This article is intended to unite the existing research on parental influences on children's physical activity behaviours in order to establish direction for future research and improve existing child physical activity intervention programmes. A comprehensive, 34-study review of parental correlates of child physical activity was conducted and six variables were examined. There were significant correlations found between parental support and child physical activity level. Results for an association between parental and child physical activity levels, however, were mixed. There were not enough studies to draw conclusions about single-parent families, family socioeconomic status and ethnicity. Finally, there were some weak inter- and intra-generational sex correlations, but these results were mostly inconclusive. Possible mechanisms, including parental support, modelling, shared activities, societal differences by generation, minority groups and genetics are discussed, and recommendations are made on translating experimental results into tangible intervention efforts essential for disease prevention through increased physical activity.

The presence of two subcomponents within each theory of planned behaviour (TPB) concept of attitude (affective and instrumental), subjective norm (injunctive and descriptive), and PBC (self-efficacy and controllability) has been widely supported. However, research has not examined whether the commonality of variance between these components (i.e. a general factor) or the specificity of variance within the subcomponents influences intention and behaviour. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the optimal conceptualization of either two subcomponents or a general common factor for each TPB concept within an omnibus model. Further, to test whether conceptualizations may differ by population even within the same behavioural domain, we examined these research questions with 300 undergraduates (M age = 20) and 272 cancer survivors (M age = 61) for exercise behaviour. Results identified that a general subjective norm factor was an optimal predictive conceptualization over two separate injunctive and descriptive norm components. In contrast, a specific self-efficacy component, and not controllability or a general factor of PBC, predicted intention optimally for both samples. Finally, optimal models of attitude differed between the populations, with a general factor best predicting intention for undergraduates but only affective attitude influencing intention for cancer survivors. The findings of these studies underscore the possibility for optimal tailored interventions based on population and behaviour. Finally, a discussion of the theoretical ambiguity of the PBC concept led to suggestions for future research and possible re-conceptualization.

Background: Healthy child and youth development is fostered through sufficient physical activity (PA; including time outdoors), limiting sedentary behaviours (SB), and adequate sleep; collectively known as movement behaviours. Though the COVID-19 virus outbreak has changed the daily lives of children and youth, it is unknown to what extent related restrictions may compromise the ability to play and meet movement behaviour recommendations. This study examined the immediate impacts of COVID-19 restrictions on movement and play behaviours in children and youth.Methods: A national sample of Canadian parents (n=1,472) of children (5-11 years) or youth (12-17 years) (54% girls) completed an online survey that assessed immediate changes in child movement and play behaviours during the COVID-19 outbreak. Behaviours included PA and play, SB, and sleep. Family demographics and parental factors that may influence movement behaviours were assessed. Correlations between behaviours and demographic and parental factors were determined. For open-ended questions, word frequency distributions were reported.Results: Only 4.8% (2.8% girls, 6.5% boys) of children and 0.8% (1.1% girls, 0.5% boys) of youth were meeting combined movement behaviour guidelines during COVID-19 restrictions. Children and youth had lower PA levels, less outside time, higher SB (including screen time), and more sleep during the outbreak. Parental encouragement and support, parental engagement in PA, and family dog ownership were positively associated with healthy movement behaviours. Although families spent less time in PA and more time in SB, several parents reported adopting new hobbies or accessing new resources.Conclusions: This study provides evidence of immediate collateral consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak, demonstrating an adverse impact on the movement and play behaviours of Canadian children and youth. These findings can guide efforts to preserve and promote child health during the COVID-19 outbreak and crisis recovery period, and to inform strategies to mitigate potential harm during future pandemics.

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This paper reviews the literature concerning factors at the individual level associated with regular exercise among older adults. Twenty-seven cross-sectional and 14 prospective/longitudinal studies met the inclusion criteria of a mean participant age of 65 years or older. The findings are summarised by demographics, exercise experience, exercise knowledge, physiological factors, psychological factors, activity preferences and perceived social influences. In general, education and exercise history correlate positively with regular exercise, while perceived physical frailty and poor health may provide the greatest barrier to exercise adoption and adherence in the elderly. Social-cognitive theories identify several constructs that correlate with the regular exercise behaviour of older adults, such as exercise attitude, perceived behavioural control/self-efficacy, perceived social support and perceived benefits/barriers to continued activity. As well, stage modelling may provide additional information about the readiness for regular exercise behaviour among older adults. However, relatively few studies among older adults exist compared with middle-aged and younger adults. Further, the majority of current research consists of cross-sectional designs or short prospective exercise trials among motivated volunteers that may lack external validity. Future research utilising longitudinal and prospective designs with representative samples of older adults will provide a better understanding of significant causal associations between individual factors and regular exercise behaviour.