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Individual and School‐Level Socioeconomic Gradients in Physical Activity in Australian Schoolchildren
Author(s) -
Lewis Lucy,
Maher Carol,
Katzmarzyk Peter,
Olds Timothy
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of school health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.851
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1746-1561
pISSN - 0022-4391
DOI - 10.1111/josh.12357
Subject(s) - socioeconomic status , physical activity , psychology , bivariate analysis , obesity , demography , medicine , environmental health , population , physical therapy , sociology , statistics , mathematics
BACKGROUND We attempted to determine whether there was a socioeconomic gradient in 9‐ to 11‐year‐old Australian children's moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity ( MVPA ), and whether school facilities or policies supporting physical activity were associated with school‐level socioeconomic status ( SES ) and MVPA . METHODS Children (N = 528) from 26 randomly selected schools participated in the International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment. School‐level SES was determined by the Index of Community Socio‐Educational Advantage. MVPA was determined from 7‐day, 24‐hour accelerometry. School facilities (21 items) were evaluated with an objective school ground audit. School policies related to physical activity were collected (18 items) in a school administrator survey. Relationships among SES , MVPA , school facilities, and policies were examined using bivariate regression, correlation analyses, and analysis of variance. RESULTS There was a clear SES gradient in daily and in‐school MVPA . School facilities or physical activity policies were not associated with SES or in‐school MVPA , with the exception of presence of a sports field which was associated with lower SES schools (p = .02) and lower in‐school MVPA (p = .001). CONCLUSIONS School‐built, policy, and resource environments are similar across different SES ‐level schools. Therefore, some other mechanism must be underlying the SES gradients seen in MVPA participation in Australian children.