Johannes Chanté, Reid James, Roman Nicolette
Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies of Children, Families, and Society, University of the Western Cape, Cape Town 7535, South Africa.
School of Education, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield HD1 3DH, UK.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2025 Jun 5;22(6):901. doi: 10.3390/ijerph22060901.
Physical inactivity is a pervasive global public health concern, yet there is limited qualitative research exploring the psychosocial dimensions of physical activity (PA) among undergraduate students at a South African university. Therefore, this study aimed to explore students' PA participation, by providing insights into the psychosocial factors that shape their experiences. Interviews were conducted with 18 undergraduate university students between July and August 2023. I-poems, a creative qualitative method, were created from interview transcripts by isolating sentences featuring the pronoun "I" and arranging them into poetic stanzas without altering their sequence. This approach amplifies the participants' voices, offering an authentic window into their lived experiences. Data was coded using the Atlas Ti v.8 software and thematically analysed to generate common themes. The I-poems revealed rich, layered insights from students regarding the psychosocial aspects of PA, highlighting themes such as mental health, motivation and social support. By centring the participants' "I" narratives, the method foregrounded their voices, enabling a deeper exploration of their embodied PA experiences. This study highlights the potential of I-poems as a creative qualitative method to explore the intricacies of students' PA journeys. The findings highlight the importance of considering psychosocial factors in understanding PA engagement, offering valuable subjective perspectives for designing contextually relevant and university student-tailored interventions that are suitable.
缺乏身体活动是一个普遍存在的全球公共卫生问题，但在南非一所大学的本科生中，探索身体活动（PA）心理社会层面的定性研究有限。因此，本研究旨在通过深入了解塑造学生经历的心理社会因素，来探究学生的身体活动参与情况。2023年7月至8月期间，对18名本科大学生进行了访谈。通过从访谈记录中分离出以代词 “我” 开头的句子，并将它们排列成诗节而不改变其顺序，从而创建了 “I-诗” 这一创造性的定性方法。这种方法放大了参与者的声音，为他们的生活经历提供了一个真实的窗口。使用Atlas Ti v.8软件对数据进行编码，并进行主题分析以生成共同主题。“I-诗” 揭示了学生们对身体活动心理社会方面丰富而多层次的见解，突出了心理健康、动机和社会支持等主题。通过以参与者的 “我” 的叙述为中心，该方法突出了他们的声音，从而能够更深入地探索他们具体的身体活动经历。本研究强调了 “I-诗” 作为一种创造性定性方法在探索学生身体活动历程复杂性方面的潜力。研究结果强调了在理解身体活动参与情况时考虑心理社会因素的重要性，为设计适合特定情境且针对大学生的干预措施提供了有价值的主观视角。
