The contribution of psychosocial variables in explaining preschoolers’ physical activity.

OBJECTIVE: Based on the theory of planned behavior and the structural model of health behavior, the objectives of this study were to verify whether the psychosocial variables of daycare workers (intention, perceived behavioral control, descriptive norm, past behavior) influence preschoolers' physical activity in daycare centers and determine how these psychosocial variables combine with other factors (environmental, sociodemographic, democratic intervention) to explain children's physical activity. METHOD: Forty-six daycare workers from 20 daycare centers in Quebec, Canada completed a self-reported questionnaire assessing psychosocial and sociodemographic variables. Thirty days later, 242 children wore an accelerometer. A research assistant went to each daycare center to observe the environment and the democratic intervention of daycare workers. FINDINGS: The specific direct determinants of children's overall mean count/15 seconds were intention, descriptive norm, democratic intervention, daycare workers' age, availability of material, and children's age and gender. CONCLUSION: In order to increase the overall mean count/15 seconds among preschoolers, it would be important to motivate daycare workers to make children move. Strategies likely to help motivate daycare workers to take action are also necessary. It might be interesting to encourage them to use democratic intervention with children. Use of material adapted to the needs of the children that stimulates their intellectual and socioaffective development should also be encouraged.