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Background: Numerous studies showed an effect of weather on physical activity (PA) levels in children. However, no study has yet examined the relevance of personal factors in this relationship. Therefore, this study analyzes (1) whether there are systematic interindividual differences in the extent to which weather affects the PA behavior and (2) whether physical literacy (PL) moderates the weather–PA association in children. Methods: A total of 951 children in 12 Danish schools (age 9.76 [1.59] y; 54.3% girls) completed objective PA assessments via accelerometry (moderate to vigorous PA, light PA, and sedentary behavior). Local weather data (precipitation, wind speed, temperature, and sunshine duration) were provided by the Danish Meteorological Institute. Participants' PL was measured employing the Danish version of the Canadian Assessment of Physical Literacy-2. The 4116 accelerometer days underwent longitudinal multilevel analyses while considering their nesting into pupils and school classes (n = 51). Results: Fluctuations in all PA indicators were significantly explained by variations in weather conditions, especially precipitation (P ≤.035). Significant interindividual differences were found for 9 of 12 analytical dimensions, suggesting that weather changes influence PA behavior differently across individuals (especially moderate to vigorous PA, χ2[4] ≥ 11.5, P ≤.021). However, PL moderated the relationship between weather and PA in only 2 of the 48 analytical constellations. Conclusions: Despite the varying impact of weather on PA across individuals, the present study favors a main effect model in which weather and PL exert independent effects on children's PA. The insufficient support for PL as a moderating factor calls for future studies to test alternative mechanisms in the weather–PA association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of peer-to-peer approaches in health promotion interventions targeting youth seems to be a strategy with great potential. The aim of this study was to synthesize and assess the elements and conditions that contribute to the effectiveness of youth-led physical activity interventions. This was done using a scoping review addressing the following three research questions: What are the theoretical and intervention rationales behind peer-led physical activity interventions? What can be established regarding the effects of such interventions on participants and peer leaders? How can such interventions be strengthened? The review included 43 studies on the peer-to-peer approach, with youth in the role as peer leaders, in physical activity interventions. The identified studies suggest that youth peer leadership initiatives can increase physical activity for youth and children. However, the studies varied on a range of parameters and did not reveal any clear patterns of factors associated with impact.

We investigated how pupils experience education outside the classroom (EOtC) as it relates to their social and academic well-being. A Danish 6th grade class were taught twice a week for nine months using EOtC. We sampled five academically low- and five high-achieving pupils from the class and conducted qualitative observations and interviews with those pupils. We found that EOtC can positively influence pupils' social well-being regardless of academic level; however, the learning environment and required autonomy in EOtC may distract low-achieving pupils, particularly boys. Pupils' academic level in the classroom was related to their academic well-being in EOtC and EOtC might strengthen academic exclusion. Therefore, we conclude that EOtC may not have an unambiguously positive influence on pupils' social and academic well-being.

Background: Education Outside the Classroom (EOtC) is a teaching method that is gaining traction, aiming to promote learning and well-being. However, research on the association between EOtC and well-being is limited. Methods: This quasi-experimental trial involved pupils (9-13 years) from 16 Danish public schools which implemented EOtC in some classes. Pupils (N = 511) from 27 classes were regularly exposed to EOtC (2-7 hours per week), and pupils (N = 120) from 7 parallel comparison classes were much less exposed (less than 2 hours per week). The pupils' psychosocial well-being was measured at the beginning and end of the school year using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. The results were compared between the groups. Results: Pupils regularly exposed to EOtC showed the greatest improvement in prosocial behavior. Negative associations were seen between EOtC and hyperactivity-inattention and peer problems in pupils of low socioeconomic status (SES). The observed improvements were smaller when the EOtC was spread over a larger number of sessions. Results were independent of sex. Conclusions: Regular exposure to EOtC was found to promote social well-being, especially for pupils of low SES, and was most beneficial when concentrated in fewer, longer sessions.

