Identification of distinct physical activity profiles through adolescence: a longitudinal qualitative description study

Introduction: We aimed to better understand longitudinal physical activity experiences among initially active adolescents and to identify and describe distinct physical activity profiles.

Methods: A sample of 23 physically active participants [52% female; mean age = 12.2 (0.6) years at study inception] were selected from the MATCH study to take part in this nested qualitative descriptive study. Participants were interviewed once a year for six years. Following individual-level analyses, profiles were identified based on similarity of longitudinal experiences.

Results: Four profiles captured participants' experiences: Independents (those who progressively seek activities that cater to their pursuit of autonomy); Multitaskers (those who participate in many different sports as an integral part of their lifestyle); Specialists (those who are dedicated to becoming the best they can be at one sport); Undecided (those who take part in physical activity to occupy time).

Discussion: The exploration of longitudinal physical activity experiences led to the identification of distinct profiles that could be targets for tailored interventions, theory development, and participation models.