Teachers' Perceived Effects of Classroom Physical Activity Breaks on Students' Self-Regulation: A Mixed-Methods Study

This mixed-methods study focused on teachers' perceptions about the effects of a classroom physical activity breaks (CPAB) program on students' self-regulation. Participants were six teachers and 47 elementary students (6 to 10 years old). Teachers identified two groups: 23 students with behavioral difficulties and 22 students in the control group. A simultaneous mixed design was used to measure teachers' perceptions of students' self-regulation with the Self-Regulation Questionnaire teacher version and interviews. According to teachers, a CPAB program seems interesting to support students' cognitive, behavioral, and emotional self-regulation through different processes, such as task involvement, energy modulation, emotional expressivity, emotional modulation, and self-consciousness. Quantitative and qualitative results converged, suggesting that CPAB could be helpful for students with behavioral difficulties considering the positive effects identified on different dimensions of their self-regulation. Divergences also emerged regarding the implied dimensions and processes of self-regulation, underscoring the importance of using a mixed-methods design to measure self-regulation.