The purpose of this study was to translate and validate a Danish version of the coach-created Empowering and Disempowering Motivational Climate Questionnaire (EDMCQ-C), retest the factor structure and provide further investigation into the psychometric properties in terms of measurement invariance across gender, age and competitive level, reliability and predictive validity. The participants were 1719 male and 551 female Danish football players 12–20 years of age (M = 14.81) playing at recreational, medium and elite levels. Participants filled in EDMCQ-C as well as questionnaires measuring psychological needs (BPNESS) and behaviour regulation (BRSQ). Factor structure of the EDMCQ-C was tested using Exploratory Structural Equation Modelling. To test whether the factor structure differed across gender, age group and competitive level, an invariance analysis comparing configurational, metric and scalar models was conducted. EDMCQ-C showed good psychometric properties and measurement invariance across age, gender and competitive level. Both dimensions of EDMCQ-C were associated to needs satisfaction and behaviour regulation in expected directions and had high internal consistency. This study provides evidence for the reliability of the two dimensions of EDMCQ-C, their predictive validity and for measurement invariance across age, gender and competitive level and provides a Danish version of the EDMCQ with sound psychometric properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to explore the daily physical activities of Danish children with a focus on describing and explaining gender differences. Accelerometer measurements of physical activity in different contexts, as well as questionnaire data, were collected from more than 500 children at pre-school and later at third grade. The study showed that boys were generally more physically active than girls (18% at age 6-7, and 16% at age 9-10, both p less than 0.001) and found differences in the types of activities undertaken by the two genders. These findings are in accordance with numerous other studies in Denmark as well as internationally. However, this study adds to this knowledge by showing that the gender difference in total amounts of activity was mainly due to large gender differences in the amounts of self-organized physical activity such as after-school day care (difference at age 6-7 = 45%, difference at age 9-10 = 58%, both p less than 0.001) and school breaks (difference at age 6-7 = 32%, difference at age 9-10 = 36%, both p less than 0.001). This could be partly explained by boys being more interested in playing football in contexts for children's self-organized activities. (Contains 17 notes, 4 tables and 11 figures.)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the importance of motivational climate for the satisfaction of psychological needs and dropout in recreational, intermediate and elite volleyball. Seven thousand nine hundred thirty six volleyball players from all 321 volleyball clubs across Denmark were invited to participate in the study. Three thousand three thirty answered the questionnaire and 2150 were included in the analysis. Dropout from Volleyball was measured as the proportion of players that had stopped playing volleyball over the last year. The coach-created motivational climate was measured using the Motivational Climate Scale for Youth Sports. The satisfaction of players' psychological needs was measured using an adapted version of the basic psychological needs in exercise scale. The psychometric scales were validated and showed good model fit. For volleyball players of all levels, the degree of mastery climate predicted the satisfaction of the players' basic psychological needs satisfaction during volleyball which was, in turn, associated with lower dropout rates. Performance climate had a weak negative association with the satisfaction of psychological needs on the intermediate level only. When adjusting the models for the negative association between performance climate and mastery climate this negative association became nonsignificant and a weak positive association to needs satisfaction emerged for players at the elite level. Findings confirm that the coach-created mastery climate in volleyball teams is important for the satisfaction of players' basic psychological needs and continuation within the sport across the recreational, intermediate and elite levels. Coach-created mastery climate in volleyball teams was positively associated with the satisfaction of the players' basic psychological and negatively associated with dropout. These associations between coach created climate, need satisfaction and dropout were similar across different sporting levels. Performance orientation had little influence and seemed mainly problematic if it was at the expense of mastery climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: This study aims to identify physical inactivity-related challenges and motives, based on reviews and supplemented by expert interviews with Danish national experts on physical inactivity, providing a general discussion of the subject ultimately generating knowledge useable in a Scandinavian context. Methods: This study is framed as a narrative review of scientific review literature on physical inactivity, limited to the general population. The review is supplemented by expert interviews with Danish national experts on physical inactivity. We used thematic coding of the included reviews, while using hermeneutic interpretation analysis for the expert interviews. Results: Based on 11 included reviews, we highlighted four themes based on our analysis of reviews: (a) socioeconomic determinants of physical activity; (b) life-course perspective; (c) physical inactivity and older adults aged 60+ years; and (d) intervention recommendations. The supplementary expert interviews revealed three additional themes: (a) the individual history with physical activity; (b) sporting organisation importance; and (c) society responsibility for physical inactivity. Conclusions: Collectively this study concludes, based on review and expert interviews, that a number of determinants and correlations for physical inactivity affect the individual from various socioecological levels. Based on this review, we suggest moving beyond the 'upstream' public health approach of randomised controlled trials and consider complex interventions targeting physical inactivity from several levels. Physical inactivity should be acknowledged as a 'wicked problem' that requires a systems-based approach instead of a single quick fix. Future work with physical inactivity would profit from focus on the life-course perspective, sporting clubs' responsiveness and physical literacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: It is central for public health to answer questions related to how to change health and wellbeing in populations through interdisciplinarity and health in all policies and sectors. For a school physical activity promotion initiative to be acceptable and thus feasible, the buy-in of teachers is fundamental. Therefore, school physical activity promotion should be integrated into and support teaching activities. Aims: We discuss the use of education outside the classroom as a feasible pedagogical approach that integrates and promotes physical activity for school children. Methods: We present and discuss theoretical arguments and empirical evidence to argue and illustrate that education outside the classroom is a promising approach for promoting physical activity. Results: Education outside the classroom is characterised by regular curriculum-based experiential teaching activities outside the classroom with the inclusion of physical activity as a means to pedagogical ends. School subjects are taught outside the classroom drawing on problem-based learning and experiential education. Here, physical activity is integrated without compromising curriculum goals which increases teacher buy-in and thereby intervention acceptability and feasibility. Empirical evidence suggests that education outside the classroom increases boys' moderate to vigorous physical activity and girls' light intensity physical activity. We contend that the mechanisms are a mix of place, pedagogy and pupil motivations. Conclusions: Education outside the classroom is a feasible and acceptable approach to public health and physical activity promotion because it is integrated into children's everyday settings through curriculum time and applied broadly to child populations at a low cost. The practice of education outside the classroom is context-dependent and culturally bound, and practices therefore need to be adapted to the individual sociocultural context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]