BACKGROUND: Low rates of physical activity and high rates of cannabis use among adolescents are concerning given the health outcomes associated with these health behaviours. Although individual-level characteristics are strongly associated with physical activity and cannabis use, research also suggests that the school setting may influence these health behaviours.
PURPOSE: To: 1) Determine the extent to which students’ cannabis use and physical activity vary across school and classroom settings, 2) Identify characteristics of the school setting that are associated with cannabis use and physical activity among students in grades 6-12 in Ontario.
METHODS: This study used data from the School Mental Health Surveys, a cross-sectional school-based survey of 31,124 students, 3,373 teachers, and 206 principals from 248 schools across Ontario. Multilevel modelling was used to explore school and class effects while controlling for student compositional effects.
RESULTS: About 5% of the variability in student physical activity and 14% of the variability in student cannabis use was attributable to between school and classroom differences. Students’ perception of school climate was positively associated with physical activity, and negatively associated with cannabis use.
CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight the potential influence of the school and classroom environment on students’ physical activity and cannabis use. School and classroom contexts may be important environments for targeted interventions, policies and programs. / Thesis / Master of Public Health (MPH) / Despite the known benefits of physical activity and harms associated with cannabis use, physical activity rates are low while cannabis use is high among Canadian youth. Previous research has highlighted the potential for the school environment to influence students’ health behaviours. The current study examined the extent to which physical activity and cannabis use varied across school and classroom settings and identified characteristics of the school environment that were associated with these health behaviours. There was significant between school and classroom variability in levels of physical activity and cannabis use. School climate was positively associated with physical activity, and negatively associated with cannabis use. Identifying modifiable characteristics of the school environment that are associated with students’ health behaviours can inform development of interventions, policies, and programs to increase physical activity and reduce cannabis use.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/23393 |
| Date | January 2018 |
| Creators | Linton, Vanessa |
| Contributors | Georgiades, Katholiki, Health Sciences |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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