Psychosocial correlates of physical activity in adolescents

Pages: 871-877
Damanjit Sandhu and Haroon Shafiq (Department of Psychology, Punjabi University, Patiala)

The present investigation aimed to study the psychosocial correlates of physical activity in adolescents. Adolescent physical activity was studied in relation to parental (fathers’) physical activity, self-esteem, and locus of control. The sample comprised of 200 adolescent boys in the age range of 16 -18 years, randomly selected from various senior secondary schools of Malerkotla and Sangrur (Punjab, India). The subjects were administered The Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents (Kowalski, Crocker & Kowalski, 1997), Levenson’s Locus of Control scale (Vohra, 1990), and The Multidimensional Self-esteem Inventory (O’ Brien & Epstein, 1988). International Physical Activity Questionnaire (Craig et al., 2003) was administered on the adolescents’ father. Pearsons’ Product Moment Correlation Analysis reveals that parental physical activity is positively correlated with adolescent physical activity. Out of the Locus of control dimensions, powerful others and chance control dimensions are inversely correlated with adolescent physical activity, while individual control is positively correlated with adolescents physical activity. Step-Wise Multiple Regression Analysis reveals that Individual control and Parental physical activity are positively contributing to adolescents’ physical activity. Chance control and Defensive Self- enhancement (dimension of self-esteem) are negatively contributing to adolescent’s physical activity. The findings have been discussed.