Environmental Barriers as a Determining Factor of Physical Activity

Abstract

Physical activity (PA) has been shown to be an important variable in achieving a good quality of life. The objective of this study was to determine adolescents’ perceptions of environmental barriers to PA based on age, gender, geographic location, body mass index (BMI), PA index, and whether they engage in sports or not. The sample was made up of 849 adolescents aged between 12 and 17 years old. The PA Questionnaire for Adolescents (PAQ-A) and three questions on environmental barriers were used. Among the results, we should point out that adolescents hardly perceive any environmental barriers. There are no differences in the perception of barriers neither in terms of gender nor BMI. As adolescents get older, they consider that there are few recreational spaces, that the distance is not adequate, and that there is no accessibility to them or they do not encourage walking. The adolescents who perceive the greatest barriers are those who live in settlements of 10,000–50,000 inhabitants, especially those more linked to the neighborhood and to the accessibility and availability of spaces. It seems especially important to establish health policies in order to neutralize the barriers related to the accessibility and availability of spaces and the neighborhood-related barriers.

The role of social and emotional skills on adolescents’ life satisfaction and academic performance

“…However, girls did score higher on social awareness, while boys scored higher on self-control. These results are in line with other previously published research (Portela-Pino et al, 2021;Salavera et al, 2019;Zych et al, 2018). Boys usually have more abilities than girls to manage their own emotions (Portela-Pino et al, 2021) and girls tend to exhibit a higher capacity for empathizing with others and comprehending social and ethical norms (Portela-Pino et al, 2021;Zych et al, 2018).…”

“…The second hypothesis is accepted. In this case, it is worth noting that research outcomes can exhibit variability across (Aguilar et al, 2019;Portela-Pino et al, 2021), others may not identify the same trend (Fernández-Martín et al, 2022). These discrepancies may be due to various factors, such as the assessment instrument used, cultural context, or sample size.…”

“…Furthermore, it has been observed that adolescents tend to experience a decline in their social and emotional competencies over time (Cappella et al, 2019;Zych et al, 2018). In contrast, other studies have demonstrated that self-control increases with age (Aguilar et al, 2019;Portela-Pino et al, 2021). Nevertheless, a recent study has shown that there are no statistically significant differences based on age among adolescents (Fernández-Martín et al, 2022).…”

Le rôle essentiel de la littératie en santé en promotion de la santé, pendant une polycrise

“…Comme l'ont mentionné Portela-Pino et ses collègues dans leur article original publié dans ce numéro de Global Health Promotion intitulé « Health literacy and pandemic coping in Leisure Time Monitors » (la littératie en santé et la façon de faire face à la pandémie chez les moniteurs d'activités de loisirs) : « la littératie en santé est plus importante que jamais face à ces menaces pour la santé mondiale aux menaces à la santé mondiale qui ont eu une incidence à tous les niveaux du modèle socioécologique, y compris les comportements individuels en matière de santé, les relations familiales, le comportement des organisations, l'élaboration des politiques publiques, les statistiques sur la mortalité et l'économie internationale, en l'espace de quelques mois, voire de quelques semaines » (19).…”

Age as a determining variable in the practice or abandonment of physical exercise among young people

“…The conviction of the positive role played by physical exercise in the prevention of numerous diseases is verified [ 25 , 26 ], supporting the main purpose of this study, which is to investigate the motivations or barriers that lead to greater or lesser adherence to physical exercise among preadolescents and adolescents and to check if there are significant differences between the two periods. In addition, physical and sports activities not only meet health benefits but also social [ 27 ]. We must not forget the role of the sport in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) as an effective Tool for promoting peace and development [ 28 – 33 ].…”