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Browsing by Subject "liikunta"

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  • Janna, Hakala (2022)
    Tavoitteet. Inhibitorinen kontrolli on osa toiminnanohjausta, ja sen on tutkittu olevan yhteydessä esimerkiksi koulumenestykseen ja sosiaalisiin taitoihin. Liikunnan on havaittu vaikuttavan kognitiivisiin kykyihin niin aikuisilla kuin lapsilla ja nuorillakin. Tässä katsauksessa tarkastellaan, miten akuutit liikuntainterventiot vaikuttavat inhibitoriseen kontrolliin lapsilla ja nuorilla, joilla toiminnanohjaus on vielä kehittyvässä vaiheessa. Menetelmät. Katsaus tehtiin Scopus-tietokantaa käyttämällä, hakusanoilla ”inhibitory control”, ”exercis*”, ”intervention”, ”child*” ja ”adolescen*”. Kirjallisuutta haettiin myös tietokannasta löytyneiden artikkeleiden lähteistä. Tulokset ja johtopäätökset. Katsaukseen valikoitui kahdeksan tutkimusta. Ainakin jonkinlainen liikunta oli yhteydessä parempaan inhibitoriseen kontrolliin lähes kaikissa tutkimuksissa. Toisaalta suurimmassa osassa tutkimuksista vaikutukset inhibitoriseen kontrolliin eivät eronneet vaikutuksista yleisempään informaation prosessointiin. On siis mahdollista, että liikunnan vaikutus inhibitoriseen kontrolliin ei eroa muista kognitiivisista toiminnoista ainakaan niin huomattavasti, että tämä ero pystyttäisiin havaitsemaan suurimmassa osaa tutkimuksista. Liikunnan vaikutukset mitattiin vain lyhyen ajan päästä liikuntatilanteesta. Osassa tutkimuksista vertailtiin liikunnan muuttujia: liikuntamuotoja, liikunnan kestoa tai liikunnan intensiteettejä. Ristiriitaisia tuloksia löytyi lähes kaikista liikunnan muuttujien vertailuista, joten päätelmiä siitä, minkälainen liikunta on inhibitorisen kontrollin kannalta hyödyllisin, ei voitu tehdä. Suurinta osaa tutkimuksista yhdisti kuitenkin aerobinen liikunta, liikunnan suhteellisen lyhyt kesto ja keskinkertainen tai korkea intensiteetti. Muutamassa tutkimuksessa vertailtiin koehenkilöitä, joilla oli ADHD ja koehenkilöitä, joilla tätä diagnoosia ei ollut. ADHD:n ei havaittu vaikuttavan korostuneesti liikuntainterventioiden tuloksiin, vaikka yhdessä tutkimuksessa löydettiin eroja liikunnan vaikutuksessa riippuen inhibitorisen kontrollin lähtötasosta. Kaiken kaikkiaan lasten ja nuorten on suositeltavaa harrastaa aerobista liikuntaa tukemaan inhibitorista kontrollia.
  • Saresvuo, Salla-Maj (2020)
    The physical activity of children has a significant meaning impact in the holistic and safe growth, develop-ment, and learning of children. The natural way for children under the age of three to release energy and emotions is through exercise. Exercise is play for children during which they can intuitively get to know, try out, and get to know their bodies and senses. According to national exercise guidelines, children should exercise three hours a day each day to acquire the many benefits of exercise. The recommendation for the physical activity of children is compiled of many forms of exercise: from light exercise and brisk outdoor activ-ities to very fast-paced physical activity. According to prior studies, children in daycare are inactive, or not in movement, for the majority of the day, and thus do not meet the given exercise goals. Research also shows that boys exercise and are active more than girls. The aim of this research is to investigate the amount of physical activity in children under the age of three in a daycare center that has a special emphasis on exercise, and then to compare the findings to the new na-tional exercise guidelines. The research also investigates the role of gender; do differences exist in the amount of exercise for boys and girls in the daycare center? The research departs from three research questions: (1) Do children under the age for three exercise according to the exercise guidelines? (2) What forms of exercise does the exercise take (low, intermediate or high levels?) (3) What connection does gen-der have to the exercise of children under the age of three in daycare? The research was realized qualitatively through examining the level of activity and strain of children under the age of three during a regular daycare day, and whether or not the amount of exercise was compatible with the new exercise guidelines for physical activity. The research was carried out in a daycare center that has a special emphasis exercise. The daycare center consists of three different units: Hippaheikki, Myrsky-luoto and Kajuutta. The research group was made up of fifteen children under the age of three: six girls and nine boys. Physical activity was measured through the University of Helsinki Polar Gofit activity meter over the course of six daycare days (6h/day). The analysis consisted of both a quantifying and thematic approach. under the age of three. The physical activity of the children was displayed through very typical means: the day was full of momentary shifts in tempo. During the course of six hours, the children exercised an hour. Boys exercised more than girls. The day care day for children under the age of three consists mostly of basic care. The time of analysis (6h) included two meals and a naptime in addition to several moments of getting dressed and using the bathroom. The time taken up by basic care partially explains the low levels of physical activity for children under the age of three. The physical activity of the children was displayed through very typical means: the day was full of momentary shifts in tempo.
