Abstract. The purposes of this study were to examine (a) antifat attitudes among physical education teachers, (b) performance and ability expectations for normal and overweight youth, and (c) perceptions of the problem of youth obesity and the role of schools and physical education. Participants, 105 physical educators, completed a demographic and background questionnaire, the Antifat Attitudes Scale (AFAS; Morrison & O'Connor), an expectations questionnaire, and Perceptions of Youth Obesity and Physical Education Questionnaire (Price, Desmond, & Ruppert). Participants endorsed moderate antifat attitudes and strong personal weight control beliefs. Participants reported higher expectations for youth they considered normal weight, versus overweight, across a variety of performance and ability areas. Participants overwhelmingly agreed that youth obesity is a concern and that schools are not doing enough to help overweight youth.

This study examined the televised coverage of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta to determine the amount of coverage time, quality of coverage devoted to men's and women's same sport activities, and to compare this coverage with that of the 1992 Summer Olympic Games. Of the more than 150 hours of NBC televised coverage, a total of 60 hours was then randomly selected as an appropriate sample. A content analysis was then performed on those segments that featured same-sport activities for men and women. This included quantitative (e.g., running time, length of segments, number of slow motion replays, and use of onscreen statistics) and qualitative (e.g., the narrative of the commentators) analyses. Although the findings suggest there have been notable improvements in the way female athletes were presented in the 1996 Olympic Games as compared to the 1992 Olympic Games, there are still many disparities in the coverage of women's sports, especially those that traditionally appeal to the media audience.

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This study provides a quantitative and qualitative analysis of NBC's coverage of sports that held competitions for both women and men during the 1992 Olympic Games. The study presents results of the broadcast time devoted to women's and men's basketball, volleyball, gymnastics, swimming/diving, track and field, and other sports. The analysis examines qualitative differences in portrayals of female and male athletes. The analysis of each sport evaluated announcers' use of strength and weakness descriptors to characterize women and men athletes and the nature of the narratives used to describe women and men competitors. The study finds that although women were given greater coverage in individuals sports, that coverage was divided into shorter and more heavily edited segments. In addition, commentators relied on gender marking, biased and ambivalent reporting, and a focus on personalities as opposed to athletic abilities when covering women's sports.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations among predisposing (perceived competence and enjoyment), reinforcing (social environments), enabling factors (motor skills, fitness, physical environments) and physical activity among 288 children, and to identify the age and gender differences among participants. The children completed previously validated questionnaires assessing their perceived competence, enjoyment, school social and physical environments, and physical activity. Physical fitness was measured by FITNESSGRAM fitness testing. Students’ motor skills were assessed by PE Metrics. The results indicated that perceived competence and enjoyment predicted physical activity for boys, while perceived competence was the only predictor for girls. Age effects for fitness and skill were significant, as were gender differences for skill, social environment and perceived competence. This study suggests the importance of supportive teachers who provide enjoyable physical education that builds perceived competence for children to improve fitness, motor skill development and physical activity participation. The results support associations between predisposing factors and self-reported physical activity as theorized within the social ecological model.