This article was downloaded by: [New York University] On: 17 April 2015, At: 08:13 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/urqe20
Attitudes toward Physical Activity of Fourth and Fifth Grade Boys and Girls a
Patricia Patterson & Nell Faucette
a
a
Department of Physical Education , San Diego State University , USA Published online: 08 Feb 2013.
To cite this article: Patricia Patterson & Nell Faucette (1990) Attitudes toward Physical Activity of Fourth and Fifth Grade Boys and Girls, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 61:4, 415-418, DOI: 10.1080/02701367.1990.10607508 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02701367.1990.10607508
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http:// www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions
PA'ITI!lISON AND FAUCBlTB
REsEARCH QUARrERLY
REsEARCH
NOTE
FOR EXERCSB AND SPORT
1990, VOL. 61, No.4, pp. 415-418
Attitudes Toward Physical Activity of Fourth and Fifth Grade Boys and Girls
Downloaded by [New York University] at 08:13 17 April 2015
PATRICIA PATIERSON AND NELL FAUCETIE San Diego State University
Key words: attitudes, CATPA, physicalactivity In 1972,TitleIX of theEducationalActwasimplemented to prohibit discrimination because of gender. Consequently, physical education classes were to be gender-integrated in order to provide equal opportunities for instruction. Several studies (Allard, 1979; Griffin, 1983, 1984, 1985), however, suggest that both teachers and students bring stereotypic attitudes to physical education class whether it is genderintegratedor gender-separate. In effect,teachersand students still consider certain activities"girls' activities" (e.g., gymnastics),whileother activitiesare consideredmoreappropriate for boys (e.g., flag football). Given the possibility that stereotypic attitudestowardgenderexist in relationto certain activities,it seems importantto ascertain if differencesexist in boys' and girls' attitudes toward the general construct of physical activity. Simon and Smoll (1974) developed an inventory to assesschildren's attitudestowardphysicalactivity(CATPA). This inventory was developed from the same theoretical construct as Kenyon's Attitude Toward Physical Activity (ATPA)inventory(1968),whichviewsphysicalactivityas a multidimensional construct. The CATPA inventorymeasuresthe disposition of childrentowardtheconstructofphysicalactivity.Themostrecent research (Schutz,Smoll, Carre, & Mosher, 1985)has shown thattheconstructcan be dividedintoeightsubdomains. These include Social Growth; SocialContinuation; Healthand Fitness:Value;HealthandFitness: Enjoyment; Vertigo; Catharsis; Aesthetic; and Ascetic. Several studies have employed the CATPA inventory. Some studieshave focusedon the psychometric propertiesof the CATPA (Schutz et al., 1985; Schutz, Smoll, & Wood, 1981b), while other studies examined the relationship between attitude. involvement in activity, motor performance (Smoll,Schutz, & Keeney,1976),andthestabilityof attitudes in children (Smoll & Schutz, 1980).
Although Schutz et al. (1985) present norms for third, seventh,and eleventh grade children, they are based on data collectedin 1980.Furthermore,normativedataonchildrenin gradesfourandfive wouldprovideinformation onattitudesof children in middle childhood. Additionally, no studies have been conducted comparing the attitudes of boys and girls towardphysicalactivity since 1981.Therefore,the purposes of thisstudy were twofold: first, to presentdataon fourthand fifth gradechildrenusingthe revisedCATPA and, second,to comparethe attitudesof fourthand fifth gradeboys and girls towardphysical activity.
Method Subjects All fourth and fifth grade children from four southern California schools participated in the study. The sample consistedof215 boysand 199girls.Two schoolshadphysical educationspecialiststeachingthe physicaleducationclasses, while the other two schools had classroomteachersteaching the classes. The four schools were selected to represent the diversityin geographic andsocioeconomic levelof theschool system. The principals and teachers of all the schools gave consentfor theCATPA inventoryto be administeredas a tool to providefeedbackto the teachersabout the activitiesin the physicaleducationcurriculum.
CATPA Inventory The CATPA inventory was administered in the classroom by one of the investigators or a trainedassistantduring spring1987.Instructions werereadaloudand anexamplewas presented to clarify how the students were to complete the
RESEARCH QUARTBRL Y FOR EXERCISE AND SPORT, VOL.
415
61, No.4
PA11llRSON AND FAUC1!1TIl
form. Each page represented a subdomain of the construct of physical activity. The eight subdomains were Social Growth; Social Continuation; Health and Fitness: Value; Health and Fitness: Enjoyment; Catharsis; Aesthetic; Vertigo; and Ascetic. A maximum of25 points was possibleforall subdomains except Health and Fitness. This subdomain is divided into Health and Fitness: Value, with two items, and Health and Fitness: Enjoyment, with three items. Schutz et al. (1985) recommend rescaling these to 25 points by multiplying the raw scores by 2.5 and 1.67, respectively.
