Health, Exercise, and Sports Sciences ETDs

Publication Date

7-10-1972

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which a representative sample of colleges and universities, throughout the United States, provided indoor activity space for physical education and physical recreation as of the Spring, 1972. Specifically, the study proposed to investigate the extent to which the sample approximated the recommended standards for indoor activity space, as set forth by the 1967 National Conference on Facilities for Health, Physical Education and Recreation. In addition, the study attempted to investigate the relationship 0£ enrollment size, climatic conditions, the number enrolled in a professional physical education preparation program, and population density to the total indoor activity space provided for physical education and physical recreation.

A questionnaire, mailed to five hundred randomly selected colleges and universities throughout the United States, served as the instrument for collection of the data. Three hundred ten institutions responded to the questionnaire, representing a 62% response.

To investigate the extent to which the sample approximated the recommended standards for indoor activity space, the 99% confidence interval estimate was computed for the sample means of the various classifications of indoor activity space. The recommended standard for each type of indoor space was then compared to the computed confidence interval to determine the precision of each standard as an estimator of the population mean. The stepwise regression analysis computer program BMD02R was used to investigate the relationship of enrollment size, climatic conditions, the number enrolled in a professional physical education preparation program, and population density to the total indoor activity space provided per student for physical education and physical recreation. The F-ratio, generated as a result of the simple linear regression analysis, served as the criterion to determine the significance of the relationships.

Five statistical significances resulted from the analysis. Four of the significances were concerned with the recommended space standards. A significant difference was found between the recommended standard for total indoor activity space, for indoor activity areas with relatively low ceiling heights, for indoor swimming and diving pools, and for indoor handball and squash courts. The fifth statistical significance was found between the relationship of enrollment size to total indoor activity space provided per student. There was found no significant difference between the recommended standard for large gymnasium areas and the existing space as represented by the sample. Climatic conditions, the number enrolled in a professional physical education preparation program, and population density were found not to be significantly related to total indoor activity space provided per student.

Document Type

Dissertation

Language

English

Degree Name

Health Education

Level of Degree

Doctoral

Department Name

Health, Exercise, and Sports Sciences

First Committee Member (Chair)

Armond Harold Seidler

Second Committee Member

Del D. Dyerson

Third Committee Member

Richard Francis Tonigan

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