An Ecological Approach to Exploring Physical Activity Interventions Aimed at Young UK-Based Females: A Narrative Systematic Review

Despite the well-documented benefits of physical activity (PA), physical inactivity remains a global public health concern. Particularly high levels of sedentarism prevail among young females, making them an important target population for PA behaviour intervention. The effectiveness of interventions designed for this population has not been rigorously analysed and previous reviews of PA interventions and their ability to target specific barriers and subgroups of society have produced inconsistent findings. Ecological models have proven instrumental in categorising factors that influence health behaviours on multiple levels (intrapersonal, interpersonal, organisational and environmental, and, policy and legislative). This narrative systematic review aims to collate, summarise and synthesise evidence pertaining to the characteristics of PA interventions aimed at young females in the UK (14 - 25 years), explore the measures used to evaluate intervention impact within this population, and to make recommendations for future PA intervention research through an ecological perspective. UK-based PA intervention studies including healthy females aged 14 - 25 were identified through five electronic databases. Two reviewers independently screened the studies for inclusion, data was extracted based upon agreed criteria, and results were discussed in light of the ecological model of health behaviour. From the 21 articles included in the analysis, 17 interventions took place in educational institutions. PA options were limited across, and within interventions, and only four studies employed qualitative methods to investigate intervention effectiveness. Utilizing the ecological model it was identified that 20 studies investigated intrapersonal factors such as body composition and self-efficacy, and only seven studies explored multiple levels of the model. In conclusion, PA interventions designed considering the influence and dynamic interplay of multi-level factors suggested by the ecological model are likely to be valuable in promoting sustainable PA; such interventions aimed at young females are currently lacking. Future research should employ a variety of methodologies to evaluate intervention effectiveness.