Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between family-engaged physical activity (PA), parental employment background, and children’s PA among Mexican-heritage families residing in rural areas of the south-Texas Mexico border. Promotoras (community health workers trained in research methods) administered surveys to mothers (n=346) about family and child characteristics. Survey questions included frequency of participation in family-engaged PA, weekday and weekend maternal-reported hours of active play outside as reported by mothers, and parental employment background. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between family-engaged PA frequency, parental employment, and maternal-reported hours of active play outside during weekdays and weekends. Mothers (n=346) were, on average, 36 years old (SD=10.0), married (65.3%), and born in Mexico (81.5%). Children (n=346) were either 8 (n=117), 9 (n=110), or 10 (n=119) years old. Maternal employment was suggestively inversely associated with maternal-reported hours of active play outside during weekdays and weekends (OR=0.47; 90% CI=0.24, 0.90; p=0.05). Frequent family PA was suggestively positively associated with weekday PA for children, even after adjusting for paternal job status (OR=1.84; 90% CI=1.06, 3.32; p=0.08). Children from families that participated in family PA more frequently (more than 3 times per week) showed higher weekday PA, even after adjusting for paternal days worked (OR=1.86; 90% CI=1.06, 3.34; p=0.07). Understanding the relationship between family PA and maternal-reported hours of active play may facilitate maintained engagement in PA programs. More work is needed to understand the impact, feasibility, and sustainability of family-focused PA interventions within diverse cultural and socioeconomic contexts.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Haley Delgado, M. Renée Umstattd Meyer, Kelly R Ylitalo, Cassandra Beattie, Joseph R. Sharkey