Review and special article
Preschool Children and Physical Activity: A Review of Correlates

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Background

Several reviews have summarized the research on correlates of older children's and adolescents' physical activity behaviors, but none have been published on preschool children. Over the past 27 years, a number of studies have investigated the correlates of preschool children's physical activity behaviors. It is timely and necessary to review the extant literature in this area. This paper reviews articles investigating correlates of preschool children's physical activity behaviors published in peer-reviewed journals between 1980 and March 2007.

Methods

A literature search was conducted to identify studies that investigated correlates of preschool children's physical activity. Data were collected and analyzed in 2007.

Results

Twenty-four articles were identified that met the inclusion criteria. From those articles, 39 variables were identified across five domains. Results showed that boys were more active than girls, that children with active parents tended to be more active, and that children who spent more time outdoors were more active than children who spent less time outdoors. Age and BMI were consistently shown to have no association with preschool children's physical activity. Other variables produced largely inconclusive results.

Conclusions

The influences on the physical activity behaviors of preschool children are multidimensional. Further research is required to enhance an understanding of these influences.

Section snippets

Background

Research into correlates of preschool children's physical activity was first reported in 19801; two thirds of the existing literature in this area has been published since 2001. Although reviews of the correlates of the physical activity behaviors of older youth have been published, none have focused on the correlates of these behaviors in the preschool population.

Inadequate data exist on the current prevalence of preschool children's physical activity levels. Although some studies find that

Search Procedure

Literature included in this review was retrieved from three sources. Computerized searches were carried out using MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, SPORTDISCUS, PsycINFO, Health Source (nursing/academic edition), and Sociological Abstracts electronic databases. Each key term—physical activity, exercise, health behavior, play, physical inactivity, physical fitness—was searched in conjunction with each term in this group: child, kindergarten, childcare, preschool. Bibliographies of retrieved articles and

Results

The articles had been published between 1980 and March 2007. Data were collected and analyzed in 2007. From the included studies, 39 correlates of physical activity behaviors were identified. Nineteen (48.7%) of those correlates were reported in a single study only; 25 variables (64%) were reported in one or two studies. Thirteen (33%) correlates were examined between three and eight times, and one correlate, gender, was examined 15 times. Studies investigated a mean of 3.9 (SD=3.1; range 1–14,

Discussion

This review of correlates of preschool children's physical activity reported support for three variables: Boys are more active than girls; the children of parents who participate in physical activity with them are more active than the children of parents who do not participate; and children who spend more time in outdoor play spaces are more active than children who spend less time outdoors. Unlike reviews for older children and adolescents,10 this review did not find significant results for

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