The Role of Perceived Competence in Determining Teacher Support in Upper Secondary School Physical Education

Physical education remains one of the most liked school subjects, irrespective of grade level or geography. Nevertheless, sections of the student body dislike the subject immensely and even more think it should be organized differently. Students who are less competent have long claimed that physical education teachers and the curriculum favor the competent. Despite clear refusals of any conscious favoritism from the teachers, perceived competence is one of the premier predictors of students liking and being motivated to participate in the subject, the other being participation in organized sport. The purpose of this study was therefore to refute or confirm the veracity of the aforementioned claims through an investigation of the relationship between perceived competence and teacher-dependent support in upper secondary school physical education. One thousand one hundred thirty-three upper secondary school students (Mage = 17.2, SD = 0.86) from Norway (n = 554) and Iceland (n = 579) participated in a cross-sectional survey. Four teacher-dependent support variables were measured via self-reporting: perceived competence support, perceived relatedness support, perceived autonomy support, and perceived teacher learning support. To simplify comparison between groups, we divided the sample into three units: highly competent students, moderately competent students, and less competent students. A one-way multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA), with gender as a covariate, found indications of biased teacher behavior, thus supporting the aforementioned accusations. Even though some discrepancies may exist between the reported and actual support levels, students respond and react in accordance with their perceptions, which is why their perceptions are of concern. These findings are incongruent with the aims of the subject and indicate that modified practices are needed if a more equal learning environment for all students is desired. To reverse the current trend, we provide three measures that we believe can reduce the aforementioned discrepancy. First, PE teachers must become more aware of their own biases, recognizing their tendency to treat the competent more favorably. Second, challenges related to the students who show less appreciation for the subject should become more prominent in physical education teacher education. Finally, the advantage of those who participate in leisuretime sporting activities, over those who do not, should be reduced through a reevaluation of the current curricular implementation.acceptedVersio

Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations in 16-year-old Icelandic adolescent and its association with bone mineral density

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the potential association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and whole-body bone mineral density (BMD) among 16-year-old adolescents and to study the prevalence of 25(OH)D insufficiency, defined as concentration under 50 nmol/l.Design: A cross-sectional study.Setting: Reykjavik, Iceland, latitude 64°08′N. Measurements took place in the Icelandic Heart Association's research lab during April-June 2015.Participants: In total, 411 students in Reykjavik, Iceland, were invited to participate, 315 accepted the invitation (76·6 %) and 289 had valid data (mainly Caucasian).Results: 25(OH)D < 50 nmol/l was observed in 70 % of girls and 66·7 % of boys. 25(OH)D ≥ 50 nmol/l was significantly associated with higher whole-body BMD after adjusting for the influence of sex, height, fat mass and lean mass. A linear relationship between 25(OH)D and whole-body BMD was significant for 25(OH)D < 50 nmol/l (n 199, P < 0·05) but NS for 25(OH)D ≥ 50 nmol/l (n 86, P = 0·48).Conclusions: Our results are in line with some but not all previous studies on the relationship between BMD and 25(OH)D in adolescents. The observed difference in BMD between those with above v. below a 25(OH)D concentration of 50 nmol/l was of about a fifth of one SD, which may have a clinical relevance as one SD decrease in volumetric BMD has been associated with a 89 % increase in 2 years risk of fracture. Icelandic adolescents should be encouraged to increase their vitamin D intake as it is possible that their current intake is insufficient to achieve optimal peak bone mass.The authors would like to thank the participants of the study, the staff at the Icelandic Heart Association. They also thank The Icelandic Centre for Research (RANNIS) and the Research Fund of the Icelandic College of Family Physicians for financial support. Financial support : The study was funded by the Icelandic Centre for research (RANNIS) (grant number 152509-051). Conflict of interest : The authors certify that they have NO affiliations with or involvement in any organisation or entity with any financial interest or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript. Authorship : S.L.G. and H.H. wrote the manuscript with input from all authors. H.H. and S.L.G. designed the statistical models and H.H. performed the data analyses. E.L.S. and E.J. conceived the study and managed the overall direction of the project. Disclosure: The Icelandic Centre for Research had no role in the design, analysis or writing of this article. Ethics of human subject participation : The current study was conducted according to the guidelines laid down in the Declaration of Helsinki, and all procedures involving research study participants were approved by The National Bioethics Committee in Iceland. Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects and their guardians.Peer Reviewe

Organized leisure-time sport participation and academic achievement in preadolescents

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)Aims: The aims of this study were to study the correlation between lifestyle-related factors, such as organized leisure-time sport participation (OLSP), cardiorespiratory fitness, and adiposity, and academic achievement among preadolescents. Methods: A cross-sectional study involving 248 nine-year-old school children was carried out. OLSP was self-reported with parental assistance, categorized as ≤ 1× a week, 2–3× a week, and ≥ 4× times a week or more. Academic achievement was estimated with results from standardized test scores in Icelandic and math. Cardiorespiratory fitness was estimated using a maximal cycle ergometer test. The sum of four skinfolds was used to estimate adiposity. Results: Tests of between-subjects effect indicated that OLSP significantly correlated with achievement in math only (F(2,235) = 3.81, p = 0.024). Further analysis showed that the two less active groups had significantly lower scores in math compared to the most active group with OLSP ≥ 4× times a week or more (2–3× times a week, unstandardized coefficient (b) = –4.08, 95% confidence interval (CI) [–7.09, –1.07]; ≤ 1× a week, b = −3.84, 95% CI [–7.59, –0.08]), independent of sex, age, maturity level (age to/from peak height velocity), family structure, and parental education. Neither cardiorespiratory fitness nor adiposity significantly correlated with academic achievements. Conclusions: The study’s result indicates that frequent (four times per week or more often) sport participation is not harmful but may be beneficial to learning. However, further intervention-based study of this topic is needed to determine if this relationship is causal.The Icelandic Centre for Research (RANNIS) funded this, along with the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture, and The Icelandic Primary Health Care Research FundPeer Reviewe

