Mediating Effects of Self-Efficacy, Benefits and Barriers on the Association between Peer and Parental Factors and Physical Activity among Adolescent Girls with a Lower Educational Level.
BACKGROUND
The prevalence of physical activity among lower educated adolescent girls is low, suggesting it is important to have insights into the complex processes that may underlie their physical activity levels. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the mediating effects of self-efficacy, perceived benefits and barriers on the associations between peer and parental variables and physical activity among lower educated adolescent girls.


METHODS
In total, 226 girls (mean age 16.0±1.0 years; 53% technical education; 47% vocational education) from a convenience sample of 6 secondary schools in Flanders, Belgium, completed a questionnaire on their total physical activity level and related peer and parental variables (i.e. modeling of physical activity, co-participation in physical activities and encouragement to be active) and personal variables (i.e. self-efficacy to be active, and specific perceived benefits of physical activity and specific barriers to be active). Mediating effects were tested using MacKinnon's product-of-coefficients test based on multilevel linear regression analyses.


RESULTS
Higher peer and parental modeling, co-participation and encouragement were significantly related to a higher physical activity level among adolescent girls (p<0.05). Self-efficacy, the perceived benefits of having fun, being around friends or meeting new people, and not being bored and the perceived barrier of not liking physical activity mediated several associations between peer and parental variables and girls' physical activity, with some of the mediated proportions exceeding 60%.


CONCLUSIONS
This study contributed to a better understanding of the complexity of how parental and peer factors work together with personal factors to influence the physical activity levels of adolescent girls with a lower educational level. Interventions should involve both peers and parents, as they may influence girls' physical activity both directly and indirectly through the internalisation of several personal variables, such as self-efficacy to be active and the perceived benefit of having fun.
Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.|Research Foundation (FWO), Brussels, Belgium.
Maite
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9048-3821
M
Verloigne
Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
Greet
G
Cardon
Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
Marieke
M
De Craemer
Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.|Research Foundation (FWO), Brussels, Belgium.
Sara
S
D'Haese
Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
Ilse
I
De Bourdeaudhuij
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D001530:Belgium; D001828:Body Image / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends / Q000523:psychology; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D055361:Multilevel Analysis; D010290:Parents / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology; D010379:Peer Group; D012574:Schools; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012938:Social Perception; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires