Background
Methods
Participants/experts
Procedures
Identification of physical activity parenting practices
Condensing the list of physical activity parenting practices
Sorting the list of physical activity parenting practices
Analysis
Results
Clustering of the physical activity parenting practices
Construct | Number | Abbreviated statement |
---|---|---|
Neglect/Control | ||
Permissive | 15 | Child has a television in bedroom* |
40 | Allow child to watch TV or play video/computer games whenever s/he wants to* | |
49a
| Allow child to be less active when on vacation* | |
77 | Allow child to skip physical activity or sports when s/he wants to | |
Pressuring | 4 | Complain to or make child feel bad for not exercising |
9 | Tell child that spending time in front of a screen is not good for his/her health/eyesight/weight* | |
23 | Pressure child to try harder at sports or his/her physical activity | |
26a
| Punish child if s/he is sedentary instead of being active (i.e. no snacks or take away TV/computer privileges)* | |
34 | Tell my child that s/he needs to exercise so that s/he can lose weight | |
36 | Show child that you are angry when s/he does not participate in regular physical activity or exercise | |
42 | Remind/nag child to exercise or be physically active | |
43 | If child says ‘I don’t feel like walking or bicycling there,’ try to get him/her to do this anyway | |
51 | Criticize or tell child s/he is not good when doing certain sports | |
61a
| Have a rule ‘If you want a treat, you need to exercise’ | |
76 | Punish child by not allowing him/her to take part in physical activity or sports | |
Autonomy Support | ||
Encouragement | 2a
| Tell child that physical activity will make him/her look good |
5 | Tell child that physical activity or vigorous exercise is good for his/her health and will make him/her feel good | |
7a
| Show child examples of role models (i.e. people who are active) to encourage him/her to be active | |
12 | Encourage child to participate in physical activity or play sports (./in his/her free time) | |
16 | Encourage child to be less sedentary* | |
27 | Encourage child to be active for at least 60 min per day | |
29a
| Try to encourage child to do physical activities by telling s/he will make new friends | |
41a
| Encourage active video games as a way to be active indoors | |
54 | Encourage child to walk, bike or use resources (park or community center) in neighborhood to be active | |
55 | Tell child s/he is doing well in physical activities or sports | |
65a
| Get child to be physically active by telling how much fun the activity is | |
Guided choice | 10 | Allow child to choose whether s/he participates in sports or vigorous physical activity in free time |
11 | Negotiate with child on how much physical activity/sports s/he does | |
28 | Negotiate with child on how much TV/video/DVD s/he is allowed to watch* | |
45 | Provide child with physical activity options from which my child can choose | |
Involvement | 8 | Show an interest in child’s sports by talking about his/her activities |
17 | Involve child in active chores and yard work around the house | |
25 | Go to child’s sports or physical activities and watch child participate | |
31 | Watch sports with child, talk about sports with child, and take child to sports games, to encourage participation in physical activity | |
50 | Involved in child’s activities (e.g., coaching activities, watching child play) | |
52 | Spend time teaching child how to play a sport or do certain physical activities | |
Praises / Rewards | 14a
| Tell child that you like it when s/he is physically active |
20 | Reward child for exercising | |
75 | Praise child for being physically active or for participating in sports | |
Structure | ||
Co-participation | 6 | Practice active habits with child (e.g. parking far from the door, taking the stairs) |
24 | Play sports or active games with child | |
48 | Invite child to join your exercise or do something active with you | |
57 | Go for walks with child | |
71 | Use sport/physical activity as a form of family recreation (e.g., going on bike rides together, hiking, skating) | |
Expectations | 35 | Make sure child uses active transportation when going places close to home (e.g. walking, biking) |
58 | Limit the amount of time child spends [sedentary activity] on weekend/weekday [playing computer games, watching TV, watching videos, electronic games, video games, on the phone]* | |
64a
| Make child responsible for taking the dog for a walk and/or playing with the dog | |
68 | If the weather is nice, child knows that s/he is expected to play outside | |
73 | Make sure child is physically active at least 60 min per day | |
74 | Have a rule that child must participate in active sports or physical activities | |
