Purpose: Today’s children are increasingly inactive, with >50% not meeting the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity (PA). Recent reports suggest scores in reading and mathematics have also declined. Virtual reality (VR) is a technology that can be used to simulate real-world scenarios, like classroom learning. This study investigated whether a single dose of walking benefits learning in a VR classroom (measured via quiz performance). Method: Forty-seven children (15 females, 9.64 [0.12] y) completed 2, randomized and counterbalanced 20-minute interventions on separate days: acute PA (walking) and seated rest (control), followed by a stationary educational lesson in a distracting VR classroom. Children then completed a quiz on the lesson. Results: Children had higher quiz performance following PA (z-score = 0.16 [0.13]) compared with following rest (z-score = −0.18 (0.14); F 1,45 = 6.17, P = .017), indicating that PA enhanced learning. Children with average intelligence quotient had quiz performance that was higher after PA (z-score = 0.04 [0.20]) compared with after rest (z-score = −0.60 [0.19]), t(22) = 3.34, P = .003. Higher intelligence quotient children did not demonstrate differences in quiz performance after PA compared with after rest. Conclusions: Learning in a VR classroom may be improved following acute PA, particularly for children with average intelligence quotient. These findings support public health guidelines promoting PA across the day.
The Benefits of Acute Aerobic Exercise on Preadolescent Children’s Learning in a Virtual Classroom
Lauren B. Raine, Rachel J. Hopman-Droste, Abigail N. Padilla, Arthur F. Kramer, and Charles H. Hillman
Coach Servant Leadership and Athlete Serving Behaviors: The Role of Intrinsic Motivation and Positive Affect
Shohei Takamatsu and Yujiro Kawata
This study argues, based on macro theory, which integrates self-determination and broaden-and-build theories, that a coach’s servant leadership enhances athletes’ intrinsic motivation and positive affect, thus enhancing their serving behaviors toward their teammates. In Study 1, data were collected from 600 athletes belonging to university athletic clubs in Japan through an online survey. In Study 2, data were collected from a university with one of the largest sport faculties in Japan at two time points—with 311 university athletes at Time 1 and 269 athletes, 3 months later, at Time 2. The results revealed that intrinsic motivation and positive affect sequentially mediated the positive relationship between coach servant leadership and athlete serving behaviors. The findings contribute to the development of the servant-leadership literature by demonstrating a new pathway from servant leadership of coaches (leaders) to serving behaviors of athletes (followers) based on macro theory.
Comparison of Exercise Protocols for Diagnosing Pediatric Unexplained Dyspnea on Exertion
Elliott Brown, Karla Foster, Iesha Gover, Adam Powell, and William D. Hardie
Purpose: Clinicians evaluating pediatric patients with unexplained dyspnea on exertion (DOE) often obtain exercise testing with a treadmill-based exercise-induced bronchospasm (EIB) protocol measuring only changes in spirometry. We modified the EIB protocol to collect metabolic and lung volume endpoints as obtained in a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET). We tested the hypothesis that measuring metabolic data with the EIB protocol (EIB-CPET) would yield greater diagnostic information than the EIB protocol. Methods: Exercise test diagnosis for healthy children with DOE referred to the pulmonary exercise lab from January 2011 through July 2023 were retrospectively compared between those performing either the EIB or EIB-CPET protocols. Results: One hundred and twenty-seven patients with unexplained DOE were analyzed. Of the 72 patients tested on the EIB protocol, 49% had stridor and 5% with EIB. Of the 55 patients tested on the EIB-CPET protocol, 42% had stridor, 42% with normal physiologic limitation, 22% with dysfunctional breathing, 5% with deconditioning, 2% with EIB, and 2% with exercise-induced hypoxemia. Patients performing the EIB-CPET protocol had a significantly higher rate of any diagnosis compared with EIB (P = .0002). Conclusions: There is a greater diagnostic yield in children with unexplained DOE performing the EIB-CPET protocol compared with patients performing the EIB protocol.
Erratum. Are the Relationships of Physical Activity and Television Viewing Time With Mortality Robust to Confounding? A Study, Utilizing E-Values, From the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study
Journal of Physical Activity and Health
Erratum. Effect of Menstrual Cycle Phase and Hormonal Contraceptives on Resting Metabolic Rate and Body Composition
International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism
“I’m the Kind of Trans They Don’t Care About”: Experiences of Trans-Masculine Athletes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association
Alexander Z. Perry
In 2022, transgender swimmer Lia Thomas reignited longstanding debates about fairness in sport, and by August 2023, 23 states had enacted legislation restricting transgender athletic participation. While trans-feminine athletes are often seen as a “threat” to women’s sports, the experiences of trans-masculine athletes are often overlooked. Based on interviews with 13 trans-masculine athletes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association, I explore how they navigate gender identity while participating in gendered, competitive sport. I find that their (trans)gender identities and identities as athletes became inseparable and were mutually constituted. Additionally, I argue that their experiences in sport are contingent on their trans-masculine identities. While not the primary targets of antitrans policy, their experiences were impacted by broader, antitrans rhetoric and legislative efforts to restrict transgender participation.
