A longitudinal assessment of the impact of biological maturity and menarche on adolescents' organized sport and physical activity participation

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dc.contributor.authorGopalan, Sharan S.
dc.contributor.authorO'Dean, Siobhan
dc.contributor.authorBuckler, E. Jean
dc.contributor.authorLiu, Sam
dc.contributor.authorGardner, Lauren A.
dc.contributor.authorChampion, Katrina
dc.date.accessioned2026-03-05T17:18:54Z
dc.date.available2026-03-05T17:18:54Z
dc.date.copyright2025
dc.description.abstractIntroduction: Processes accompanying growth and maturation are known to impact physical activity (PA) participation among adolescents. This study evaluated the longitudinal impact of these processes on organized sport participation and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) among male and female adolescents. Methods: This study used secondary analysis of data from a longitudinal cohort of 6639 adolescents (Age = 12.92 ± 0.81 years; Males = 3302; Females = 3226) collected using confidential, online self-report surveys through the Health4Life Study across 71 secondary schools in Australia from 2019 to 2022. Controlling for age, socioeconomic status, and state, mixed effects regression models assessed the impact of pubertal stage, relative pubertal timing, and period status (female adolescents only) on organized individual and team sports and MVPA participation. Results: While organized sport and MVPA participation reduced over time for all participants, male and female adolescents responded differently to puberty. Male adolescents showed marginally greater likelihood of participation in organized team sport during early puberty and individual sport during late puberty, but female adolescents significantly reduced individual sport participation during middle, late, and postpubertal stages. Relative pubertal timing did not impact male adolescents, but early maturing female adolescents were significantly less likely to participate in organized team and individual sports. Achieving menarche was linked to lower odds of individual sport participation only. Conclusions: Declining PA participation rates suggest that adolescents may need support for maintaining PA. Disparate effects of puberty in male and female adolescents advocate for separate approaches based on their specific characteristics. Future research should explore the impact of specific sport environment characteristics and menstrual cycle experiences on PA.
dc.description.reviewstatusReviewed
dc.description.scholarlevelFaculty
dc.identifier.citationGopalan, S. S., O'Dean, S., Buckler, E. J., Liu, S., Gardner, L. A., & Champion, K. (2025). A longitudinal assessment of the impact of biological maturity and menarche on adolescents' organized sport and physical activity participation. Journal of Adolescence, 97(6), 1484-1493. https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12512
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12512
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1828/23406
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherJournal of Adolescence
dc.rightsCC BY 4.0en
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subjectadolescents
dc.subjectbiological maturity
dc.subjectmenarche
dc.subjectorganized sport
dc.subjectphysical activity
dc.subjectpuberty
dc.subject.departmentSchool of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Education
dc.titleA longitudinal assessment of the impact of biological maturity and menarche on adolescents' organized sport and physical activity participation
dc.typeArticle

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