Abstract Information

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Abstract submission guidelines

We now welcome abstract submissions in relation to physical activity research, policy, advocacy and/or practise for the fifth annual Asia-Pacific Society for Physical Activity (ASPA) conference, to be held in Newcastle, Australia on November 26-28, 2025.

The abstract submission deadline is 30/06/2025, late abstracts will not be accepted.

To be considered eligible, all abstracts must:

Align with the scope and aims of ASPA which is to advance knowledge and integration of physical activity into health, education, sport and recreation, urban planning and transport practice and policies across all levels of government and non-government organisations in the Asia-Pacific region in order to benefit the health and wellbeing of all communities in the region
Be original work
Be submitted in English using the ASPA conference website
Be prepared according to the abstract submission guidelines
Include a conflict of interest statement

The number of abstract submissions by a presenting author will be limited to a maximum of two (2). This is for presenting authors only; there is no limit to the total number of abstracts one can be an author on. First-named authors are required to be the presenting authors. By submitting, presenting authors are ensuring that all authors have made a significant contribution to the work and have approved the submission.

Authors will be notified by 31/08/2025 whether their abstract has been accepted. All presenting authors need to register to attend the conference in Newcastle and provide full payment of the registration fee by 31/10/2025, otherwise their submission will be withdrawn. ASPA will not waive registration fees.

If there is a change in the presenting author(s), if the presenter is unable to attend the conference, or if you need to withdraw an abstract submission, please notify the Conference Committee as soon as possible and before 31/10/2025 using the support service on your congress dashboard.

Upon acceptance of a submission, authors will receive a detailed description of how to prepare their presentation (e.g., format of oral presentations, poster guidelines).

Presenting authors will be asked to indicate their preference for an oral or poster presentation upon submission. However, presentation format will ultimately be determined by the Conference Committee. Oral presentations will be assigned on a competitive basis as judged by the Conference Committee according to the following criteria:

Alignment with the scope of ASPA
Impact, significance, innovation, and originality for the physical activity field
Quality of the methodology or approach

You will be able to submit 2 types of abstracts: 1) scientific or research abstracts; 2) advocacy, policy or practice abstracts. Guidelines for each abstract type are explained below.

Guidelines for Scientific or Research Abstracts

Title word limit: 20
Abstract word limit: 300

Introduction

State the primary purpose of the work and include the main research questions or hypotheses being addressed. Emphasise what is innovative about this work.

Methods

A brief explanation of what was done and how it was done. This should include study design, participants (include sample size), measures and analyses (or protocol used if a systematic review).

Results

Explicitly describe the main findings or outcomes of the research (include some data). Do not submit an abstract based on data yet to be collected/analysed.

Conclusions

Briefly explain what the results mean, what are the implications in terms of the advancement of physical activity research. What is the impact or significance of the outcomes to the field?

Guidelines for Advocacy, Policy or Practice abstracts

Title word limit: 20
Abstract word limit: 300

Purpose

State the primary purpose of the project or policy, including the main physical activity issues being addressed. Provide information on the context, setting and target group. Emphasise what is innovative about this project or policy.

Project or policy description

Four main topics should be described: development, implementation, evaluation and dissemination. Describe how the project or policy was developed, which stakeholders were involved, and who was responsible for its implementation. Describe how the implementation took place, how it was evaluated, and – to the extent relevant – how it is, or will be disseminated or scaled-up. Submissions should not be based on activities or work yet to be completed.