Validation of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children

Abstract

Two studies assessed the validity of the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C), a 7-day recall that assesses general moderate to vigorous physical activity levels during the school year. The first study, involving 89 elementary school students in Grades 4-8, investigated convergent, divergent, and construct validity. The PAQ-C was moderately related to an activity rating (r = .63), week summation of 24-hs moderate to vigorous activity recalls (r = .53), a teacher's rating of physical activity (r = .45), and perceptions of athletic competence (r = .48). As expected, the PAQ-C was not related to perceptions of behavioral conduct. The second study, involving 97 elementary school students, investigated convergent and construct validity. The PAQ-C was moderately related to an activity rating (r = .57), the Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire (r = .41), a Caltrac motion sensor (r = .39), a 7-day physical activity recall interview (r = .46), and a step test of fitness (r = .28). The PAQ-C validity coefficients were as high as or greater than the 7-day recall interview. These two studies support the validity of the PAQ-C as a method of assessing older children's general physical activity levels.The authors are with the College of Physical Education at the University of Saskatchewan, 105 Gymnasium Place, Saskatoon, SK Canada S7N OWO.Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older elationships with other physical activity measures can be used with children. These nethods include motion sensors (12,14,17), 7 -y self-reports of activity (6, lo), activity rating (21), 7-day recall interview (17,18,20), and teacher assessment (24).Construct validity evidence can be established by testing how well a physical activity measure is correlated with related constructs (27), such as cardiovascular health, muscular-skeletal health, participation in organized sport and games, and perceptions of athletic competence. These interrelationships have been found in empirical research or are theoretically proposed.Small sample sizes make it difficult or inappropriate to examine gender differences on physical activity measures (18). As a result, gender differences on most physical activity measures have often not been tested. Most findings have shown males to have higher activity levels across various age groups of youth (1,9,13,22), although there are exceptions (15,25). Study 1The first study examined the convergent and construct validity of the PAQ-C. The hypotheses of the first study were that the PAQ-C would be positively related to an activity rating (21), teacher's rating of physical activity (PA2; 24), and a daily

Diet quality, nutrition and physical activity among adolescents: the Web-SPAN (Web-Survey of Physical Activity and Nutrition) project

“…In comparison with a study done by Kowalski et al (32) , physical activity levels were slightly lower in the current study. However, the difference is likely due to the age of the participants in each study, as it is known that physical activity decreases with age (3,43) .…”

“…The PAQ-C has been found to be a reliable (31) and valid measure (32) in adolescents. In addition, among a subset of the sample (n 323), we observed good test-retest reliability for the web-based PAQ-C completed approximately 8 d apart (r 5 0?79).…”

Higher premenarcheal bone mass in elite gymnasts is maintained into young adulthood after long-term retirement from sport: A 14-year follow-up

“…There is always the possibility for reporting errors when self-report is utilized; however, both questionnaires have been previously validated for use in such populations. (28)(29)(30) Finally, assessment of bone mineral content with exercise studies is limited because important changes in the structural properties of bone may occur and go undetected. (47) Both young and retired female gymnasts have been found to have site-specific cortical and trabecular structural advantages, resulting in estimated strength benefits of 14% to 38% in the upper extremity and 5% to 14% in the lower extremity compared with nongymnasts.…”

“…The PAQ-C/ AD are self-administered 7-day recall questionnaires created to assess general levels of physical activity. (28)(29)(30) The total activity score on the PAQ-C/AD is calculated as the mean of seven items (each scored on a five-point scale) with five representing high activity and one representing low activity. Calcium and vitamin D intakes were assessed through the use of a 24-hour recall questionnaire at both measurement points.…”

Interrelationships among motor coordination, body fat percentage, and physical activity in adolescent girls

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