The purpose of this study was to explore how social relationships and
environmental settings impact physical activity attitudes and behaviors for adolescent
girls. Guided by a social ecological framework and following a phenomenological
interpretive tradition, focus group interviews were conducted with 32 adolescent girls (17
African American, 15 Caucasian) between the ages of 11 and 13 who attended public
middle schools. Adolescent girls indicated that parents and peers play a significant role in shaping
their physical activity behaviors as does the physical and social environments in which
they live. Themes that emerged from the analyses of data include (a) differing
conceptualizations of physical activity, (b) parents and peers as facilitators of activity, (c)
lack of girls’ active space in school and neighborhood environments, and (d) policy
restrictions on girls’ access to physical activity time. African American girls reported conceiving of physical activity as unstructured
play, often outside, where as White girls indicated they considered physical activity to be
closely related to adult-directed, organized sport. Girls described a desire to engage in
more physical activities with the mothers and other female relatives. A lack of
playground space at school and unsafe community environments hindered the amount of
activity in which girls engaged. Educational policies that prevent middle school girls
from participating in school sport programs, as well as restricting recess and lunch
periods to inside spaces impeded access to desired physical activity outlets by middle
school girls in this study. Findings support previous research and extend understanding
of girls’ perceptions of physical activity by allowing girls to voice their opinions and
concerns
