An intersectionality approach to immigrant girls' lived experiences with physical activity

Abstract

This qualitative research study used an interpretive phenomenological methodology and an intersectionality theoretical framework. This emphasized the importance of immigrant girls’ voices, narratives, and their lived experiences towards an understanding of how these are impacted by the multiple social categories such as gender, ethnocultural background, and immigration. The participants were four high school students from Winnipeg, Canada, who identified as both female and as an immigrant. An array of people and structures involved in the participants’ lives such as family, community, friends and physical education were employed to explore the intersections of their lived experiences with physical activity. The findings were comprised of seven superior themes: Attitudes Towards Physical Activity; Barriers to Participation in Physical Activity; Supports for Engagement in Physical Activity; Gendered Physical Education; Social Discourses and Physical Activity; Health and Immigration; and Value and Meaning of Physical Activity.