  • Sahlman, Paula (2018)
    This thesis is a part of Development through Sports discussion, particularly from gender perspective and its effort to improve women’s position and status in developing countries by using sport as a tool. The study aims to depict the position and effects produced by gender in the field of sport and education by the means of ethnography. The perspective of the study is holistic in its attempt to acknowledge the impact of Tanzanian society, economy and politics for girls’ and women’s position within sport and education. The study was carried out with 7-week long fieldwork in a Tanzanian teacher training college. The college was a boarding school and the study focused mainly on students of physical education. The data of the study was collected with participant observation, informal discussions, semistructured thematic interviews and structured survey questionnaire. Also study material used in the college was collected, such as course outlines and directions given to the students. The interviews were analysed with thematic analyse. The space of girls and women in the masculine field of sport in Tanzania is narrow and challenging. For sociocultural reasons, it is difficult for women to obtain the motorical and psychosocial skills needed in teaching physical education in childhood and youth. It is more difficult for girls and women to have access and to move in masculine spaces that in addition to sport and sporting fields, is salaried work done outside home. Salaried work is necessary for financing the studies, but acquiring the money has moral effects. The morally acceptable financiers of women’s education are families – fathers and husbands mainly. Moral conflicts are caused if a woman acquires the funding through transactional sex and/or uneducated, physical labour. By moving in these masculine, independent spaces of sport and money, the morality and value of a woman can be questioned and thus inhibit the development of women’s position in society and women’s financial independence.
  • Virtanen, Niia (2016)
    Body consciousness research is a multidisciplinary field including various conceptualizations of its subject. Usually research frames are based on comparisons between bodily experts, such as dancers, or psychiatric groups with bodily aberrations (e.g. eating disorders) and control participants. Methods of body consciousness research include behavioural and self-report measures as well as brain imaging. Some methods have been used to study bodily experts, but not psychiatric groups, and vice versa. In this study, dancers, amateur and professional athletes, and control participants were studied using four behavioural methods (aperture task, endpoint matching, rubber hand illusion, posture copying) and two self-report measures PBCS (Private Body Consciousness Scale of the Body Consciousness Questionnaire) and BAQ (Body Awareness Questionnaire). Because many methods of studying body consciousness focus on the use of hands, a new method called posture copying, involving the whole body, was developed in this study. Dancers succeeded better than controls in the aperture task, and better than athletes and controls in the posture copying task. In the posture copying task, group differences were present in copying all other body parts but hands. Both dancers and athletes scored higher in the BAQ than controls. There was an almost significant difference between athletes and controls in the endpoint matching task. No group differences were found in the rubber hand illusion or PBCS. The results were considered as proof that dancing has a special connection with body consciousness, but that some aspects of body consciousness are similar in dancers and athletes. Methods measuring the same quality of body consciousness produced contradictory evidence, which questions their validity. This study offers useful knowledge for the future of body consciousness research, with regards to choice of participants, methodology, and study design, as well as treatment plans of clinical groups with disorders in their body consciousness (e.g. eating disorders).
  • Pursiainen, Lia (2023)
    Liikkumiseen kannustetaan usein korostamalla sen tuomia terveyshyötyjä. Liikkuminen on kuitenkin paljon muutakin kuin keino ehkäistä sydän- ja verisuonisairauksia. Siinä voidaan pitää merkityksellisenä monia asioita. Tämän tutkielman tavoitteena on ensinnäkin selvittää, millaista pääomaa liikkumiseen tarvitaan lapsuudessa ja nuoruudessa. Toiseksi kiinnostuksen kohteena on se, millaisia asioita liikkuvat aikuiset pitävät liikkumisessaan tärkeinä. Lopuksi tutkitaan liikkumisen jatkumoa ja selvitetään, mitkä näistä asioista ovat olleet tutkittavilla läsnä lapsuus- ja nuoruusiän liikkumisesta aikuisiän liikkumiseen asti. Tutkimuskysymykset ovat: Miten aikuisena vähintään harrastetasolla liikkuville on kertynyt liikuntapääomaa lapsuudessa ja nuoruudessa? Mistä osa-alueista liikuntapääoma muodostuu lapsuudesta ja nuoruudesta lähtien liikuntapääomaa kartuttaneilla aikuisilla? Mitkä liikuntapääoman osa-alueet ovat olleet tutkittavilla läsnä sekä lapsuuden ja nuoruuden että aikuisuuden liikkumisessa? Mitä liikkuminen tuottaa aikuisuudessa? Tutkielman aineisto koostuu kuuden yli 18-vuotiaan, vähintään harrastetasolla liikkuvan aikuisen yksilöhaastatteluista. Haastateltavat rekrytoitiin eräästä kuntokeskuksesta. Aineisto kerättiin keväällä 2022. Aineiston analyysimenetelmänä käytetään laadullista, aineistolähtöistä sisällönanalyysiä. Aineistolähtöisessä sisällönanalyysissä nojataan Grounded Theoryyn (GT) analyysitekniikkana. Tulkinnassa hyödynnetään pääomajaottelua. Liikkumiseen tarvittavia ja sen tuottamia resursseja tarkastellaan Bourdieun taloudellisen, sosiaalisen ja kulttuurisen pääoman valossa. Liikkumisessa