MOTOR RESTLESSNESS AND SCHOOL LUNCHBOXES: A COMPARATIVE STUDY IN IBAGUE, COLOMBIA

Motor restlessness perceived in the classroom is a highly relevant phenomenon for educational psychology and school health in Colombia, where the prevalence of associated symptoms reaches critical levels between 16% and 19% (Faraone et al., 2021). Although it has traditionally been approached from a clinical perspective centered on the diagnosis of Attention- Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2022), this study adopts a biopsychosocial and interpretive framework (Engel, 2012; Weissenberger et al., 2017). Under this paradigm, physical agitation is understood as a dynamic response modulated by critical environmental factors (Cuartas & Morris-Perez, 2026), in which the school lunchbox acts as the systemic interface between home and school (Bron fenbrenner & Morris, 2007; Tong & An, 2023). The purpose of this research was to analyze teachers and parents perceptions of the relationship between the nutritional content of lunchboxes and post recess agitation. A qualitative descriptive-comparative multiple-case design was employed in two schools in Ibague with contrasting socioeconomic contexts (Lopez Jimenez et al., 2020). Findings revealed significant disparities in macronutrient composition and strong differences in perceived post-recess motor restlessness, reinforcing the interpretation of classroom agitation as a learning-environment phenomenon shaped by nutritional inequalities, teacher meaning-making, and school climate.