PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OF SCHOOL-AGED CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS IN LIECHTENSTEIN

Abstract This paper analyses the frequency and extent of physical activity (PA) among school-aged children and adolescents in Liechtenstein by regarding selected socio-demographic factors (gender, age and parents’ sports activity). The cross-sectional study is based on an online survey conducted in 2015 among 11-, 13- and 15-year-old pupils (N = 448). According to our findings, children and adolescents do sports in their leisure time 3 ½ days a week, resulting in 6 hours per week on average; the percentage of pupils who do not participate in any sport is less than 5 % in total. Despite high sport participation, only a quarter achieved the WHO recommendation of at least 60 min of moderate-tovigorous physical activity (MVPA) per day. However, a significant decrease in physical and sport activities together with increasing resignation from sport clubs is shown in secondary schools. As a result of this inadequacy, at the end of the compulsory school period, adolescents should be considered as one of the important target groups for health promotion programs. In addition, the relation discovered between the activity level of adolescents and the sport status of their parents emphasizes the high relevance of parents for their childrens’ PA socialisation