merkityksellisinä pidettyjä osa-alueita tarkastellaan Kunnarin liikuntapääoma-käsitteen avulla. Liikuntapääoma on osa ruumiillista kulttuurista pääomaa eli se ilmenee erilaisina toimintatapoina ja -taipumuksina. Tutkielman tulosten mukaan lapsuudessa ja nuoruudessa liikkumisen mahdollistaneita resursseja ovat sosiaalinen tuki, raha ja asuinympäristö. Aikuisuudessa liikkumisessa pidetään tärkeänä viihtyisyyden, ihmissuhteiden, rutiinin, suorittamisen, itsensä ilmaisun sekä terveyden osa-alueita. Liikkumisen jatkumossa lapsuudesta aikuisuuteen korostuu yhtäältä liikkuminen elämyksellisenä toimintana ja toisaalta sisäänrakennettuna ja intuitiivisena tapana. Tutkielma valottaa sitä, ettei liikkuminen ole kaikille yhdenvertaisesti saavutettavissa. Tulosten mukaan liikkuminen lapsuudessa ja nuoruudessa vaatii useaa erilaista tuen muotoa vanhemmilta tai muilta läheisiltä. Lisäksi ympäristön tarjoamien puitteiden on oltava suotuisia liikkumiselle. Kun liikkumisen pariin on päästy, pidetään siinä aikuisiällä tärkeänä paljon muutakin kuin sen tarjoamaa terveyshyötyä. Tulosten mukaan haastateltavien liikkumisessa on aina ollut kyse mukavuudesta. Liikkumisen parissa on viihdytty, koska se on kivaa ja sen parissa voi viettää aikaa ihmisten kanssa. Toisaalta liikkumisessa on aina ollut kyse myös rutiinista. Liikkuminen on yhtä normaali tapa kuin hampaiden harjaus. Tästä johtuen liikkumisen lisäämiseen tähtäävissä hankkeissa olisi tärkeä tarjota puitteita useiden eri liikuntapääoman osa-alueiden toteutumiselle kuten mieluisille liikuntamuodoille, onnistumisen kokemuksille, ihmissuhteille ja liikkumisen rutiinin luomiselle pelkän terveyden osa-alueen lisäksi.
  • Räsänen, Sari (2013)
    Maternity and child health clinics have a central role in preventing childhood obesity and providing the entire family with lifestyle counselling. The Pilot Intervention Study on Diet of Toddlers in Finland aims at evaluating the feasibility of a nutrition intervention in child health clinics. The Resourceful Family counselling method developed by the Finnish Heart Association is a family-centred and empowerment-based method employed in child health clinics that are part of the nutrition intervention group in the Pilot Intervention Study on Diet of Toddlers in Finland. The aim of this thesis was to describe the discussions about lifestyle issues in child health clinic. Another aim was to evaluate the translation of the principles and objectives of the Resourceful Family method into practice. Ten child’s one-year visits to child health clinic recorded in the Pilot Intervention Study on Diet of Toddlers in Finland were analyzed in this study. The check-up visits had been recorded in three child health clinics where the nutrition intervention was carried out. The research method was content analysis. The most frequent themes in discussions about lifestyle during the child’s one-year visit to child health clinic were: adjusting of the child to the family diet, milk or milk products in the child’s diet and vitamin D supplementation of the child (discussed during 8/10 child health clinic appointments). Salt in food preparation was also a common theme (6/10). In nearly all of the appointments (9/10) one or more theme related to the lifestyle of parents and/or the entire family was discussed. The nurse mostly controlled the counselling situation by bringing up new topics. The nurses invited families to participate in the discussions in more than half of the appointments in accordance with a specific guidance practice part of the Resourceful Family counselling method. The nurses linked the invitation to the Resourceful Family card. They provided families with information in a neutral manner. Some of the information provided was client-centred. Discussions related to changing habits were evident in more than half of the appointments. These discussions did not lead to setting specific goals or creating plans due to the lack of guidance practices aimed at helping the family proceed in the change process. Family-centred and resource-based lifestyle counselling should be developed especially regarding motivating the family and supporting the family members in the change process. Thus the importance of these two areas of counselling should be emphasized in the education of nurses.
  • Saresvuo, Salla-Maj (2023)
    The physical activity of children has a significant meaning impact in the holistic and safe growth, development, and learning of children. Children’s natural way to release energy and emotions is through exercise. The aim of physical education is for the child to adopt an active and healthy lifestyle, gain positive experiences from exercise and learn physical skills. Physical activity has a positive effect on a child's health and wellbeing. The aim of this qualitative case study is to investigate the views of preschool children about physical activity and to determine what they think physical activity is. The theme is current and significant, because only 10-20 percent of children under school age achieve the amount of physical activity required for normal growth and development. The study also considers the effect of gender on physical activity. 23 preschool-age children, 13 girls and 10 boys, participated in the study. The data collection method was an interview and the analysis method was quantification. The research results show that exercise is a happy thing for children. Only a few children experience fear when they exercise. The majority of preschool children like physical activity and feel that they are good at it. There are differences in the results between genders; boys experience physical activity more positively than girls do. All children can describe physical activity in some way and most of the children have a sports hobby.
