School-based environment and physical activity in adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Huihui Wang; Jian Pang; Xiaoguang Yang; Yuanyuan Jia; Xinru Huang; Laikang Yu; Xiao Hou

doi:10.1016/j.ypmed.2025.108221

School-based environment and physical activity in adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Prev Med. 2025 Jan 5:108221. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2025.108221. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Huihui Wang¹, Jian Pang², Xiaoguang Yang³, Yuanyuan Jia¹, Xinru Huang⁴, Laikang Yu⁵, Xiao Hou⁶

Affiliations

¹ School of Sport Science, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100091, China; Key Laboratory of Sports and Physical Health Ministry of Education, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100091, China.
² The Affiliated High School of Peking University, Beijing 100091, China.
³ Sports Coaching College, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100091, China.
⁴ School of Physical Education, Anhui University of Chinese Medicine, Hefei 230012, China.
⁵ Key Laboratory of Sports and Physical Health Ministry of Education, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100091, China; Department of Strength and Conditioning Assessment and Monitoring, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100091, China. Electronic address: yulaikang@126.com.
⁶ School of Sport Science, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100091, China; Key Laboratory of Sports and Physical Health Ministry of Education, Beijing Sport University, Beijing 100091, China. Electronic address: houxiao0327@bsu.edu.cn.

PMID: 39765307
DOI: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2025.108221

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of school environmental factors in promoting adolescents' physical activity.

Methods: A systematic search of five databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, EBSCO, and Cochrane Library) was conducted from the earliest available records up to September 2023. Meta-analyses were performed for each school environmental factor, provided that at least two studies reported on the association between that factor and adolescents' physical activity. The factors examined included seven school social environmental factors and six school physical environmental factors.

Results: 18 studies comprising 340,749 participants were included in the meta-analysis. A significant positive correlation was observed between the school environment and adolescents' physical activity. Specifically, the school social environment was positively associated with adolescents' physical activity. In particular, school-offered daily physical education, school-organized extracurricular physical activities, encouragement of using sports equipment or facilities, and outdoor obstacle course were all significantly positively correlated with adolescents' physical activity. While the overall school physical environment did not show a significant relationship with adolescents' physical activity, the number of school physical activity facilities demonstrated a significant positive correlation with adolescents' physical activity.

Conclusions: This meta-analysis demonstrates the role of school environment in promoting adolescents' physical activity. School social environmental factors, including school-offered daily physical education, school-organized extracurricular physical activities, encouragement to use sports resources, and outdoor obstacle courses, are particularly effective in enhancing adolescents' physical activity. Among school physical environmental factors, the number of physical activity facilities was found to be a key factor in promoting adolescents' physical activity.

Keywords: Adolescent; Physical activity; Physical environment; School environment; Social environment; Student.

Publication types

Review