The effective characteristics in PE-based interventions on social cohesion

Abstract

The physiological benefits of physical activity on young people are well established. Despite these well-known benefits, rates of engagement in physical activity have demonstrated a steady decline globally. Anti-social behaviours have partly contributed to this decline with a plethora of studies which have examined social health, demonstrating the direct link between students’ engagement rates in physical education classes, and social interactions. Interventions targeting social elements have emerged in literature and targeted Physical Education (PE) classes, in particular. Due to the volume of interventions on this topic, a systematic review of literature was needed to clarify the effective characteristics in intervention design for use in literature in the future. A systematic review is required due to its meticulous nature and as it provides researchers with the ability to find gaps in literature, thereby focusing their work on new and emerging ideas. The current systematic review of literature has found that at present ‘effective’ characteristics of PE based interventions have presented mixed results due to numerous contributing factors. The results indicate that future interventions should include stakeholders, such as parents, teachers as facilitators, and to include interventions in both primary and secondary school settings. The duration of interventions yielded mixed results and in order to demonstrate long term, transferable benefits, more research in this area is needed.