  • Lyytikäinen, Ainomaria (2016)
    Tiedekunta - Fakultet – Faculty Behavioural Sciences Laitos - Institution - Department Teacher Education Tekijä - Författare – Author Ainomaria Lyytikäinen Työn nimi - Arbetets titel Preschoolers`s leisure time and sport activity Title Oppiaine - Läroämne - Subject Education: early childhood education Työn laji/ Ohjaaja - Arbetets art/Handledare - Level/Instructor Master’s Thesis / Supervisor’s Name Aika - Datum - Month and year 7.12.2016 Sivumäärä - Sidoantal - Number of pages 35 pp. + 2 appendices Tiivistelmä - Referat - Abstract There were and there still are several organisations and experts who express their concern about how children don´t spend enough time exercising. That´s how I became interested in this subject and I wanted to examine whether this was true or not when it comes to pre-schoolers. As a kindergarten teacher it was also important for me for that I could be able to offer them enough possibilities to exercise during school day or a day in the kindergarten. The purpose of my survey was to examine if preschoolers exercise on their free time and if they do so, what kind of exercising they do. I presumed that preschoolers exercise on their free time but I was suspicious if it´s enough based on the daily recommendations of exercis-ing. There were 26 children in total who participated in this survey even though I had reached for 30 participants. The preschoolers were born in 2009 and the group included 14 girls and 12 boys. 17 children lived in Vantaa and nine lived in Espoo. I did my survey using a question-naire. There were both closed and open questions in the questionnaire. I analyzed all an-swers by using a quantitative method. I sent questionnaires to preschool classes and went to collect them on the due date. I ana-lyzed the data using the SPSS Statistics- program. As a conclusion of the results it can be said that children exercise every day but it´s clear that the time spent doing physical activities is far less than recommended. The gap between kids who exercise a lot and those who rarely exercise was quite large. 19,2% of children (n=26) exercise over 8 hours a week and 15,4% exercised 7-8 hours a week. When these results are divided for every day of the week, only 34,6% of children exercise as much as recommended, if there is an hour of exercising included in the day at preschool. Based on this survey, it is very important to make children exercise at preschools and in kindergartens to be sure that the recommendations are fulfilled. Avainsanat - Nyckelord Preschooler, leisure time, sport, childrens Keywords Säilytyspaikka - Förvaringsställe - Where deposited City Centre Campus Library/Behavioural Sciences/Ethesis Muita tietoja - Övriga uppgifter - Additional information
  • Hakku, Sara (2018)
    There is a lot of discussion about how children do not exercise enough nowadays. Many of them spend a large part of their day in a kindergarten, so the role of the early childhood education enabling adequate physical activity is remarkably great. It was the intention of my survey to find out what kind of physical activity there is in preschool groups, what kind of learning circumstances there appears to be, when viewed from the point of physical exercise, and how the adults are acting as supporters of children’s exercise. The intention was to make comparison between a preschool education group and an exercise oriented preschool education group. The survey was carried out as a qualitative survey in January 2018. The material was collected from two preschool education groups in the metropolitan area. As collecting method of the material I used monitoring the child group and interviewing the kindergarten teachers. The interviews were carried out as theme interviews and they were taped. The material was analyzed based on the material by organizing it under three main themes. The results showed that both groups tried to support the physical exercise of the children. However, the operating methods between the preschool education group and the exercise oriented preschool education group were different. In exercise oriented preschool education group they used different indoor facilities on weekly basis in order to increase activity. In preschool education group they mainly did not work like that because of the lack of the facilities; instead, they used outdoor yard to enable the physical activity. The exercise oriented preschool group spent time on the yard remarkably less, but they used the nearby sports hall and tatami in their activity on weekly basis. They had more facilities in their disposal in the kindergarten, but the exercise instruments were almost the same in both groups. However, during the free activity indoors, the preschool group children used less exercise instruments than the exercise oriented group. Based on the survey good facilities make it easier to carry out physical activity. You cannot always influence on the facilities, but on their use you can. The adult who considers it important to support the physical exercise of the children can influence on it. The survey shows that there is not just one way to support the physical activity of children. Every educator has to realize the needs of the children and consciously act based on that so that we could further promote the wellbeing, development and learning of the children.
