The benefits of physical activity for comprehensive well-being and learning are undeniable. Although the benefits are widely known, the implementation of movement in everyday life does not happen on its own. Everyday work and study require practices that support physical activity and an operating culture that promotes physical activity, which is met by the activity etiquette drawn up for the higher education community.
The activity etiquette is a jointly built guideline for 3AMK higher education institutions on how movement is implemented in the everyday life of the university. Activity etiquette guides and promotes learning, well-being and communality in the 3AMK universities. The activity etiquette contains eight principles. The principles guide how movement can be implemented in teaching and the environment, as well as through the community and individuals, so that movement really becomes a part of our everyday lives.
Principles:
1. We foster learning and boost creativity through movement.
2. We pace our daily work and studies and take regular breaks.
3. We make the most of various ways to stay active.
4. We are encouraged to make use of our surroundings in various ways.
5. We encourage everyone to be physically active.
6. We take care of our alertness and energy.
7. We welcome ways to increase our physical activity.
8. We act as examples for others.
This is how the activity etiquette was created!
The activity etiquette has been designed to involve the higher education community in the development work from the very beginning – in accordance with the principles of service design. The design process proceeded in stages. The development process of service design aims at in-depth user understanding, the utilisation of multidisciplinary cooperation, and the building of common views through dialogue. These factors enable innovative solutions that are agile in everyday life [1].
The design process of the activity etiquette (see picture above) was supported by the thorough collection of background and theoretical information by the 3AMK Moves project operators:
- Team-specific activity pledges were collected from the university's employees and students.
- Activity facilitator activities were launched, in which dozens of lecturers took the movement on a concrete level, for example, to teaching.
- Tried and tested tips and practices to increase everyday activity were collected from the 3AMK community.
- The pedagogical plan of some study modules was reviewed and the project team made its own recommendations for them, from the point of view of physically active learning.
- The collection of information was supported by visits to various events where movement as part of teaching, learning, well-being and community spirit was given a foothold.
In the spring of 2025, the project team prepared a survey for the higher education community, which was used to collect information and to select the most important principles to increase physical activity in everyday life. Based on the results, a joint design workshop was organized for all interested 3AMK operators, where the final content of the activity etiquette was brainstormed and the principles considered to be the most important were crystallized. With the help of a summary produced from the workshop, the activity etiquette was conceptualised. Conceptualisation describes the core of the output, which must meet the needs of the target group [2]. This is what the 3AMK Moves project team aimed to achieve when producing and launching the activity etiquette.
The work that provided the background to the activity etiquette and its design process are explained in more detail in the article “Liike-etiketti korkeakouluyhteisölle – Liike on osa arkeamme” (in Finnish).
References:
[1] Liedtka, J. 2017. Evaluating the impact of design thinking in action. In Academy of Management Proceedings. Academy of Management.
https://journals.aom.org/doi/10.5465/AMBPP.2017.177
[2] Tuulaniemi, J. 2016. Palvelumuotoilu. Helsinki. Talentum Pro.
Activity pledges
Activity pledges are made by different teams through the 3AMK community on how movement and physical activity are reflected in everyday life. Pledges were collected during autumn 2024 and spring 2025. They also outlined the principles that add movement to everyday life, which were highlighted in activity etiquette.