Personal and Social Correlates of Self-Reported Physical Activity in Individuals With a History of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Physical activity is negatively impacted after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and subsequent reconstruction. Previous evidence suggests that individuals with a history of ACL reconstruction (ACLR) may experience additional barriers to sport and physical activity participation. The purpose of this study was to identify personal and social factors (physical literacy, social support, and knee function) that are predictive of self-reported physical activity in individuals with a history of ACLR. Bivariate analyses determined that elements of physical literacy and knee function were positively correlated with self-reported physical activity. The final stepwise linear regression model demonstrated that the PLAYself Physical Literacy Self-description subsection accounted for 12.2% of the variance of self-reported physical activity (p =.003). The significant effect of the PLAYself Physical Literacy Self-description remained (p =.002) even when additional demographic covariates (age, time since ACLR, and sex) were added to the model. Findings suggest that physical literacy may be a salient factor to consider for promoting physical activity after ACLR.