  • Räsänen, Salla (2020)
    Tavoitteet. Tämän tutkielman tarkoituksena on tutkia fyysisen aktiivisuuden ja kognitiivisten taitojen välistä yhteyttä alle 7-vuotiailla lapsilla. Tutkimustehtävänä oli tarkastella sitä, millä tavalla fyysinen aktiivisuus vaikuttaa alle 7-vuotiaan lapsen kognitiivisiin taitoihin ja mikä näiden välinen yhteys on. Lisäksi tutkimuksessa keskityttiin varhaisvuosien fyysisen aktiivisuuden suosituksiin, sen vaikutuksiin ja sitä lisääviin tekijöihin varhaiskasvatuksessa. Tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin myös sitä, miten fyysinen aktiivisuus huomioidaan varhaiskasvatusta ohjaavassa Varhaiskasvatussuunnitelman perusteissa. Kognitiivisten taitojen osalta käsitellään tarkkaavaisuutta, muistia, oppimista, kielellisiä toimintoja sekä toiminnanohjausta. Menetelmät. Tutkielma toteutettiin kuvailevana kirjallisuuskatsauksena, jonka aineiston muodostavat kymmenen fyysistä aktiivisuutta ja kognitiivisia taitoja käsittelevää vertaisarvioitua tutkimusartikkelia. Katsauksessa käsitellyt tutkimusartikkelit on julkaistu tieteellisissä aikakauslehdissä aikavälillä 2011–2020 ja ne on haettu elektronisista tietokannoista. Tulokset ja johtopäätökset. Alle 7-vuotiaan lapsen fyysisellä aktiivisuudella ja kognitiivisella kehityksellä oli pääosin merkittävä yhteys. Kevyellä fyysisellä aktiivisuudella ei ollut yhtä vahvaa yhteyttä kognitiivisiin taitoihin tai yhteyttä ei havaittu lainkaan. Fyysinen aktiivisuus ei kehitä ainoastaan kognitiivisia taitoja, vaan se edistää lisäksi fyysistä ja psykososiaalista terveyttä. Tulosten pohjalta fyysisen aktiivisuuden yhdistämisellä varhaiskasvatuksen ohjattuun ja vapaamuotoiseen toimintaan sekä riittävällä fyysisen aktiivisuuden määrän ylläpitämisellä on positiivisia vaikutuksia lasten kognitiivisille taidoille.
  • Meling, Amanda (2020)
    Aikaisemman tutkimuksen pohjalta voidaan sanoa, että fyysisellä aktiivisuudella on jo pitkään ollut merkittävä rooli terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin edistämisessä. Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli kuitenkin tutkia asiaa hieman eri näkökulmasta. Ensimmäisen tutkimuskysymyksen avulla oli tarkoitus selvittää, millaisia vaikutuksia fyysisellä aktiivisuudella on koulumenestykseen. Omat havainnot organisoituun urheilutoimintaan osallistuvien lasten hyvästä koulumenestyksestä johtivat toiseen tutkimuskysymykseen, eli tutkimaan organisoidun urheilun vaikutuksia koulumenestykseen. Tämän kandidaatintutkielman tavoitteena oli saada luotettavaa tietoa fyysisen aktiivisuuden ja organisoidun urheilun vaikutuksista koulumenestykseen, joita voitaisiin sitten mahdollisesti hyödyntää esimerkiksi kasvatustyössä. Toteutin tämän kandidaatintutkielman kuvailevana kirjallisuuskatsauksena. Aineistonhaussa hyödynsin Helkan -tietokantoja, sekä Google Scholar -hakukonetta. Hyödynsin aineiston etsimisessä myös löytämäni kirjallisuuden lähdeluetteloja. Aineistoni koostui sekä kansainvälisestä, että kotimaisesta tutkimuksesta, ja hyödynsin työssäni myös erilaista aiheeseen liittyvää teoriakirjallisuutta, sekä muita luotettavia sähköisiä lähteitä, kuten perusopetuksen opetussuunnitelmaa, perusopetuslakia yms. Tämän tutkielman lähteet koostuivat pääosin sähköisistä lähteistä. Tämän kirjallisuuskatsauksen tutkimustulokset eivät olleet aivan yksiselitteisiä ensimmäisen tutkimuskysymyksen osalta, vaan niissä oli hieman epäjohdonmukaisuutta. Suurin osa aikaisemmasta tutkimuksesta kuitenkin päätyi tuloksissaan siihen, että fyysinen aktiivisuus vaikutti positiivisesti koulumenestykseen. Tulosten perusteella voitaisiin siis sanoa, että fyysisellä aktiivisuudella näyttäisi olevan positiivisia vaikutuksia koulumenestykseen, mutta laadukasta tutkimusta aiheesta tulisi ehdottomasti tehdä lisää. Toisen tutkimuskysymyksen kohdalla tulokset olivat yksiselitteisiä, ja näiden tutkimustulosten valossa voidaan todeta, että organisoidulla urheilulla on positiivisia vaikutuksia koulumenestykseen.
  • Peltola, Mirka (2017)
    Objective The reduction of physical activity and simultaneous increase in screen time has been a source for concern in recent years. The significance of schools for increasing physical activity has grown and previous research has demonstrated a positive link between physical activity, cognitive behaviour and learning. The link between screen time and cognitive behaviour has also been researched and the results are partially contradictory. This study focuses on the connection between attention and self-assessed physical activity and screen time. It also explores the significance of an acute, coordination developing physical activity session in relation to attentiveness Methods The study was carried out as quantitative research including a questionnaire and an intervention study. The questionnaire was a self-assessment filled out by 78 pupils of 3rd and 4th grade examining levels of physical activity and screen time. The intervention study was made up by 30 children in the experimental, physically active, group and 30 children in the control, physical passive, group. The study examined the connection between self-assessed physical activity and screen time with the success in an ACT attention test and the potential influence physical intervention might have in a repeat test. Outcome and conclusions The results of this study supported previous research findings on physical activity on children and adolescence; some children are very active whilst others lack physical activity almost entirely. Most of the children and adolescence also went over the maximum recommended daily screen time limit of 2 hours, both during the week and at weekends. There was no link between overall physical activity and total screen time in relation to the success of the attention test. In the intervention part of the study, there was no noticeable difference in the results of the attention test between the experiential and control groups. Previous research material on the links between physical activity and screen time on attention is partially conflicting so further research is recommended. It has however been established, that physical activity during lessons does not lower academic results, meaning that they can be used to increase overall physical activity of individuals even if the link to cognitive behavior has not been confirmed.
