In prior research, Irish youth displayed poor motor competence across fundamental movement skills (FMS) and functional movements (FM). Our purpose in this study was to compare FMS and FM across male and female Irish adolescents and to determine whether there are associations between these movement domains. We collected data on 373 adolescents (178 females; age = 14.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHigh levels of perceived motor competence and low levels of actual motor competence in youth populations have been reported world-wide. Both perceived and actual motor competence have been deemed independent correlates of health and physical activity (PA) behavior, and past research has indicated that their alignment may be linked to more consistent PA. Moreover, there is potential for a movement-based intervention to strengthen the alignment between perceived and actual motor competence, perhaps then guiding future health, PA, and community sport engagement globally.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Environ Res Public Health
September 2020
Irish adolescents have been found to possess high perceptions of motor competence. However, there is an evidential value to investigating the strength of the relationship between adolescent perceptions of motor competence and their low levels of actual motor competence. The purpose of this research was to gather data on the fundamental, functional, and perceived motor competence in adolescents, differentiated by year group, to discern if participants could assess their perceptions of ability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Environ Res Public Health
July 2020
Objective: This study evaluates the impact of the State of Mind Ireland-Higher Education (SOMI-HE) Mental Fitness intervention on student wellbeing, resilience, and physical activity (PA) participation.
Design: A mixed-methods research design, comprising of a self-report questionnaire, and semi-structured focus group interviews at pre, post and follow-up phases were employed. Participants were a sample of 134 higher education students (29% male: 71% female; mean age range 18 to 25 years old).
Background: School-based interventions offer the opportunity to increase physical activity, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and nutritional behaviours, yet methodological limitations hinder current research, particularly among under-represented children from low socio-economic status (SES). The aim was to determine the effect of a 12-week physical activity programme, Sport for LIFE: All Island (SFL:AI), on physical activity levels, HRQOL, and nutritional attitudes and behaviours in children of low SES across the island of Ireland.
Methods: A 2 (groups) × 4 (data collection points) clustered randomised controlled trial was conducted comprising an intervention group who received SFL:AI for 12 weeks, and a waiting-list control condition.
: The purpose of this study was to investigate daily physical activity (PA) patterns of 8- to 9-year-old Irish children from socially disadvantaged areas. : Children (N = 408) were asked to wear an ActiGraph accelerometer for a minimum of 4 days. Based on mean daily moderate- to vigorous-intensity PA accumulation, participants were grouped into sex-specific quartiles (Q4, most active; Q1, least active).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFResearch has shown that post-primary Irish youth are insufficiently active and fail to reach a level of proficiency across basic movement skills. The purpose of the current research was to gather cross-sectional baseline data on Irish adolescent youth, specifically the prevalence of movement skills and patterns, in order to generate an overall perspective of movement within the first three years (Junior Certificate level) of post-primary education. Data were collected on adolescents (N = 181; mean age: 14.
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