Faculty Advisor

Jennifer Tucker, PT, DPT, PCS

Publication Date

Spring 2020

Abstract

PURPOSE: To investigate the impact of an intergenerational (IG) physical activity (PA) program on children regarding PA levels and attitudes towards aging and participation in the community, school, and at home.

METHODS: An IG PA intervention called Grow and Play was implemented over 8 weeks for 16 sessions lasting 60-90 minutes each with outcomes measures testing in the first and last week. Nine children 6-12 years old were recruited from the Winter Park Community Center and Orlando. Children’s Attitudes Toward PA (CAPTA), Children’s Perception of Aging and Elderly (CPAE), and Semantic Differential Scale (SDS) measured perception of aging and PA. The Participation and Environment Measure-Children and Youth (PEM-CY) measured participation and PA preferences. An Actigraph GT9X measured PA.

RESULTS: Using an alpha level of 0.1, there were statistically significant improvements in the attitudes children had towards the benefit of PA for overall attitude toward PA (p = 0.093), meeting new people (p=0.029), and enjoyment of PA with graceful movements (p=0.081). Positive improvements, but not statistically significant for better health (p=0.104). Changes in PA levels using an accelerometer were not found to be significant.

CONCLUSION: The IG PA program Grow and Play may have positive impacts on children’s views towards PA. More research will need to be performed with a larger sample size to be able to better generalize the impact of IG programs on PA in children.

Access Status

UCF Only

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