  • Helemäe, Carolina (2023)
    Tavoitteet: Stressi eli allostaattinen kuormitus on osa jokapäiväistä elämää, mutta pitkittyessään se voi vaikuttaa haitallisesti esimerkiksi kortisolitasoihin, neuroplastisuuteen ja kognitiivisiin toimintoihin. Ihmiset reagoivat tähän kuormitukseen joko terveyttä edistävillä tai sitä heikentävillä tavoilla. Tutkielman päämääränä on selvittää, miten liikunta vaikuttaa stressin aiheuttamiin muutoksiin, erityisesti kortisolitasoissa, neuroplastisuudessa ja kognitiivisissa toiminnoissa, ja samalla lisätä ymmärrystä siitä, miten omilla valinnoillaan voi vaikuttaa stressin fysiologisiin seurauksiin ja aivojen toimintaan. Menetelmät: Tutkimusaineistoa haettiin PubMed-tietokannasta hakusanoilla ”allostatic load”, ”neuroplasticity”, ”exercise” ja ”stress”, ja tutkimuksen lähteitä etsittiin myös löytyneiden tutkimusten viiteluetteloista. Tulokset ja johtopäätökset: Tutkielman perusteella voi sanoa liikunnalla, varsinkin kävelyllä ja joogalla, olevan positiivisia vaikutuksia kortisolitasoihin, neuroplastisuuteen ja kognitiivisiin toimintoihin. Toisaalta vääränlainen ympäristö tai liian kovalla intensiteetillä suoritettu liikuntaharjoitus saattaa nostaa kortisolitasoja ja heikentää kognitiivisia toimintoja. Tulevaisuudessa tarvitaan lisää tutkimuksia siitä, mikä on liian intensiivisen liikunnan määritelmä ja miten eri liikuntalajit vertautuvat keskenään positiivisten vaikutusten osalta.
  • Pajunen, Sara (2016)
    Physical activity has a positive impact not only on physical and mental health but also on cognitive functions. It seems that physical activity improves performance in a variety of cognitive tests and slows down the natural cognitive decline associated with aging. During adolescence the plasticity of the brain is greater and parts of the brain that are essential for cognitive functions develop significantly. At the same time there is some evidence that globally increasing physical inactivity and obesity might influence negatively on health of the brain and further on cognitive functions. From this point of view physical activity may have an underestimated role supporting cognitive development in youth. Physical activity has a positive effect on performance in a variety of cognitive tests in adolescence. Physically active adolescents outperform physically inactive controls in verbal and numerical abilities, different reasoning ability tests and especially in tests that measure executive functions and attention. Physical exercise has a positive effect also on emotional well-being, behaviour and academic achievement. Based on the articles of this thesis regular organized physical exercise that is vigorous and includes a cognitive component has the strongest impact on cognitive performance. In some studies the association between physical activity and cognitive and academic performance was stronger in girls than boys. This finding could be explained by the fact that physical exercise decreases symptoms of anxiety and depression and that girls have more of these symptoms than boys. The underlying mechanisms of the association include learning and developmental mechanisms and physiological mechanisms that include functional and structural features of the brain. Physical exercise increases cerebral blood flow and oxygen intake in the brain and upregulates multiple neurotrophic factors that are essential for new neurons. Regular physical exercise possibly leads to more efficient neuronal networks and permanent cortical changes in adolescent’s brain. Scarce literature and various study designs might explain some of the inconsistency in the results. In the future more research is needed about what kind of physical exercise by type, intensity and duration is the most effective on cognitive development in adolescence. Increasing amount of literature supports the idea that physical activity is a lifestyle factor that has a holistic impact on health and well-being throughout the lifespan.
  • Kerola, Sanna (2016)
    During the last 20 years obesity and musculoskeletal symptoms have increased in children and teenagers, and their physical condition has decreased. The promotion of exercise has a central role in a child’s healthy growth and development. Moving is one of a child’s charac-teristic ways of action, so enthusiasm towards it should come naturally. The purpose of this study is to find out how in a daycare center environment one can support/motivate children’s physical passive children to exercise. This thesis is a qualitative research study. The data was collected at a nature-orientated daycare center in Helsinki by doing a theme based group interview. The interview was structured around five themes. Four daycare personnel participated in the interview; each of whom had a different educational background. The result of the study is that the interviewees believe that a physically passive child needs more verbal support, encouragement and patience from an adult. Children’s movement in the gym should not be limited, and adults should create a variety of sporty challenges for children in the yard. The yard should be large and motivate children to move around. The daycare should have good supply of sport and exercise equipment indoors and outdoors. At the beginning of outdoor activities it would be good to have teacher-guided play and do weekly trips to nearby parks and forests. Exercise sessions should be planned and indi-vidualised according to the children’s skill levels. Parents should be reminded of the impor-tance of physical activity and exercising together in educational conversations, as well as in parents’ evenings.
