Abstract
Organised sport among youth makes a substantial contribution to daily energy expenditure.
This study investigated socioeconomic gradients in sport participation and predictors
of participation. A representative sample of young South Australians (10–15 y; n = 1737) was surveyed on organised sport participation in the previous 12 months, and
predictors derived from the Children's Physical Activity Correlates scale and a parent
survey. Four constructs were derived: ‘is it worth it?’ (perceived outcomes); ‘am
I able?’ (perceived competency); ‘reinforcing’ (parental support); and ‘enabling’
(perceived barriers, from the parent survey). Socioeconomic position (SEP) was operationalised
by an area-level indicator, the Socioeconomic Indicator for Advantage (SEIFA), split
into tertiles. Sport participation was higher among high (highest SEIFA tertile) compared
with low (lowest SEIFA tertile) SEP children. All predictors except ‘am I able?’ were
positively associated with sport participation among boys and girls. Of these predictors,
the ‘enabling’ construct varied by SEP among both boys and girls, with high SEP children
reporting fewer barriers to participation. High SEP girls reported higher scores on
‘reinforcing’ and ‘is it worth it?’ than their low SEP counterparts. Low SEP girls
reported lower levels of both instrumental and affective support from parents to play
sport. There are distinct SEP gradients in sport participation, as well as its psychosocial
and environmental predictors among South Australian youth. Low SEP girls are the most
disadvantaged in terms of parental support to participate in sport. Interventions
targeting this vulnerable group are urgently required.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: September 30, 2009
Accepted:
April 30,
2009
Received in revised form:
April 16,
2009
Received:
October 3,
2008
Footnotes
☆Disclaimer: This manuscript has not been published elsewhere, and is not being considered, or will be submitted for publication elsewhere until a final decision has been made as to its acceptability by this journal.
Identification
Copyright
© 2009 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
