The Role of Parental Physical Literacy in Family Dynamics: A Systematic Scoping Review of Existing Evidence.

Only 18 studies were included, and they were very different in design, population and outcome, so the evidence cannot be treated as one consistent finding. Most association studies were cross-sectional, so they cannot show that increasing parental physical literacy causes child physical activity to improve. Intervention studies were few and often lacked control groups or long-term follow-up, and many relied on self-report. Parents were mostly mothers, with a reported mother-to-father ratio of about 6:1, so fathers' role is not well represented. Evidence for parents of children with special education needs was very limited, with only one qualitative study of six mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder. One-third of included studies were in Asian populations, so cultural and family context may affect how these findings apply.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest.

Do not conclude that parent physical literacy programs will reliably improve children's long-term physical activity or health. The review included only 18 studies, many were cross-sectional or short-term, relied on self-report, and had limited evidence for fathers and children with special needs.