  • Leppälä, Mira (2021)
    Aims. Exercise is known to be associated with longer sleep duration and better sleep quality. Good enough sleep has a positive impact not only on somatic and mental health, but also for example on memory and learning. However, so far there is no research of other hobbies than sport in relation to sleep. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of sport hobbies, other hobbies and the time spent on hobbies on adolescents’ sleep duration and quality. Methods. Different hobbies and time spent on hobbies, sleep duration, sleep latency, sleep efficiency and sleep problems of 1374 adolescents (girls 66.4%, mean age 16.84 years) was measured with self-report questionnaire as a part of University of Helsinki SleepHelsinki! research project. Associations with different hobbies and sleep were analysed with ANOVAs and post hoc tests. The effect of time spent on hobbies on sleep was analysed with ANOVAs and regression analyses. Results. Sleep duration on weekdays on average was 7.28 hours, which is less than the recommended 8-10 hours per night, but on weekends adolescents slept enough, 9.26 hours. Girls reported more sleep problems and poorer sleep quality, but no sex differences were found in sleep duration. 58.4% of the adolescents reported having sports as their main hobby and 18.5% reported having no hobbies at all. Those with sports as their main hobby, had longer sleep duration and better sleep quality than those without any hobbies or whose main hobby was other than sports. When analysed separately for boys and girls, this positive association between sport hobbies and sleep was found only in girls. Time spent on hobbies was not associated with sleep duration or quality. Conclusion. Based on this study it seems most important that adolescents do sports in general, not necessarily the amount of time they spend with their hobbies. Adolescents without any hobbies slept less than others and had the worst sleep quality so special attention should be paid to get the most passive adolescents to exercise to improve their sleep and wellbeing.
  • Lindevall, Hanna (2017)
    The purpose of this research was to find out about the experiences of young adults hobbies and the importance of hobbies in the life course. Theoretical starting point in this research is life course, as well as concepts of normality, norms and values. I also focus on the Finnish sports clubs and the various positive and negative phenomenas that are observed among different sports. The research question is "How do the experiences of hobbies take place in the speech of young adults?" The research gave interesting results, especially about the significance of hobbies and the phenomenon of hobbies. In the results of the research, the internal rules and hierarchies of sports hobbies, which no one seems to question, became even greater. This research could be used in the future to spread awareness of disadvantages in sports clubs and teams.
  • Oksman, Mira (2017)
    The purpose of this literature review was to describe immigrants’ acculturation process and the role of sport and physical education in that process. More specifically the research problems were to describe the acculturation process and it’s meaning from both immigrant’s and society’s point of view and to consider how physical education and sport could support acculturation process and what are the possible challenges that could manifest when using physical education and sport as a part of social integration of immigrants. The research on the role of sport and physical education in acculturation process seems to be rare and has provided equivocal results.  Positive effects of sport and physical education on social integration can be categorized under six categories: general feeling of control in life, connection to learning language, practicing general skills needed in society, social contacts and creating friendships, psychical wellbeing and adding tolerance. Challenges of sport and physical education in social integration process can be categorized in five categories: cultural differences, socioeconomic factors, the competitive nature of sports, lack of knowledge, racism and prejudices.  This overview will show that succesfull support of acculturation process is usefull and positive to both immigrant and society. Supporting especially children’s and adolescents’ acculturation process should be taken into account. Physical education and sport can be shown to be usefull in supporting social integration, if possible challenging factors are considered planning and executing activity. Literature review will also indicate the need for an extensive research, especially regarding children in early childhood education and in elementary school. Research on their acculturation and using physical education and sport in assisting social integration process, would be significant to teachers, coaches and other educators working with immigrants. With the help of an extensive research could be received more inclusive picture of acculturation, physical activity of immigrant children and- adolescents and their relation to sport. Through that could be developed the knowledge of methods, how to utilize physical education and sport in supporting acculturation process.
