Participation in lifestyle sports during physical education: A scoping review of student outcomes

Purpose: Engaging in lifestyle sports (LS), such as skateboarding and parkour, can increase moderate-to-vigorous physical activity participation and yield many physical, mental, and developmental benefits for young people. However, previous sociohistorical research on LS has tended to focus on community sport settings and not specifically within physical education (PE). Nevertheless, a shift towards studying lifestyle sports within PE is gathering pace. A scoping review of existing evidence on the outcomes experienced by students participating in LS within the PE context (i.e., curricular and extracurricular PE) will help to establish the boundaries of the evidence on this topic and signpost avenues for future research. Therefore, the aim of this scoping review was to determine the extent, range, and nature of the existing literature on the outcomes experienced by students (5-18 years) when participating in LS during curricular and extracurricular PE.

Methods: The following electronic databases were searched in the English language: ERIC, MEDLINE Ultimate, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, and Web of Science. Gray literature was identified through ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global, Google Scholar, and the British Library EThOS. The review was conducted in accordance with the JBI methodology for scoping reviews (Peters et al., 2020). Studies meeting the inclusion criteria were processed for data charting and analysis. A total of 38 studies were selected for their content analysis.

Results: Data is currently being analysed and will be reported, using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses extension for Scoping Review (PRISMA-ScR).

Conclusion: Recommendations for the direction of future research to develop a high-quality evidence base will be made to facilitate the future planning, development and integration of meaningful and effective LS programmes in school PE. The development of such programmes across schools in the UK cannot be underestimated given the declining nature of children’s involvement in physical activity and ‘traditional’ sports.