Exploration of Social Cognitive Factors Associated with Physical Activity Among Chinese-American Children

This study examined the social cognitive factors associated with participation in physical activity among Chinese-American youth. Utilizing an observational cross-sectional design, data were collected via a self-administered survey from 84 Chinese-American children ages 6-18. The survey employed items from the Health Behavior Questionnaire and the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Logistic regressions were used to examine the correlates of physical activity. Findings revealed that among children nine years or younger, those with high self-efficacy were six times more likely to engage in sufficient moderate physical activity than children with low self-efficacy (OR=6.6, 95% CI= 1.27-33.80). Among participants older than nine years, those with high self-efficacy were almost nine times more likely to engage in sufficient vigorous physical activity than children with low self-efficacy (OR=8.7, 95% CI= 1.35-56.05), and those with positive social support were almost eleven times more likely to engage in vigorous physical activity than participants perceiving negative social support (OR=10.90, 95% CI= 1.02-116.37). The findings of this study address the association of social cognitive factors with participation in physical activity. Results from this study indicate that socio-environmental factors in addition to personal factors may increase the likelihood of participation in physical activity among Chinese American children.