Navigating Physical Activity Promotion and Policy in the Post-COVID-19-Pandemic Era
Justin Richards, Katja Siefken, Michael Pratt, Adrian Bauman, Juliana Mejía-Grueso, Catherine B. Woods, Wanda Wendel-Vos, Erica Hinckson, Deborah Salvo, Pedro C. Hallal, and Andrea Ramírez Varela
Background: There is limited evidence on the priorities and opportunities associated with promoting population physical activity (PA) participation for the post-COVID-19-pandemic future. Purpose: This study assessed government-led PA promotion efforts before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with post-COVID-19-pandemic priorities and recommendations. Methods: Two separate cross-sectional surveys conducted in 2023. Survey 1 was targeted at the Global Observatory for Physical Activity (GoPA!) Country Contacts. Survey 2 also included key international informants representing influential stakeholders in PA policy implementation. Results: There were 68 respondents to Survey 1, collectively representing 61 countries. An additional 37 people, including representatives from 14 key international stakeholders responded to Survey 2. Eighty-two percent of countries had national PA policies. COVID-19 widely disrupted PA policy implementation. Less than 40% of countries integrated PA into their COVID-19 response plan and more than 75% reported policies that restricted PA participation. Although most respondents indicated that government PA priorities did not change due to the COVID-19 pandemic, one in five countries reported that cross-sectoral partnership had become more important during this period. Less than a third of postpandemic governments reported as highly engaged despite the widespread proliferation of PA policies and plans prior to the pandemic. There were variations according to country, region, and income. Conclusions: Elevating PA promotion on the public health agenda is crucial for the post-COVID-19-pandemic era. At a policy level, it is critical to focus on adequate resourcing, cross-sectoral partnerships, integrated interventions, and inequities in participation. These factors have become increasingly important in the postpandemic PA policy landscape.
Striving for Global Consensus: A Systematic Review of Social Return on Investment Applied to Physical Activity and Sport
Inés Nieto, Xián Mayo, Larissa Davies, Lindsey Reece, Ben Strafford, and Alfonso Jimenez
Background: Physical activity and sport (PAS) have been related to health and social benefits, but their monetary value remains unclear. This systematic review on the social return on investment of PAS aimed to find what are the social outcomes measured in previous PAS literature and how are these measured and valued. Methods: A systematic search was conducted on WoS, PubMed, and EconLit. Articles in English, measuring the social value of any type of PAS in monetary terms and utilizing a social return on investment framework, were included. Risk of bias was evaluated using the Drummond checklist. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were followed. Results: Fifty-five documents (2010–2022), from all continents except America, were included; only 8 were published in peer-reviewed journals, whereas 47 were reports. Most studies evaluated the benefits of specific programs, and 6 measured the engagement in PAS at the population level based on national or community surveys. The social outcomes identified were health (94.5%), crime (50.9%), education (83.6%), subjective well-being (89.1%), social capital (60%), and other (3.6%–23.6%). The valuation methods included willingness to pay, well-being valuation, the cost of an activity that could result in the same outcome, and cost databases associating outcomes with a monetary value. Conclusions: This study updates a previous review and widens the scope by answering the question of how social outcomes are measured and valued in previous PAS literature. Given the heterogeneity found in the application of the method, this review will inform a Delphi study to reach a Global Consensus Statement on the measurement of social value and PAS.
To PETE, or Not to PETE, That Is the Question: The Influence of Occupational Socialization on Physical Education Teacher Education Recruitment and Retention
Craig Parkes and Shelley L. Holden
Purpose: A reduction in physical education teacher education (PETE) enrollments has been evident over the past decade. As a result, many institutions have eliminated their PETE programs, and the recruitment and retention of preservice teachers has been a significant area of concern and research. The study’s aim was to investigate how occupational socialization influenced PETE recruitment and retention at one mid-sized public research university in the southeastern United States. Method: Participants were 16 individuals who were undergraduate students or recent graduates. Data were collected through autobiographical essays and interviews. Results: Participants were organized into five categories: (a) PETE precandidacy, (b) currently enrolled in PETE, (c) recent PETE graduate, (d) seriously contemplated PETE but never enrolled, and (e) withdrew from PETE. Participants acted as pursuers, latecomers, and lamenters. The factors influencing PETE recruitment were (a) apprenticeship of observation, (b) the family business, and (c) job satisfaction, with the factors influencing retention being (d) a loss of enthusiasm. Discussion/Conclusion: The data from this study both support and contradict prior research into PETE recruitment and retention. These findings would be of interest to PETE faculty, program coordinators, and other administrators who are responsible for the recruitment and retention of students.
Transgender Athletes’ Testimonies of Existence and Resistance: Breaking Gender Binaries in Online Women’s Sports Media
Monica Crawford
Within an increasingly polarized media environment, transgender inclusion within sport has become a political wedge issue and, accordingly, a newsworthy topic. This study adds to the literature on media representation of transgender athletes by focusing on coverage within five women’s sports media outlets. Through a critical discourse analysis of 190 media artifacts, this study considers how the outlets discursively construct transgender and nonbinary athletes and engage in conversations around transgender inclusion within sport. Findings show that women’s sports media outlets foreground the legality of transgender athletic participation and the humanity of transgender athletes. Moreover, the outlets are understood here as a counterpublic where media organizations embrace an explicitly activist stance.
