No abstract

Grounded in self-determination theory and achievement goal theory, this quasi-experimental study evaluated the effectiveness of a teaching intervention programme to improve predisposition towards physical education based on developing a task-oriented motivational climate and supporting basic psychological needs. The final sample consisted of 35 secondary education students, aged 15–17 ( M age = 15.35, SD = 0.49), divided into two groups: control ( n = 15) and experimental ( n = 20). The intervention programme was applied in the experimental group to 12 acrosport unit lessons based on motivational strategies by means of TARGET areas (i.e. Task, authority, recognition, grouping, evaluation and time). Firstly, the experimental group obtained significantly higher values in perceived support of the basic psychological needs and in the perceived task-oriented motivational climate in the acrosport unit. Secondly, this intervention was effective in generating a significant increase in predisposition towards physical education in the experimental group. Noteworthy is the need to generate interventions in different content areas that may improve students’ predisposition towards physical education, which could contribute to them adopting a more active lifestyle.

A pesar de que la inactividad física está reconocida como un importante factor que contribuye al incremento de los niveles de obesidad y de otros problemas de salud, la mayoría de niños y adolescentes de las sociedades occidentales no realizan suficiente actividad física, para llegar a generar beneficios para su salud. El centro escolar representa una oportunidad para promocionar la actividad física, porque los niños permanecen gran parte de su tiempo en él. Para muchos escolares, las clases de Educación Física suponen el único momento a lo largo de la semana, en el que realizan práctica de actividad física. Tradicionalmente se ha considerado a la Educación Física como un área privilegiada en la promoción de la actividad física, bien de una manera directa, contribuyendo a la acumulación diaria de actividad física recomendada, bien de forma indirecta, promoviendo la actividad física fuera del centro escolar, a través del desarrollo de actitudes y competencias que permitan incorporar la conducta hacer práctica de actividad física, en el estilo de vida del individuo. Este artículo supone una reflexión sobre las relaciones entre la Educación Física y la promoción de la actividad física, analizando por un lado, el papel que debe jugar nuestra área que quizá deba estar más preocupada por atender aquellos aspectos motivacionales que favorezcan la adherencia a la práctica de actividad física presente y futura, y por otro, el rol del profesor de Educación Física, como facilitador y promotor de un estilo de vida activo y saludable, en coherencia con el modelo pedagógico de Educación Física y Salud.Abstract. Although physical inactivity is recognized as an important factor contributing to rising levels of obesity and other health problems, the majority of children and adolescents in Western societies do not get enough physical activity to generate health benefits. The school setting represents an opportunity to promote physical activity, because children spend much of their time in it. For many students, the Physical Education lessons represent the only time during the week in which they perform physical activity. It has traditionally been considered that physical education as a privileged area for the promotion of physical activity, in a direct way, contributing to the daily accumulation of physical activity recommended, and indirectly, promoting physical activity outside school, through the development of attitudes and skills which can help incorporate physical activity behavior in the lifestyle of the individual. This article is a reflection on the relationship between physical education and the promotion of physical activity, analyzing, first, the role to be played by our field that may need to be more concerned with addressing those motivational aspects that promote adherence to physical activity in the present and the future, and secondly, the role of the physical education teacher, as facilitator and promoter of an active, healthy lifestyle, consistent with the pedagogical model of Physical Education and health.

The purpose of the study is to comparatively test the expectancy-value model in Chilean and Spanish samples. The model proposes: a social world (composed of social support, physical activity teasing, and weight teasing), expectancy (composed of perceived competence and appearance), task values (composed of enjoyment and stress) to predict physical activity and intention to be physically active. Participants were 497 (Chilean) and 1365 (Spanish) adolescents. Structural equation models and multi-group modelling were used. All the models presented adequate fit to the data. The results show that physical activity teasing is a contextual and essential variable; perceived competence and enjoyment influenced physical activity and intentions to be physically active; some differences appeared in the prediction of physical activity and intentions to be physically active when the multi-group model was run. Culturally tailored interventions are key to improving physical activity (PA) behaviors.

Self-report recall questionnaires are commonly used to measure physical activity in children and adolescents. However, they have been shown to have low to moderate validity, mainly due to inaccuracies in recall activity. The purpose of the present study was to determine the reliability and validity of an adapted version of the Assessment of Physical Activity Levels Questionnaire (APALQ) among a sample of Spanish adolescents. TestÁretest reliability of the APALQ was assessed using a sample of 150 adolescents (72 males, 78 females), aged 13.691.1 years, who answered the APALQ twice within 7 days. Criterion validity was assessed using a sample of 77 adolescents (50 males, 27 females), aged 13.691.1 years, by comparing the APALQ against the Computer Science and Application (CSA) monitor. All participants were volunteers recruited from local schools in the Aragon region of Spain. TestÁretest reliability for all items was high with intra-class coefficients of 0.77 for boys and 0.74 for girls. The APALQ demonstrated modest criterion validity with Pearson correlation coefficients (r) ranging from 0.53 between Physical Activity Index (PAI) and CSA minutes of moderate and vigorous physical activity, and 0.47 between PAI and CSA steps per day. When the data were analysed by gender, girls had higher correlations than boys (P B 0.01). The Spanish APALQ seems to be a valid and reliable short self-report physical activity questionnaire.