Participation in sport and physical activity: associations with socio-economic status and geographical remoteness

Abstract

BackgroundMany factors influence participation in sport and Physical Activity (PA). It is well established that socio-economic status (SES) is a critical factor. There is also growing evidence that there are differences in participation patterns according to residential location. However, little is known more specifically about the relationship of PA participation and frequency of participation in particular contexts, to SES and residential location. This study investigated the relationship of participation, and frequency and context of participation, to SES and location.MethodsThree aspects of participation were investigated from data collected in the Exercise, Recreation and Sport Survey (ERASS) 2010 of persons aged 15+ years: any participation (yes, no), regular participation (<12 times per year, ≥12 times per year) and level of organisation of participation setting (non-organised, organised non-club setting, club setting).ResultsThe rates of both any and regular PA participation increased as SES increased and decreased as remoteness increased. However, participation in PA was SES- or remoteness-prohibitive for only a few types of PA. As remoteness increased and SES decreased, participation in many team sports actually increased. For both SES and remoteness, there were more significant associations with overall participation, than with regular participation or participation in more organised contexts.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates the complexity of the associations between SES and location across different contexts of participation. Nevertheless, it seems that once initial engagement in PA is established, SES and remoteness are not critical determinants of the depth of engagement.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-015-1796-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Population levels of sport participation: Implications for sport policy

“…Furthermore, people who maintain participation in sport throughout childhood reportedly have higher health-related quality of life compared to those who do not participate in sport [6], and are more likely to be active as adults [7][8][9]. On the other hand, it is acknowledged that not everyone is attracted to sport, and that people can be active through other leisure-time pursuits [10]. Furthermore, sport is not always inherently healthy, as it has been associated with an increased risk of a range of detrimental effects, including injury [11], body image issues [12] and negative aspects of the focus on competition [13].…”

Group exercise for adults and elderly: Determinants of participation in group exercise and its associations with health outcome

“…In that study, among respondents who reported any (>0 min/ week) leisure time physical activity, the characteristics of those who tended to participate as a part of a group were as follows: (1) a lower ratio among those who were 45 or older compared to those who were between 18-24 years old, (2) a higher ratio among those with an educational attainment of only high school, compared to those with college education or higher, and (3) a higher ratio among those with a low income than those with a high income. A cross-sectional study of Australians aged 15 and older showed that participation in many team sports increased as socio-economic status decreased and geographical remoteness increased 42) . Regarding environmental factors, those who live in communities with between 10,000 and 100,000 residents were more likely to participate in team sports than those who live in communities with more than 100,000 residents 43) .…”

Too busy or too far away? The importance of subjective constraints and spatial factors for sports frequency

“…Some studies have shown a positive association between the accessibility of sports facilities and sports participation in adults. However, differences were found between different types of sports (Eime et al, 2015;Hallmann et al, 2012;Karusisi, Thomas, Méline, & Chaix, 2013), age groups and gender (Limstrand & Rehrer, 2008;Wicker et al, 2009). Karusisi et al (2013) found a significant association between access to and engagement in sports activities for swimming but not for team sports, racket sports or workouts in gyms in the Paris Ile-de-France region in France.…”

“…Most prominently, one strand of research has addressed effects of objectively measured accessibility and availability of sports facilities on sports participation and sports frequency (Hallmann, Wicker, Breuer, & Schönherr, 2012;O'Reilly, Berger, Hernandez, Parent, & Séguin, 2015;Wicker, Breuer, & Pawlowski, 2009). In addition, studies have shown the importance of social neighbourhood characteristics such as socio-economic status and safety in explaining differences in sports participation (Beenackers, Kamphuis, Burdorf, Mackenbach, & van Lenthe, 2011;Eime, Charity, Harvey, & Payne, 2015;Hoekman, Breedveld, & Kraaykamp, 2016;Kramer, Stronks, Maas, Wingen, & Kunst, 2015). However, as discussed in the next section, the effects of accessibility of sports facilities and neighbourhood characteristics that are found differ significantly between different geographical contexts.…”