Examining PLAY to Increase Levels of Physical Activity Among Youth During Leisure Time

Physical activity has multiple benefits for people of all ages. For children and youth, regular physical activity improves health and well-being, including attention and academic performance. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that youth between the ages of 6 and 17 years participate daily in at least 60 minutes of physical activity. One of the Healthy People 2030 objectives is to increase the proportion of youth meeting the federal physical activity guidelines. The present study, examined the effects of providing opportunities for youth to engage in preferred types of physical activities on levels of participation during leisure-time. Study participants were youths aged 6 to 13, who resided in a low-income housing complex and participated in an after-school program. The Preferred Leisure Alternative for Youth (PLAY) intervention was preceded by administration of Assessment of Preferred Leisure Alternatives for Youth (A-PLAY), a web-based preference assessment tool. A-PLAY was developed by the study team and used to identify activities that were highly preferred by the youth. A reversal design using momentary time sampling was used to examine whether access to highly preferred activities through the PLAY intervention increased the percentage of youth engaged in moderate to vigorous physical activity. Results suggest an increase in participation in physical activities occurred from baseline to intervention phases. The results have implications for examining the efficacy of using online preference assessments to inform interventions that may be used to increase youth physical activity in community-based settings.