Less physical activity and more varied and disrupted sleep is associated with a less favorable metabolic profile in adolescents

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)Background: Sleep and physical activity are modifiable behaviors that play an important role in preventing overweight, obesity, and metabolic health problems. Studies of the association between concurrent objective measures of sleep, physical activity, and metabolic risk factors among adolescents are limited. Objective: The aim of the study was to examine the association between metabolic risk factors and objectively measured school day physical activity and sleep duration, quality, onset, and variability in adolescents. Materials and methods: We measured one school week of free-living sleep and physical activity with wrist actigraphy in 252 adolescents (146 girls), aged 15.8±0.3 years. Metabolic risk factors included body mass index, waist circumference, total body and trunk fat percentage, resting blood pressure, and fasting glucose and insulin levels. Multiple linear regression adjusted for sex, parental education, and day length was used to assess associations between metabolic risk factors and sleep and activity parameters. Results: On average, participants went to bed at 00:22±0.88 hours and slept 6.2±0.7 hours/night, with 0.83±0.36 hours of awakenings/night. However, night-to-night variability in sleep duration was considerable (mean ± interquartile range) 0.75±0.55 hours) and bedtime (0.64±0.53 hours) respectively. Neither average sleep duration nor mean bedtime was associated with any metabolic risk factors. However, greater night-to-night variability in sleep duration and bedtime was associated with higher total body and trunk fat percentage, and less physical activity was associated with higher trunk fat percentage and insulin levels. Conclusion: Greater nightly variation in sleep duration and in bedtime and less physical activity were associated with a less favorable metabolic profile in adolescents. These findings support the idea that, along with an adequate amount of physical activity, a regular sleep schedule is important for the metabolic health of adolescents.VR had financial support by The Icelandic Centre for Research (RANNIS) The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Peer Reviewe

Screen Time and Body Image in Icelandic Adolescents : Sex-Specific Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Associations

Funding Information: Funding: This research was funded by The University of Iceland Research Fund, grant number. HI16120043, and the Icelandic Centre for research (RANNIS), grant number 152509-051. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Studies of adolescent body image and screen use are mostly limited to girls, and longitudinal data are scarce. We examined cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between these variables in mid-adolescent boys and girls. Data was collected when participants were at age 15 and 17, by questionnaire and objective measurements (n = 152 had complete data). Sex-specific linear regression was used to explore cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of self-reported screen use (total use, and time spent in gaming, TV/DVD/internet-based watching and internet use for communication) and body image, adjusting for vigorous physical activity, symptoms of depression, and body composition. Screen time was negatively associated with body image at both time points, although more strongly at age 15, and for girls only. Gaming and TV/DVD/internet watching was more strongly associated with body image than internet use for communication. Girls with above median screen time at both ages had 14% lower body image score at age 17 than girls with below median screen time at both time points. Our results suggest that screen use is likely to play a role in the development of body dissatisfaction among adolescent females. Limiting screen time may, therefore, help to mitigate body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls.Peer reviewe

Þrek, holdafar og heilsutengd lífsgæði eftir krabbameinsmeðferð

TILGANGUR Sífellt fleiri lifa lengi eftir meðferð vegna krabbameins. Þekking á langtímaáhrifum krabbameinsmeðferðar á þrek, holdafar og heilsutengd lífsgæði fólks, er mikilvæg fyrir þennan vaxandi samfélagshóp. Tilgangur rannsóknarinnar var tvíþættur: (a) að mæla þrek, holdafar, heilsutengd lífsgæði og persónueinkenni fólks sem hefur lokið við læknismeðferð vegna krabbameina undanfarin 10 ár; og (b) að athuga hvort þrek hafi fylgni við holdafar og heilsutengd lífsgæði fólks sem hefur lokið við læknismeðferð vegna krabbameina. EFNIVIÐUR OG AÐFERÐIR Áttatíu þátttakendur (25-77 ára) af báðum kynjum, sem voru í sjúkdómshléi eða álitnir læknaðir af krabbameini, svöruðu spurningalistum um heilsutengd lífsgæði (SF-36v2 og EQ-5D-3L) og persónuleika D (DS14). Blóðþrýstingur, líkamsþyngdarstuðull (LÞS), fituprósenta, þrek metið með 6 mínútna gönguprófi (6MWT) og ummál mittis og mjaðma var mælt. Notað var SPSS til að fá lýsandi tölfræði og við útreikning á fylgnistuðlum, miðað var við 95% marktektarmörk. NIÐURSTÖÐUR Tveir af hverjum þremur þátttakendum voru með einhverja þætti holdafars yfir viðmiðunarmörkum. Rúmlega helmingur þátttakenda var yfir kjörþyngd, 66,3% voru með mittisummál yfir viðmiðunarmörkum, 45,0% voru með hlutfall milli mittis og mjaðma yfir viðmiðunarmörkum. Gengin vegalengd í 6MWT var að meðaltali 634 m +/- 83 m. Marktæk fylgni (p<0,05) mældist á milli 6MWT og holdafars, ásamt 6MWT við flesta þætti heilsutengdra lífsgæða. Aðeins 13,8% þátttakenda mældust með persónuleika D. ÁLYKTANIR Holdafar fólks sem hefur lokið við krabbameinsmeðferð er almennt yfir viðmiðunarmörkum. Þrek hefur fylgni við heilsutengd lífsgæði og holdafar fólks sem hefur lokið við krabbameinsmeðferð