Associations between change in hope and change in physical activity in a pediatric weight management program

The present study was designed to examine how changes in an individual factor, hope, are associated with changes in physical activity over the course of a weight-management program for children (i.e., Positively Fit). This study consisted of 67 participants measured for height and weight (to determine body mass index [BMI] percentiles), and who completed self-report measures of hope and physical activity pre-and post-intervention. Results indicated that changes in hope were significantly associated with changes in physical activity over the course of treatment. Future research may benefit from examining the relationship between hope and more objective measures of physical activity, but the present study suggests that hope may be an important individual factor in physical activity change.