Enjoyment is one of the most important factors for the maintenance of regular physical activity. The present study investigated if cooperative games in physical education classes (grades 6–9) can increase students’ enjoyment of physical activity. Data were collected in a quasi-experimental study employing a two-group design with repeated measures and randomization of classes to conditions. The total sample consisted of N = 285 students from regular schools in Germany aged 10 to 16 years (Mage = 12.67 years, SD = 1.10; 48.4% female). We found that cooperative games led to a higher perceived enjoyment in physical education classes (F(1) = 3.49, p = .063, ηp2 = .012), increased the feeling of how strong students felt related to each other (F(1) = 4.38, p = .037, ηp2 = .016), and facilitated feelings of perceived competence in physical education class (F(1) = 6.31, p = .013, ηp2 = .022). In addition, social relatedness and perceived competence partly mediated the effect of cooperative games on enjoyment. The findings indicate that systematically designed cooperative games can help foster enjoyment in physical education classes.

Zusammenfassung. Die vorliegende Studie dient der Entwicklung und Validierung eines Messinstruments zur differenzierten Erfassung von Freude am Schulsport im Jugendalter. Basierend auf theoretischen Ansätzen wird das Konstrukt Sport-Enjoyment ( Scanlan & Simons, 1992 ) im Rahmen eines 3-Faktorenmodells (Vergnügen; Flow-Erleben; Erholung) weiterentwickelt. Die psychometrische Überprüfung erfolgt anhand einer Gesamtstichprobe von N = 1 253 Schülerinnen und Schülern der Klassenstufen 7 – 10. Die postulierte 3-Faktorenstruktur kann empirisch mit Einschränkungen bestätigt werden und erweist sich als messinvariant über die Variablen Geschlecht und Alter. Die Reliabilitätskennwerte bewegen sich im akzeptablen bis guten Bereich. Zusammenhänge mit intrinsischer Motivation, allgemeiner Sportlichkeit und Ablenkung / Katharsis sowie mit der Sportnote und dem Ausmaß sportlicher Aktivität in der Freizeit fallen ebenso theoriekonform aus wie die geschlechts- und altersspezifischen Mittelwertunterschiede. Mit dem FEFS-J liegt ein valides, ökonomisches und theoretisch fundiertes Instrument vor.

IntroductionActive travel is an important source of physical activity and a primary contributor to overall health among adolescents. To understand and promote active travel behaviour in adolescents, developing a more robust understanding of the predictors of active travel and its associated decision-making processes is needed. Situated within a theoretical socioecological framework for adolescent travel behaviour, the mixed-methods Active tRavel behavioR in the famIly enVironmEnt study aims to quantitatively assess the influence of several predictors of adolescent travel behaviour, and to qualitatively understand the associated decision-making processes of both adolescents and parents.Methods and analysisOur mixed-methods approach will feature online surveys and semistructured interviews. The online questionnaire, developed in accordance with a theoretical framework of adolescent active travel, will examine adolescent travel behaviour with respect to four different destinations while controlling for multiple relevant individual, social and physical environment factors. To enable the comparison of adolescent and parental perspectives, the questionnaire will be answered by a representative sample of German adolescents (11–15 years old) and their parents.Our semistructured interviews, likewise framed based on the central tenets of the theoretical framework of adolescent active travel, will seek to explore the decision-making process of families regarding travel mode choice via conducting interviews with each member (ie, father, mother, adolescent). To investigate travel decision-making processes, adolescents and their parents will be invited to talk about trips they undertook using both active and passive transport modes during the last week. Thematic analyses will be conducted to highlight the central concerns, priorities and values of participants’ decision-making processes.Ethics and disseminationThis study has received ethical approval from the ethics commission of the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg. Study results will be disseminated at scientific conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals. Additionally, study findings will be made publicly available to relevant health, policy, and research stakeholders and groups.