Downloaded by [New York University] at 08:13 17 April 2015
Statistical Analysis Descriptive statistics, including the means and standard deviations, were calculated for each of the eight subdomains to provide normative information. Multivariate analysis of variance was employed to determine if there were any differences between the attitudes ofboys and girls on theCATP A. On finding a significant overall difference, univariate F tests were employed to determine the location of the differences. Additionally, the reliability of each subdomain was calculated using coefficient alpha.
Results Table 1 displays the reliability coefficients, means and standard deviations, and therankings for the eight subdomains ofthe CATPA inventory for both boys and girls. The reliability coefficients generally ranged from .77 to .90, except for the Health and Fitness: Value subdomain, which had values as low as .67. Considering the short length of each domain, the obtained reliability coefficients are quite high and corroborate the results of other studies that have reported reliability coefficients ranging from .80 to .90 (Schutz & Smoll, 1977;
Schutz, Smoll, & Wood,1981a; Simon & Smoll, 1974; Smoll & Schutz, 1980). The means and standard deviations for each subdomain of the CATPA inventory suggest that both boys and girls expressed very favorable attitudes toward the Health and Fitness: Value subdomain, with mean scores ofapproximately 22.5 points. According to Barrow, McGee, and Tritschler (1989), who present a scoring table for the CATPA, scores of 23-25 points reflect "very good" attitudes. Additionally, both social subdomains and the Health and Fitness: Enjoyment subdomain were also viewed quite favorably. On the other hand, the Ascetic and Vertigo subdomains were less favorably viewed by both girls and boys, with mean values ranging from 15 to 17 points. These scores represent a neutral attitude (Barrow et al., 1989). Thus, for both males and females in this study, the thrill seeking/dangerelement(Vertigo) and the hard training element (Ascetic) were not as attractive as other facets of activity. Rankings of the eight subdomains based on the means showed littledifference inrankings between males and females, with both boys and girls ranking the fitness and social subdomains in the top four positions. Health and Fitness: Value and Social Continuation were ranked first and second by both boys and girls with Social Growth and Health and Fitness: Enjoyment ranked third and fourth. The only difference in ranking occurred for the Aesthetic and Cathartic subdomains. Girls ranked the Aesthetic subdomain fifth and the Cathartic subdomain sixth, while boys reversed these rankings. Multivariate analysis of variance resulted in a significant difference between the attitudes of boys and girls on the CATPA(F[8,405]=4.53;p
Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/urqe20
Attitudes toward Physical Activity of Fourth and Fifth Grade Boys and Girls a
Patricia Patterson & Nell Faucette
a
a
Department of Physical Education , San Diego State University , USA Published online: 08 Feb 2013.
To cite this article: Patricia Patterson & Nell Faucette (1990) Attitudes toward Physical Activity of Fourth and Fifth Grade Boys and Girls, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 61:4, 415-418, DOI: 10.1080/02701367.1990.10607508 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02701367.1990.10607508
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http:// www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions
PA'ITI!lISON AND FAUCBlTB
REsEARCH QUARrERLY
REsEARCH
NOTE
FOR EXERCSB AND SPORT
1990, VOL. 61, No.4, pp. 415-418
Attitudes Toward Physical Activity of Fourth and Fifth Grade Boys and Girls
Downloaded by [New York University] at 08:13 17 April 2015
PATRICIA PATIERSON AND NELL FAUCETIE San Diego State University
Key words: attitudes, CATPA, physicalactivity In 1972,TitleIX of theEducationalActwasimplemented to prohibit discrimination because of gender. Consequently, physical education classes were to be gender-integrated in order to provide equal opportunities for instruction. Several studies (Allard, 1979; Griffin, 1983, 1984, 1985), however, suggest that both teachers and students bring stereotypic attitudes to physical education class whether it is genderintegratedor gender-separate. In effect,teachersand students still consider certain activities"girls' activities" (e.g., gymnastics),whileother activitiesare consideredmoreappropriate for boys (e.g., flag football). Given the possibility that stereotypic attitudestowardgenderexist in relationto certain activities,it seems importantto ascertain if differencesexist in boys' and girls' attitudes toward the general construct of physical activity. Simon and Smoll (1974) developed an inventory to assesschildren's attitudestowardphysicalactivity(CATPA). This inventory was developed from the same theoretical construct as Kenyon's Attitude Toward Physical Activity (ATPA)inventory(1968),whichviewsphysicalactivityas a multidimensional construct. The CATPA inventorymeasuresthe disposition of childrentowardtheconstructofphysicalactivity.Themostrecent research (Schutz,Smoll, Carre, & Mosher, 1985)has shown thattheconstructcan be dividedintoeightsubdomains. These include Social Growth; SocialContinuation; Healthand Fitness:Value;HealthandFitness: Enjoyment; Vertigo; Catharsis; Aesthetic; and Ascetic. Several studies have employed the CATPA inventory. Some studieshave focusedon the psychometric propertiesof the CATPA (Schutz et al., 1985; Schutz, Smoll, & Wood, 1981b), while other studies examined the relationship between attitude. involvement in activity, motor performance (Smoll,Schutz, & Keeney,1976),andthestabilityof attitudes in children (Smoll & Schutz, 1980).
