Primary observational categories | Explanation |
Physical activity level of group | Observed physical activity behaviour of all members of a group. We recorded all observed aspects concerning physical activity and inactivity. Furthermore, we differentiated between ‘very active’/‘moderately active’/‘rather passive, sometimes in the water, with a maximum of two short active exceptions’/and ‘extremely passive’. |
Research setting | Champagne Pond or Entringen Pool |
Gender composition of group | Male only/female only/mixed |
Combination of group concerning age | Concerning age, we differentiated between ‘children’/‘adolescents’/‘young adulthood’/‘middle adulthood’/and ‘seniors’. |
Combination of group concerning body shape | Concerning body shape, we differentiated between ‘lean, normal-weight, and slightly overweight’/‘clearly overweight’/and ‘athletic’. |
Group size | In this category, we differentiated between small groups including two or three members/middle size including four or five members/large groups including six or more. |
Additional equipment | We observed whether groups had equipment such as chairs, sun loungers, barbecues, cooling boxes, sunshades, etc. or not. |
Communication level within group | We observed the verbal communication of group members, e.g. loud or quiet. Moreover, we differentiated between frequent and lively verbal communication between most group members/occasional verbal communication/almost no verbal communication among group members. |
Food and drinking behaviour | We recorded whether groups brought food and drinks to the sites. |
Secondary observational categories | Explanation |
Design of resting site | We observed, how groups organised their resting site, for example how they arranged their equipment, how they furnished their site etc. |
Figurations | We observed in-/out-group constellations, age combinations at the site and group compositional changes. |
Social contagion | In this context, we looked at the spread of activity within groups and between groups. |
Area of rest and movement | We observed where members of groups spent the majority of their time resting and the other areas they moved to. |
Promoting physical activity | We used this category for coding all factors which appeared to promote physical activity. |
Hindering physical activity | We used this category for coding all factors which hindered physical activity. |