Relationship between peer group size and active outdoor play in children aged 9-12 years

Oral Presentation A2.1

Authors

  • Kazuya Tamura Kobe University
  • Ryo Goto Kobe University
  • Naoki Yamada Kobe University
  • Kiyomasa Nakatsuka Kobe University
  • Kazuaki Uchida Kobe University
  • Kana Horibe Kobe University
  • Kenta Saeki Kobe University
  • Haruhi Encho Kobe University
  • Masato Tezuka Kobe University
  • Mao Mukaijo Kobe University
  • Rei Ono Kobe University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14288/hfjc.v14i3.381

Keywords:

Outdoor Play, Peer Group, Child, Development

Abstract

Background: Outdoor play in childhood is important for physical, cognitive, and social development. Outdoor play is thought to be influenced by friends, but the relationship is not clear. Purpose: To investigate the association between peer group size and outdoor play among children aged 9-12 years. Methods: We recruited fourth- to sixth-grade children from two public elementary schools in Kobe, Japan. Children who participated in outdoor play on 3 or more of the 5 weekdays were categorized into “high”. We asked children to nominate up to 10 of their closest friends. And we calculated peer group size as the total number of reciprocal closest friends in each child. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the association between peer group size and outdoor play frequency, adjusted for sex, grade, school, body mass index, sports club participation, screen time of using cell phones and screen time of playing video games. Results: The analysis sample comprises 291 children (137 girls, mean age: 10.59 ± 1.02 years). For outdoor play frequency, 114 children (39%) were classified in the “high”. The mean peer group size was 3.90 ± 2.07. Children with larger peer group size had a significantly higher probability of being categorized as “high” (odds ratio: 1.23, 95% confidence interval: 1.09-1.39). Conclusion: This study suggested that encouraging children to interact with each other may promote them to participate in outdoor play. Funding: This research received no specific grant.

Published

2021-09-30

How to Cite

Tamura, K., Goto, R., Yamada, N., Nakatsuka, K., Uchida, K., Horibe, K., Saeki, K., Encho, H., Tezuka, M., Mukaijo, M., & Ono, R. (2021). Relationship between peer group size and active outdoor play in children aged 9-12 years: Oral Presentation A2.1. The Health & Fitness Journal of Canada, 14(3). https://doi.org/10.14288/hfjc.v14i3.381