Physical Activity, Energy Expenditure, Screen Time and Social Support in Spanish Adolescents-Towards an Explanatory Model about Health Risk Factors.

Youth obesity has been a pandemic for decades. One of its causes is a low level of physical activity. It is necessary to know the specific situation of adolescents and the factors that influence it in order to be able to act accordingly. The first aim of the current study is to create an explanatory model to establish the relationships between light physical activity time, light physical activity energy expenditure, screen time and social support. The second aim is to propose a theoretical model specifying the relationships between moderate-vigorous physical activity time, moderate-vigorous physical activity energy expenditure, screen time and social support. The study design was non-experimental (ex post facto), descriptive-correlational and cross-sectional. A total of 694 adolescents from the region of Soria (12-17 years) participated in the study. The instruments administered were the Four by One-Day Physical Activity Questionnaire, Parent Support Scale and Peer Support Scale. Two structural equation models were developed to analyse the relationships between the variables that comprised the explanatory models. The results show that social support had a negative influence on screen time in the proposed model in relation to light physical activity (r = -0.210; p ≤ 0.001) and in the proposed one regarding moderate-vigorous physical activity (r = -0.173; p ≤ 0.05). Social support was negatively related to light physical activity time (r = -0.167; p ≤ 0.05). Family support had a greater influence than did peer support. In conclusion, the models for light and moderate-vigorous physical activity are useful to describe the relationships between time, energy expenditure, screen time and social support.

Analysis of the psychometric properties of the five-factor self-concept questionnaire (AF-5) in Spanish students during the COVID-19 lockdown.

The present research aims to analyse the psychometric properties of the AF5 questionnaire for its adaptation for use with young people during a lockdown period. Research was conducted with a sample of 534 students aged between 13 and 17 years (M = 14.49; SD = 1.805). Exploratory factor analysis was conducted using the FACTOR program and confirmatory factor analysis was conducted using the M-PLUS 7 program. Results indicate that a four-dimensional model is most appropriate for bringing together the emotional and physical dimensions. Further, 11 items were removed due to poor factor loadings. The majority of factors were directly and positively correlated (99%; p < .01). The data obtained supports conclusions that the AF-5 meets validity and reliability requirements for it to be considered a useful instrument for use with young people during the COVID-19 lockdown period.

A Predictive Study of Resilience and Its Relationship with Academic and Work Dimensions during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to describe the resilience levels in a Spanish population during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and to analyze the existing associations between high resilience and socio-demographic, work, and academic parameters. METHOD: 1176 individuals aged 18-67 years participated in a descriptive cross-sectional study. The participants were administered the 10-item resilience scale developed by Connor-Davidson (CD-RISC-10) and an ad-hoc questionnaire that collected information on socio-demographic, work, and academic variables. Basic descriptive data were used to statistically analyze the data, and a binary logistic regression model was developed incorporating the professional occupation, academic level, whether the respondent worked in emergency services, and whether the respondent had dependents. RESULTS: Slightly more than a quarter of the participants showed low resilience, almost half reported moderate resilience, and slightly more than a quarter had high resilience. Those who were employed were 2.16-times more likely to have high resilience, whilst those with higher education were 1.57-times more likely. Those working in emergency services were 1.66-times more likely, and those with dependents were 1.58-times more likely to have high resilience. CONCLUSION: In addition to the relationships found, a need to improve the resilience levels in the population was found.

Analysis of Self-Concept in Adolescents before and during COVID-19 Lockdown: Differences by Gender and Sports Activity

An appeal has been issued to the scientific community to investigate physical, mental and emotional states, and pro-social behaviours during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, this study aims to investigate adolescents"self-concept before and during a lockdown period in relation to gender and type/amount of physical activity or sports. The pre-lockdown sample of 366 adolescents were aged 13-17 years (M = 15.51 ±0.65), of whom 192 (52.5%) were females and 174 (47.5%) were males. During the lockdown, the age range of the sample was 13-17 years (M = 14.57 ±1.47), of whom 82 (60.3%) were females, and 54 (39.7%) were males. The Form-5 Self-concept Questionnaire (AF-5) was used to measure adolescents"self-concept. There was a reduction in adolescents"overall self-concept during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was positively associated with emotional well-being, with family and peers being essential factors in the development of an appropriate self-concept. Furthermore, girls"self-concept, especially academic self-concept, was higher than that of boys during the lockdown. However, both physical and emotional self-concept were higher for boys than girls before the COVID-19 lockdown, although no differences were found during the lockdown. The findings reveal that physical activity was positively correlated to self-concept before and during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Cross-sectional study of self-concept and gender in relation to physical activity and martial arts in Spanish adolescents during the COVID-19 lockdown

The COVID-19 lockdown has negatively affected individuals’ welfare. However, there has been no research published heretofore about the levels of self-concept (SC) in adolescents, nor how having practised martial arts (MA) or any physical activity (PA) before the lockdown may have influenced the SC in that time. Hence, this study aimed to analyze some demographic, physical, and psychosocial parameters in Spanish adolescents throughout the COVID-19 quarantine through a cross-sectional investigation, establishing correlations among these factors. Methods: The present study had a descriptive, comparative, and cross-sectional design. The sample comprised of 54 (39.7%) male and 82 (60.3%) female Spanish adolescents aged 12–18 (M = 14.49;SD = 1.80). An ad-hoc questionnaire collected sociodemographic data;the self-concept Form 5 (AF5) questionnaire obtained data on SC dimensions. Results: There were some differences among the SC dimensions, with family and academic dimensions having higher values than the physical and emotional ones. Females’ academic SC was higher than that of males (p = 0.019). The practice of PA before the lockdown was positively associated with physical (p < 0.001) and social (p = 0.012) SC, yet there was no significant association between the previous practice of MA and SC (p > 0.050). Conclusions: the findings suggest that the COVID-19 lockdown negatively affected Spanish adolescents by decreasing their total SC and some dimensions of it, although PA may buffer psychological harmfulness in adolescents.