Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Infant Places, Spaces And Objects: Exploring The Physical In Learning Environments For Infants Under Two, Helen Lynch

Doctoral

While the relationship between play and development is well documented, there is less known about the influence of the physical environment in that process. The purpose of this qualitative study is to describe play interactions of infants under two with the home physical environment. The aim is to explore and identify ways in which infants develop and learn through engaging with objects and spaces of everyday life in the home. A qualitative ethnographic approach was employed to gather data on five infants, two new-borns and three one-year olds, and their families over twelve months. Data was generated through video, interview …

A Content Analysis Of Indirect, Verbal, And Physical Aggression In Television Programs Popular Among School-Aged Girls, Jennifer Ruh Linder, Kelsey Ann Lyle

Faculty Publications

A content analysis of indirect, verbal, and physical aggression was conducted of 77 hours of television programming popular among fifth grade girls. Eighty-eight percent of programs contained aggression. Physical aggression occurred at a rate of 9.6 acts per hour, whereas indirect and verbal aggression occurred at a rate of 3.7 and 2.8 acts per hour, respectively. Rates of aggression varied by gender, age, and attractiveness of perpetrators, as well as by relationship between perpetrator and victim. Additionally, motivation and consequences of aggressive acts varied by form of aggression. Implications of the findings are discussed in light of current research and …

Relationship Between Plantar Pressures, Physical Activity And Sedentariness Among Preschool Children, Karen J. Mickle, Dylan P. Cliff, Bridget J. Munro, Anthony D. Okely, Julie R. Steele

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

It has been speculated that high plantar pressures might cause foot pain and discomfort which, in turn, may discourage children from being physically active and result in them spending more time in sedentary activities. The purpose of this study was to determine whether plantar pressure distributions generated by preschool children were correlated with objectively measured time spent in physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Dynamic plantar pressures were measured for 33 preschool children (age = 4.3±0.6 years; height = 1.06±0.1 m; mass = 18.4±2.9 kg; 17 boys) as they walked across an emed AT-4 pressure platform. Physical activity was objectively assessed …

The Sydney Playground Project: Popping The Bubblewrap - Unleashing The Power Of Play: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial Of A Primary School Playground-Based Intervention Aiming To Increase Children's Physical Activity And Social Skills, Anita C. Bundy, Geraldine A. Naughton, Paul Tranter, Shirley Wyver, Louise A. Baur, Wendy Schiller, Adrian E. Bauman, Lina Engelen, Jo Ragen, Tim Luckett, Anita Niehues, Gabrielle Stewart, Glenda Jessup, Jennie Brentnall

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background In the Westernised world, numerous children are overweight and have problems with bullying and mental health. One of the underlying causes for all three is postulated to be a decrease in outdoor free play. The aim of the Sydney Playground Project is to demonstrate the effectiveness of two simple interventions aimed to increase children's physical activity and social skills. Methods/Design This study protocol describes the design of a 3-year cluster randomised controlled trial (CRCT), in which schools are the clusters. The study consists of a 13-week intervention and 1 week each of pre-and post-testing. We are recruiting 12 schools …

The Alpha Health-Related Physical Fitness Test Battery For Children And Adolescents, Rute Santos, Jorge Mota

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

In this issue of Nutricion Hospitalaria, Ruiz and colleagues present the new health-related fitness test battery for youth based upon the work developed by the ALPHA (Assessing Levels of Physical Activity) study. The ALPHA was a study funded by the European Union aimed "to provide a set of instruments for assessing levels of physical activity, its underlying factors (e.g. build environment, transport, and workplace), as well as, fitness in a comparable way within the European Union". The work presented in this issue by Ruiz and colleagues relates to the working package 6 of the ALPHA project -Assessing Healthrelated Physical Fitness- …

Association Between Physical Activity And Motor Skills And Coordination In Portuguese Children, Luis Lopes, Vitor Pires Lopes, Rute Santos, Beatriz Pereira

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Nowadays, there is growing evidence in literature that Health benefits from regular physical activity (PA). The variance in PA among children is caused by a number of factors including their motor abilities and coordination. The aim of the study was to analyse the relation between usual PA and gross motor abilities and motor coordination in children aged 6 to 7 years. The sample comprised 21 children, aged in average 6,38±0,50 years. Physical activity was accessed by accelerometry, gross motor abilities by using the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-2) and motor coordination by using the Körperkoordination Test für Kinder (KTK). …

Metabolic Risk Factors, Physical Activity And Physical Fitness In Azorean Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study, Carla Moreira, Rute Santos, Jose Cazuza De Farias Junior, Susana Vale, Paula Clara Santos, Luisa Soares-Miranda, Ana I. Marques, Jorge Mota

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome has increased over the last few decades in adolescents and has become an important health challenge worldwide. This study analyzed the relationships between metabolic risk factors (MRF) and physical activity (PA) and physical fitness (PF) in a sample of Azorean adolescents.

