In the shoes of young adolescent girls: understanding physical activity experiences through interpretive description

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to understand how adolescent girls experience and make meaning of the ways in which they are active within their daily lives. Using an interpretive description methodology, we conducted two rounds of interviews with eight 6th grade girls and asked them to share their stories, thoughts and feelings about times when they were active. Two themes best captured their stories: physical activity lets girl’s shine and taking care of myself, inside and out. Dominant societal discourses around health and appearance emerged in the construction and expression of girls’ experiences and were woven through each of these themes. Consistent with previous research, health was largely defined as a narrowly defined bodily aesthetic. However, in girls’ experiential accounts of actually being active, discourses of self-expression and creativity emerged. Unstructured play that occurred in girls’ free time and dance appeared as important forums, which allowed girls to engage in activities they enjoyed and explore their physicality.

Keywords:

• qualitative
• interviews
• youth
• social environment