Effects of an Empowerment-Based Health-Promotion School Intervention on Physical Activity and Sedentary Time among Adolescents in a Multicultural Area

• Main Authors: Andreas Fröberg, Linus Jonsson, Christina Berg, Eva-Carin Lindgren, Peter Korp, Magnus Lindwall, Anders Raustorp, Christel Larsson
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2018-11-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: empowerment; exercise; health promotion; participatory; physical activity; school; sedentary behavior
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/11/2542

Physical activity (PA) decreases with age, and interventions are needed to promote PA during adolescence, especially, among those in low-socioeconomic status (SES) areas. The aim of this study was to investigate whether a two-year, empowerment-based health-promotion school intervention had any effects on changes in (a) moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA), (b) sedentary time (SED), (c) exercise training (ET) frequency, and (d) ET duration, among adolescents. Participants (aged 12⁻13 years at baseline) from one intervention school and two control schools, were recruited from a multicultural area of Sweden, characterized by low-SES. During the course of the two-year intervention, a total of 135 participants (43% boys) were included in the study. The intervention was developed and implemented as a result of cooperation and shared decision-making among the researchers and the participants. MVPA and SED were measured with accelerometers, and ET frequency and duration was self-reported at the beginning of the seventh, eighth, and ninth grade, respectively. There were no significant effects of the two-year, empowerment-based health-promotion school intervention on changes in the accelerometer-measured MVPA and SED, or the self-reported ET frequency and duration, among the adolescents. Overall, the intervention was unsuccessful at promoting PA and reducing SED. Several possible explanations for the intervention’s lack of effects are discussed.