Methods

A cross-sectional school-based study was conducted on 417 adolescents (243 girls) aged 15-18 from the Azorean Islands, Portugal. Height, weight, waist circumference, fasting glucose, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure were measured. A sum of MRF was computed, and adolescents were classified into three groups: no MRF, one MRF and two or more …

Seasonal Differences In Physical Activity And Sedentary Patterns: The Relevance Of The Pa Context, Pedro Silva, Rute Santos, Gregory Welk, Jorge Mota

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The aim of this pilot study was to characterize seasonal variationin the moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentarybehavior of Portuguese school youth, and understand theinfluence of activity choices and settings. The participants inthis study were 24 students, aged 10-13 years. Accelerometersmeasured daily PA over 7 consecutive days, in different seasonsMay - June and January - February. In summer, boys accumulatedmore minutes in MVPA (928 minutes/week) than girls(793 minutes/week). In winter the pattern was reversed withgirls accumulating more activity than boys (736 minutes/weekvs. 598 minutes/week). The repeated measures ANOVA revealedsignificant effects for season (F = 5.98, p = 0.023) …

Evaluation Of Physical Activity Programmes For Elderly People - A Descriptive Study Using The Efqm' Criteria, Ana I. Marques, Maria J. Rosa, Pedro Soares, Rute Santos, Jorge Mota, Joana Carvalho

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: In the past years, there has been a growing concern in designing physical activity (PA) programmes for elderly people, because evidence suggests that such health promotion interventions may reduce the deleterious effects of the ageing process. Quality is an important issue when designing a PA programme for older people. Some studies support the Excellence Model of the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) as an operational framework for evaluating the quality of an organization. Within this context, the aim of this study was to characterize the quality management models of the PA programmes developed by Portuguese Local Administration to …

Evaluation Of Physical Activity Programmes For The Elderly - Exploring The Lessons From Other Sectors And Examining The General Characteristics Of The Programmes, Ana I. Marques, Pedro Soares, Luisa Soares-Miranda, Carla Moreira, Antonio Oliveira-Tavares, Paula Clara-Santos, Susana Vale, Rute Santos, Joana Carvalho

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background

In Portugal, there are several physical activity (PA) programmes for elderly people developed by the local government. The importance of these programmes has been increasing since the evidence has shown that this type of health promotion interventions may reduce the deleterious effects of the ageing process. However, no study has already identified the general characteristics of these programmes nor if they use any scheme to assess the quality of the service provided. A widely-used scheme is the EFQM Excellence Model, which will be in the core of our present work. Thus, the main aims of this preliminary study were …

A Proposed Adaptation Of The European Foundation For Quality Management Excellence Model To Physical Activity Programmes For The Elderly - Development Of A Quality Self-Assessment Tool Using A Modified Delphi Process, Ana I. Marques, Leonel Santos, Pedro Soares, Rute Santos, Antonio Oliveira-Tavares, Jorge Mota, Joana Carvalho

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background There has been a growing concern in designing physical activity (PA) programmes for elderly people, since evidence suggests that such health promotion interventions may reduce the deleterious effects of the ageing process. Complete programme evaluations are a necessary prerequisite to continuous quality improvements. Being able to refine, adapt and create tools that are suited to the realities and contexts of PA programmes for the elderly in order to support its continuous improvement is, therefore, crucial. Thus, the aim of this study was to develop a self-assessment tool for PA programmes for the elderly. Methods A 3-round Delphi process was …

Concrete Digital Computation: What Does It Take For A Physical System To Compute?, Nir Fresco

Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences - Papers: Part A

This paper deals with the question: what are the key requirements for a physical system to perform digital computation? Time and again cognitive scientists are quick to employ the notion of computation simpliciter when asserting basically that cognitive activities are computational. They employ this notion as if there was or is a consensus on just what it takes for a physical system to perform computation, and in particular digital computation. Some cognitive scientists in referring to digital computation simply adhere to Turing's notion of computability. Classical computability theory studies what functions on the natural numbers are computable and what mathematical …

Declining Physical Activity Levels As An Unintended Consequence Of Abolishing Mandatory Campus Service Fees, Sandra C. Jones, Lance R. Barrie

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective: This study investigates the effect of the introduction of voluntary student unionism and subsequent increase in campus facility fees on engagement in physical activity on campus. Participants: Participants were 1,904 students from a large regional NSW (Australia) university across 3 time periods (926 in 2005, 504 in 2006, and 474 in 2007). Methods: Students completed a survey across the 3 time periods, responding to questions about physical activity levels, use of on-campus and off-campus facilities, and barriers to facility use. Results: Participation in physical activity at university facilities was low overall, and declined substantially between 2005 and 2007, with …

Physical Cinema: Practitioners And Recent Practice, Michael G. Leggett

Faculty of Creative Arts - Papers (Archive)

Physical theatre, Live Art and Cinema have through performer and filmmaker established a vigorous practice in recent years, challenging the confines of more traditional art forms. Practitioners have come together with audiences to create between them a physical cinema converging as a series of spatial modes.This paper will outline some recent developments in this interdisciplinary field.