughter dyads
• father-daughter relationships
• cross-gendered physical activity promotion

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.