Physical activity among African American and Latino middle school girls: Consistent beliefs, expectations, and experiences across two sites

Physical inactivity is a major public health concern. Low levels of physica l activity are reported in many subgroups of women including adolescent gir ls. More data are needed to better understand factors related to physical a ctivity participation in adolescent girls. Therefore, we explored adolescen t girls' reasons for participating and not participating in physical activi ty. Two independent samples were taken in California and Texas; the total s ample included thirty-four African American and Latino girls. Six focus gro ups were conducted by trained facilitators. Based on independent qualitativ e analyses, six replicated themes emerged from the focus groups. Fun, socia l support, and concern with body image facilitated participation in activit y. In contrast, negative experiences in physical education classes, concern s about appearance after activity, and lack of opportunity impeded particip ation in activity. Overall, the girls showed an interest in physical activi ty and identified activity motivators and barriers. We discuss the implicat ions of our findings for future research.