Previous studies have suggested that physical activity may decrease academic procrastination; however, few studies have explored the underlying mechanisms of how physical activity exerts an effect on academic procrastination. This study aimed to examine the mediating effects of self-control and self-efficacy in the relationship between physical activity and academic procrastination among Chinese university students. Methods: A cross-sectional design was used in this study. The sample comprised 564 university students from a university in Zhejiang, China. The physical activity rating scale-3 (PARS-3), self-control scale (SCS), generalized self-efficacy scale (GSES), and procrastination assessment scale-students (PASS) were used to investigate university students’ physical activity, self-control, self-efficacy, and academic procrastination respectively. The Percentile-Bootstrap technique was performed to examine the mediating effects of self-control and self-efficacy on the association between physical activity and academic procrastination. Results: Physical activity significantly predicted higher levels of self-control and self-efficacy, as well as lower levels of academic procrastination. Self-control and self-efficacy were significant mediators between physical activity and academic procrastination. Conclusion: This study indicated that physical activity interventions targeting the improvement of self-control and self-efficacy may reduce academic procrastination in university students.

Background: Academic procrastination (AP) has been a common problematic behavior in college students. While physical activity (PA) has been reported to increase self-efficacy and reduce AP, less is known about the potential relationships among them. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the mediating effect of self-efficacy on the relationship between PA and AP. Methods: 687 Chinese college students (51% males, 49% females) aged 17–23 years (M = 19.59, SD = 0.89) participated in the study. PA, self-efficacy, and AP were assessed using the Physical Activity Rating Scale-3 (PARS-3), the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (PASS), respectively. Pearson correlation analysis, linear regression analysis, and mediation analysis were used to analyze the data. Results: (1) PA has a significant and negative impact on college students’ AP, (2) PA has a significant and positive impact on college students’ self-efficacy; (3) self-efficacy has a significant and negative impact on AP in college students; and (4) self-efficacy significantly mediates the relationship between PA and AP. Conclusions: PA is an effective intervention for directly and indirectly decreasing college students’ AP. Therefore, more intervention efforts should focus on the promotion of PA in higher education to improve students’ self-efficacy and thus, to reduce AP among college students.

Purpose: Physical activity has been found to be negatively correlated with academic procrastination. However, the potential mediating variables in this relationship are not well understood. This study aimed to explore the mediating effects of self-esteem and depression in the relationship between physical activity and academic procrastination among Chinese undergraduate students. Patients and Methods: A total of 1233 Chinese undergraduate students participated in the study. The unidimensionality of the self-esteem, depression, and academic procrastination was examined using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Serial mediation analysis was conducted using SPSS 25.0 macro-PROCESS 3.3 to examine whether self-esteem and depression jointly mediated the relationship between physical activity and academic procrastination. Results: Self-esteem, depression, and academic procrastination displayed a good-fit to the one-factor model. The results indicated that physical activity indirectly impact academic procrastination through three pathways: (1) self-esteem (β=− 0.011, Boots 95% CI [− 0.021, − 0.001]), which accounted for of 12.09% of the total effect, (2) depression (β=− 0.022, Boots 95% CI [− 0.036, − 0.009]), which accounted for 24.18% of the total effect, and (3) self-esteem and depression (β=− 0.006, Boots 95% CI [− 0.011, − 0.002]), which accounted for 6.59% of the total effect. The total mediating effect was 42.86%. Conclusion: These findings suggest that self-esteem and depression playing a mediating role in the relationship between physical activity and academic procrastination, respectively. Moreover, self-esteem and depression co-mediate this relationship through a serial pathway. Plain Language Summary: This study explores the connection between physical activity and the tendency of undergraduate students in China to delay their academic tasks. Researchers were particularly interested in how feelings of self-worth (self-esteem) and mood (depression) might influence this relationship. We found that students who are more active physically tend to procrastinate less on their study. This effect is partly because physical activity boosts their self-esteem and reduces feelings of depression. Both these factors, individually and together, help explain why active students are more likely to tackle their academic tasks promptly. Basically, being physically active not only helps students feel better about themselves and less depressed but also encourages them to be more diligent with their studies.