  • Hassinen, Terhi (2018)
    Liike ja liikunta ovat nykyään, ja ovat aina olleet, tärkeä osa ihmisten arkipäivää. Varsinkin monet nuoret osallistuvat eri seurojen, järjestöjen tai koulujen järjestämiin liikuntaharrastuksiin. Liikunta on olennainen osa kulttuuria, ja siinä esiintyy sosiaalisia merkityksiä sekä yhteiskunnallisia ulottuvuuksia. Urheilun integriteetistä on puhuttu viime vuosien aikana paljon, mutta enemmänkin kilpa- ja huippu-urheilun kentällä. Siksi tutkimukselle, joka käsittelee integriteettiä liikunnassa ruohonjuuritasolla, on tarvetta. Tämän kvalitatiivisen tutkielman päätavoitteena on tarkastella, mitä integriteetti tarkoittaa urheilujärjestön toiminnassa. Se on tapaustutkimus Maltan kansallisen urheilujärjestön, Sport Maltan Summer On The Move -ohjelmasta. Integriteetin merkitystä lähestytään kolmen pääteeman kautta, jotka ovat hyvä hallintotapa, sukupuolten tasa-arvo ja alaikäisten suojelu. Nämä kolme pääteemaa liittyvät urheilun rehellisyyteen Euroopan unionin urheilualan työsuunnitelmassa (2014-2017), joka myös toimii tutkielman teoreettisena viitekehyksenä. Tutkimusaineistona on käytetty omien havainnointien lisäksi haastatteluja. Primääriaineisto kerättiin elo-syyskuussa 2016 tehdystä 13 puolistrukturoidusta teemahaastattelusta, jotka tein ollessani työharjoittelussa Sport Maltalla. Haastateltavat on jaettu neljään ryhmään: osallistujiin (8-9 vuotiaita), heidän vanhempiin, liikunnanohjaajiin ja järjestön muuhun henkilökuntaan. Metodina käytetään sisällönanalyysiä ja aiheita lähestytään teemoittain. Alue- ja kulttuurintutkimukselle tyypillinen monitieteisyys on erityisen näkyvillä tutkielmassa, ja aihetta käsitellään etenkin urheilusosiologian kautta keskittyen tiettyihin teemoihin, kuten organisaatiokulttuuriin, ikään ja sukupuoleen. Pääosin Sport Maltan Summer On The Move -ohjelma toimii hyvin ja osallistujamäärä on noussut varsinkin viime vuosina. Valittavia lajeja on paljon eri ikäisille eri alueilla saarivaltiota ja kaikki aktiviteetit ovat avoimia sekä tytöille että pojille. Vaikka Sport Malta on julkisen sektorin järjestö, se pyrkii rahoittamaan omat ohjelmansa. Ohjelmien taso on noussut, ja liikunnanohjaajat ovat ammattimaisia. Malta toimi EU:n puheenjohtajamaana keväällä 2017, mikä on kannustanut Sport Maltaa kehittymään järjestönä sekä kansallisella että kansainvälisellä tasolla. Yhtenä ongelmana on liikuntatilojen ja henkilöstön puute. Monet henkilökunnasta kertovat kommunikaation ja tiimityöskentelyn olevan avain heidän työssään. Kaikki haastateltavat lapset nauttivat aktiviteeteista ja kokevat, että heitä kohdellaan ohjelman puitteissa reilusti. Tietyt lajit nähdään vieläkin paremmin pojille kuin tytöille sopivina ja asiaan liittyy monia ennakkoluuloja, mutta esimerkiksi uinnissa osallistujamäärä on suunnilleen sama. Joissakin lajeissa, varsinkin fyysisissä lajeissa, tytöt nähdään vielä heikompina ja vanhemmissa ikäryhmissä erot näkyvät selkeämmin. Osa liikunnanohjaajista näkee lapset enemmän yksilöinä, toiset taas keskittyvät enemmän tyttöjen voimaannuttamiseen. Naisia on paljon liikunnanohjaajina, mutta eräiden haastateltavien mukaan naisia tulisi olla enemmän järjestön johtotehtävissä. Lapsille vanhempien tuki ja kannustus on oleellinen ja jopa välttämätön edellytys ohjelmaan osallistumiseen. Haastateltavat lapset näkevät liikunnanohjaajat ennen kaikkea kannustavina urheilullisten taitojen opettajina. Vanhempien mukaan liikunnanohjaajien kanssa on helppo kommunikoida, vaikka toivovatkin heiltä oma-aloitteisesti enemmän palautetta lastensa kehittymisestä tietyissä lajeissa. Vanhemmat kokevat, että lapset voivat oppia paljon elämäntaitoja ja arvoja ohjelman kautta - joskus nämä seikat nähdään jopa tärkeämpinä kuin itse liikunnallisten perustaitojen oppiminen. Lapset kokevat joukkuepelin olevan tärkein ohjelmassa oppimansa arvo. Tutkielma nostaa esiin universaaleja arvoja, joita voi oppia liikunnan kautta.
  • Virolainen, Tuuli (2017)
    Objectives. Anxiety and physical inactivity are associated with significant personal and societal disadvantages worldwide. Previous research suggests that physical activity is associated with decreased symptoms of anxiety among healthy adults, adults with a chronic illness, and individuals diagnosed with an anxiety disorders. Increasing amount of studies also suggests that physical exercise can be an evidenced-based intervention for anxiety symptoms among people with anxiety disorders. Few studies have used direct measures of physical activity instead of self-report measures. The objective of this study was to determine the association between regular physical activity and anxiety and examine if the relationship remains after controlling possible moderating variables, BMI, depression and health status. In addition, the aim was to examine how using self-report measures and direct measures affects to these results. Method. The study sample (n = 284, 54.9 % women, mean age = 54,4 years) was a part of the Midlife Development in the United States follow-up study material. Physical activity was assessed by Actiwatch activity monitoring system and by self-report measures. Anxiety was assessed by the trait version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). The relations between physical activity and anxiety were examined using linear regression. Results and conclusions. There were no significant relationship between physical activity and anxiety. However, low moderate exercise predicted higher anxiety levels almost significantly. This relation didn't remain after controlling the effects of the possible moderating variables, BMI, depression and health status. Relationship between direct and self-report measures of physical activity was weak. Results found in this study are conflicting with the information from previous studies in which significant relationship between physical activity and anxiety has been found. However, small sample size, limitations regarding the measurement tools of physical activity and high mean age of the sample may have influenced these results. In accord with previous studies, these findings suggest that there are some problems regarding the reliability of self-report measures when measuring physical activity. Future research is needed to clarify relations between physical activity and anxiety.