Facilitation | 18 | Buy/provide physical activity or sports equipment for child |
22 | Take child to the park, playground, or places that s/he can be physically active | |
39 | Help child find ways to reduce his/her sedentary habits | |
47 | Store child’s active toys/sports equipment in a place that is easily accessible | |
63 | Enroll child in sports and physical activity programs | |
67 | Try to make physical activity into a fun game to get child more active | |
69 | Arrange for child to be with friends in order to be active with them | |
70a
| Encourage competition or set challenges (e.g., walking a certain distance) during activities to get child more active | |
Modeling | 46 | Child sees you being sedentary or is sedentary with you* |
60 | If you would like to watch TV/video/DVD, you restrain yourself because of the presence of child* | |
72 | Use own active behavior to encourage child to be physically active | |
Monitoring | 44 | Keep track of the amount of physical activity or exercise child gets |
53 | Keep track of the amount of time child spends in front of screens (e.g television, computer)* | |
Restriction for safety/academic concerns | 1 | Restrict child’s outdoor activities because neighborhood is not safe |
13 | When child plays outside, s/he must be supervised | |
21 | Don’t allow child to play on community or sports teams (./so s/he can concentrate on schoolwork) | |
30 | Have rules that child is not allowed to walk to the neighborhood park alone | |
37a
| Have a rule that child must do homework before s/he is able to exercise or be physically active | |
38 | Don’t allow child to play outside in the street after dark or after a certain time | |
56a
| Prohibit child from playing certain sports | |
59 | Restrict some physical activities because afraid child will be hurt | |
62 | Restrict the amount of time child spends playing outside | |
66 | Restrict [activity type] inside the house [active play, ball games, running, riding tricycle/scooter] | |
Drop | 32 | Reward child for good behavior with TV, DVD, or computer time – Drop because the behavior is unspecified and need practices that are more specific)* |
19 | Do not enroll child in physical activities that are too expensive – Drop because (Capture socio-economic issues which does not fit with other items dropped from clustering but can be included as a single item) | |
3 | Enroll child in too many activities leaving no time for free play (not specific to physical activity) | |
33 | Try to get child to be active (e.g. playing tag, biking, dancing) instead of watching TV or playing video games (Drop because how parent achieve this is unspecified) |
Categorizing the physical activity parenting practices into a recent parenting taxonomy
Domain/Construct | Definition |
---|---|
Neglect/Control | |
• Permissive | Parent does not guide their child’s behaviors and allows them to decide whether they engage in physical activity |
• Pressuring | Parent criticizes, nags, forces, pressures, punishes, or uses threats to get their children to be physically active |
Autonomy Support | |
• Encouragement | Parent suggests or encourages child to be physically active by explaining the reasons for being active, highlighting role models or provides positive verbal reinforcement for doing so |
• Guided Choice | Parent promotes independence in decisions related to physical activity by providing child with options or by negotiating with the child |
• Involvement | Parent demonstrates an interest in the child’s participation in physical activity or sports by watching child participate in his/her physical activity or sports, talking about his/her physical activities, teaching child new skills, and volunteering/coaching in child physical activity or sports |
• Praises/Rewards | Parent positively reinforces participation in PA by verbally praising their child or acknowledging their participation without coercing their participation |
Structure | |
• Co-participation | Parent engages in physical activity with their child |
• Expectations | Parent sets clear expectations about physical activity as to when and how much physical activity the child should do |
• Facilitation | Parent positively supports child physical activity by getting them involved in activities through enrollment or taking them to places to be active, and by supporting their physical activity (financial assistance, provision of equipment, services such as transportation and planning physical activities) |
• Modeling | Parent models an active lifestyle |
• Monitoring | Parent tracks child involvement in physical activity |
• Restriction for safety/academic concerns | Parental concerns about safety and academic performance results in limiting child involvement in physical activity |