Translation and validation of the Canadian assessment of physical literacy-2 in A Turkish Sample

The concept of physical literacy (PL) requires further empirical validation on a global scale. In Turkey, PL is a relatively novel concept, and standardized tools for its comprehensive assessment are lacking. This study aimed to culturally adapt the Canadian Assessment of Physical Literacy – 2 (CAPL-2) and evaluate its construct validity among Turkish children aged 9–12 years. The adapted version was tested on a sample of 240 Turkish school children from 12 classes across three schools. Confirmatory factor analysis, based on the four-factor model proposed by the original CAPL-2 developers, demonstrated acceptable model fit for the Turkish version (CFI=.832, NNFI=.785, GFI=.937, AGFI=.907, RMSEA=0.054 [90% CI 0.038-0.070], and SRMR=0.060). Significant positive correlations between the domains were observed. Boys demonstrated higher levels of physical competence and daily physical activity (PA) behaviors compared to girls. Conversely, both boys and girls achieved high scores in the Motivation and Confidence domain, suggesting that Turkish children place a strong emphasis on participating in PA. The lowest scores were recorded in the Knowledge and Understanding domain, which did not correlate with the other domains, indicating potential misunderstandings in responses, likely due to the specific context of Turkish Physical Education practices. Overall, the translated and culturally adapted Turkish version of the CAPL-2 has been validated as a reliable tool for assessing PL in Turkish children and ready to use in Turkish research studies.