Children's literature as a motivational factor for physical activities through the example of Jaroslav Foglar
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2024 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Children & Society |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/chso.12746 |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/chso.12746 |
| Keywords | ethics; fiction; healthy lifestyle; holistic development |
| Description | Despite many philosophical and scientific appeals, phys- ical inactivity, especially in children and young people, remains one of the most serious problems of contempo- rary civilisation. In our sub-study of wider research, we focus on the use of Czech fiction and comics by Jaroslav Foglar as a motivational factor to increase readers' physi- cal activity. The respondents (n=1174) were mostly adults who had spent their childhood or adolescence reading the works of Jaroslav Foglar. These people val- ued exercise (70%) in this reading, with a high correla- tion (0.73) to a healthy lifestyle (abstinence from alcohol and smoking). For 57% of the respondents, these values from reading also become an inspiration for application in life (there is a causal link between the degree of aware- ness of being influenced by the work and the actual ap- plication of the physical activity), with even higher values recorded for camping and being in a natural envi- ronment, as well as moral behaviour, ethical principles, and helping others. Thus, we can confirm that the in- spiration of the fictional world of literature can become a motivational impulse to increase physical activity in the real world, moreover in the context of a very strong awareness of ethical values and moral behaviour. |