This study investigated the corresponding change between psycho-social predictors and physical activity (PA) behavior and if these relationships were dependent on the stages of change from the Transtheoretical Model in Minority American adolescents. We conducted a longitudinal field study with N = 357 students aged 13–18 years (M = 14.24 years, SD = 0.88); predominantly Filipino (61.2%) using a test–retest design assessing psycho-social PA predictors (enjoyment, self-efficacy, family support, friends’ support, knowledge, stage of change) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) at two time points over six months. Hierarchical regression results indicated that a positive change of enjoyment, knowledge about PA and family support predicted a change of MVPA, independently of stage. The time-varying covariation showed the importance of the current stage of change for enjoyment, self-efficacy and support of friends for a change of MVPA. Overall, our findings suggest that an individual’s current stage of change should be considered to determine individually appropriate starting points and goals for designing interventions to promote PA among Minority American adolescents.

Zusammenfassung. Freude ist einer der wichtigsten Faktoren zur langfristigen Aufrechterhaltung sportlicher Aktivität. So sollte bereits im Schulsport Freude am Sport vermittelt werden. Ziel der Studie war die Untersuchung der Bedeutsamkeit und Stärke von sieben Einflussfaktoren (Kompetenzerleben, Soziale Eingebundenheit, Sozialer Umgang, Autonomie/Mitbestimmung, Lehrkompetenz, Allgemeine Sportlichkeit und Elterliche Unterstützung) für das Erleben von Freude am Schulsport im Jugendalter. Es nahmen N = 1598 Schülerinnen und Schülern der Klassenstufen 7–10 an der Untersuchung teil. Freude am Schulsport wurde mittels drei Skalen (Vergnügen, Flow-Erleben, Erholung) erfasst. Sämtliche Einflussfaktoren wiesen moderate bis hohe Zusammenhänge zu den Sportfreude-Facetten auf. Es konnte ein starker positiver Einfluss von Kompetenzerleben und Sozialer Eingebundenheit auf das Erleben von Freude am Schulsport festgestellt werden. Lehrkompetenz zeigte einen geringen Effekt und elterliche Unterstützung einen indirekten Effekt über Allgemeine Sportlichkeit. Diese Ergebnisse liefern erste Hinweise für konkrete Interventionsmöglichkeiten zur Steigerung der Freude am Schulsport.

Background Latest studies indicated that the general mental health level is low during the pandemic. Probably, this deterioration of the mental health situation is partly due to declines in physical activity. The aim of this study was to investigate differences in and the association between affective wellbeing and levels of different domains of physical activity at three time points before and during the pandemic. Method We used a nationwide online panel with a trend data design encompassing a total sample of N = 3517, representing the German population (> 14 years). Four different activity domains (sport and exercise, light outdoor activity, housework/gardening, active travel) and affective wellbeing (positive and negative affect) were assessed at three time points before and during the Covid-19 pandemic (October 2019, March 2020, October 2020). Results Multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA) indicate differences regarding affective wellbeing over the three time points with the lowest values at the second time point. Levels of activity in the four domains differed significantly over time with the strongest decrease for sport and exercise from the first to the second time point. Partial correlations indicated that the relationships between sport and exercise and positive affect were most consistent over time. Conclusions Overall, our findings suggest that physical activity plays a particularly important role in the pandemic period as a protective factor against poor mental health. Especially sports and exercise seem to be supportive and should be encouraged, e.g. by providing additional support in finding adequate outdoor, home-based or digital substitutes.

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Measures to slow down the spread of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 have had an impact on the daily life and physical activity (PA) of many people. Nevertheless, in Germany, mitigation policies and incidence values vary widely across the federal states (Länder). Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate regional differences in PA during the coronavirus pandemic. This study is based on the SPOVID project (Examining physical activity and sports behavior in the face of COVID-19 pandemic: a social inequality perspective) that incorporates a large-scale, representative cross-sectional survey representing the German population (≥14 years). Based on the survey that took place in October 2020 (N = 1477), we investigated the relationships between the COVID-19 incidence values as well as the mitigation policies across the federal states in Germany and changes in PA. Pearson correlations indicated a strong negative relationship between PA change and 7-day incidence values (r = −0.688 **, p = 0.009) and a moderate negative relationship between PA changes and an index of mitigation policies (r = −0.444, p = 0.112). Higher 7-day incidence values and stricter mitigation policies were associated with a stronger decline in PA levels. Therefore, it is important to support people to stay active even if there are restrictions. In particular, in federal states and regions with high incidences and stricter mitigation policies, measures to promote health-enhancing PA are necessary.