Although Schutz et al. (1985) present norms for third, seventh,and eleventh grade children, they are based on data collectedin 1980.Furthermore,normativedataonchildrenin gradesfourandfive wouldprovideinformation onattitudesof children in middle childhood. Additionally, no studies have been conducted comparing the attitudes of boys and girls towardphysicalactivity since 1981.Therefore,the purposes of thisstudy were twofold: first, to presentdataon fourthand fifth gradechildrenusingthe revisedCATPA and, second,to comparethe attitudesof fourthand fifth gradeboys and girls towardphysical activity.
Method Subjects All fourth and fifth grade children from four southern California schools participated in the study. The sample consistedof215 boysand 199girls.Two schoolshadphysical educationspecialiststeachingthe physicaleducationclasses, while the other two schools had classroomteachersteaching the classes. The four schools were selected to represent the diversityin geographic andsocioeconomic levelof theschool system. The principals and teachers of all the schools gave consentfor theCATPA inventoryto be administeredas a tool to providefeedbackto the teachersabout the activitiesin the physicaleducationcurriculum.
CATPA Inventory The CATPA inventory was administered in the classroom by one of the investigators or a trainedassistantduring spring1987.Instructions werereadaloudand anexamplewas presented to clarify how the students were to complete the
RESEARCH QUARTBRL Y FOR EXERCISE AND SPORT, VOL.
415
61, No.4
PA11llRSON AND FAUC1!1TIl
form. Each page represented a subdomain of the construct of physical activity. The eight subdomains were Social Growth; Social Continuation; Health and Fitness: Value; Health and Fitness: Enjoyment; Catharsis; Aesthetic; Vertigo; and Ascetic. A maximum of25 points was possibleforall subdomains except Health and Fitness. This subdomain is divided into Health and Fitness: Value, with two items, and Health and Fitness: Enjoyment, with three items. Schutz et al. (1985) recommend rescaling these to 25 points by multiplying the raw scores by 2.5 and 1.67, respectively.
Downloaded by [New York University] at 08:13 17 April 2015
Statistical Analysis Descriptive statistics, including the means and standard deviations, were calculated for each of the eight subdomains to provide normative information. Multivariate analysis of variance was employed to determine if there were any differences between the attitudes ofboys and girls on theCATP A. On finding a significant overall difference, univariate F tests were employed to determine the location of the differences. Additionally, the reliability of each subdomain was calculated using coefficient alpha.
Results Table 1 displays the reliability coefficients, means and standard deviations, and therankings for the eight subdomains ofthe CATPA inventory for both boys and girls. The reliability coefficients generally ranged from .77 to .90, except for the Health and Fitness: Value subdomain, which had values as low as .67. Considering the short length of each domain, the obtained reliability coefficients are quite high and corroborate the results of other studies that have reported reliability coefficients ranging from .80 to .90 (Schutz & Smoll, 1977;
Schutz, Smoll, & Wood,1981a; Simon & Smoll, 1974; Smoll & Schutz, 1980). The means and standard deviations for each subdomain of the CATPA inventory suggest that both boys and girls expressed very favorable attitudes toward the Health and Fitness: Value subdomain, with mean scores ofapproximately 22.5 points. According to Barrow, McGee, and Tritschler (1989), who present a scoring table for the CATPA, scores of 23-25 points reflect "very good" attitudes. Additionally, both social subdomains and the Health and Fitness: Enjoyment subdomain were also viewed quite favorably. On the other hand, the Ascetic and Vertigo subdomains were less favorably viewed by both girls and boys, with mean values ranging from 15 to 17 points. These scores represent a neutral attitude (Barrow et al., 1989). Thus, for both males and females in this study, the thrill seeking/dangerelement(Vertigo) and the hard training element (Ascetic) were not as attractive as other facets of activity. Rankings of the eight subdomains based on the means showed littledifference inrankings between males and females, with both boys and girls ranking the fitness and social subdomains in the top four positions. Health and Fitness: Value and Social Continuation were ranked first and second by both boys and girls with Social Growth and Health and Fitness: Enjoyment ranked third and fourth. The only difference in ranking occurred for the Aesthetic and Cathartic subdomains. Girls ranked the Aesthetic subdomain fifth and the Cathartic subdomain sixth, while boys reversed these rankings. Multivariate analysis of variance resulted in a significant difference between the attitudes of boys and girls on the CATPA(F[8,405]=4.53;p
