Objectives: This study examined the relationship between physical activity, sleep and depression among college students and gender differences in physical activity, sleep and depression. Methods: Participants were 1143 students from a large public university in Beijing and completed three questionnaires to measure their physical activity habits, sleep patterns, and depression levels. Data from were analyzed using descriptive statistics, stepwise regression, and an independent t test. Results: Results indicated that vigorous physical activity and sleep variables significantly predicted depression levels for the overall sample (F = 77.286, p = .000). When examined by gender, vigorous and moderate physical activity variables significantly predicted depression for males (t = −2.772, p = .006; t = −2.622, p = .009), whereas no level of physical activity had a significant relationship with depression for females. Conclusions: Rigorous physical activity and quality sleep may be beneficial to helping college students reduce and regulate depressive symptoms, however may vary by gender.

The aim of this study was to examine the associations between physical activity (PA) and subjective well-being (SWB) by focusing on the intensity of PA and different components of SWB. Participants...

Objective: This study aimed to examine the association between physical activity (PA) and subjective well-being (SWB) in Chinese college students, and to determine if the perceived health mediated this association, while both controlling for age, gender, and body mass index (BMI). Participants: 1204 college students (47.8% female, mean age =19.76 ± 1.29 years) voluntarily completed a set of questionnaires in a single-wave (cross-sectional) assessment in 2016. Methods: Participants answered questions measuring happiness, life satisfaction, PA, and perceived health. Five multiple regression models were performed to test the mediating effect. Age, gender, and body weight status were added to all models as covariates. Results: Meeting the moderate- to vigorous-PA (MVPA) guideline (>150 min/week) was associated with higher levels of happiness and life satisfaction (p’s < 0.001). These positive associations were weakened while controlling for the perceived health. Gender was a significant covariate for happiness and body weight status was a significant covariate for life satisfaction. Age was not a significant covariate for all models. Conclusion: PA is positively associated with SWB among college students and this positive association is partially mediated by the individual levels of perceived health. Universities might consider providing exercise programs and advocating students participating more MVPA as effective ways to support students’ mental and emotional well-being.

For a long time, studies on the peer effect of physical activity among adolescents have focused on relevance rather than causality. This article provides empirical evidence of the peer effect of physical activity among adolescents using data from the China Education Panel Survey. The results show that the peer effect increases physical activity by about 6.757–8.984 min per week among classmates, a finding consistent with previous studies. Using the instrumental variable approach and considering the potential missing variables, the peer effect increases physical activity by 23.923–27.410 min per week, representing a threefold increase. In addition, the general attitude towards sports in class plays a significantly influential role, accounting for 20% of the peer effect of physical activity.

Objective: The purpose of the current study was to examine the bidirectional relationship between physical activity (PA) and purpose in life in an older adult sample using longitudinal data. Method: Data were collected from three waves (2006, 2010, and 2014) of the Health and Retirement Study. A total of 4591 participants who had complete information of PA and purpose in life at baseline were included in the current study. A series of cross-lagged models were tested separately for vigorous-intensity PA, moderate-intensity PA, and light-intensity PA. Results: While higher levels of purpose in life were associated with more frequent engagement in future vigorous-intensity PA, moderate-intensity PA, and light-intensity PA, none of the PA variables predicted subsequent purpose in life. Discussion: The results did not support a reciprocal relationship between PA and purpose in life in older adults. It is more likely that purpose in life predicts PA, rather than vice versa.

Previous research has shown many benefits of mindfulness for physical and psychological health, including its link to such health behaviors as increased physical activity (PA). We re-examined the association between mindfulness and PA to better understand a possible mediating role of eudaimonic well-being in this association, while controlling for participants’ age, gender, and affect. We had 738 undergraduate student participants (45.0% females; M age = 19.58 years) complete measures of trait mindfulness, eudaimonic well-being, and PA, and we used age, gender, and affect as covariates in a single-wave assessment. We conducted this mediation analysis with a bootstrapping technique to produce 10,000 resamples. We replicated findings of a significant relationship between mindfulness and enhanced eudaimonic well-being ( β = 0.474, p < 0.001), which in turn contributed to increased PA ( β = 0.193, p < 0.001). The bootstrapping method indicated a significant indirect effect of eudaimonic well-being ( β = 0.092, 95% CI = [0.043, 0.142]) in the relationship between mindfulness and PA through eudaimonic well-being. Thus, eudaimonic well-being may mediate the connection between mindfulness and PA. College administrators should consider incorporating mindfulness into health promotion programs as a means of enhancing college students’ well-being and health behaviors.