A Study on the Correlation Between Undergraduate Students’ Exercise Motivation, Exercise Self-Efficacy, and Exercise Behaviour Under the COVID-19 Epidemic Environment

Abstract

The outbreak of COVID-19 epidemic has influenced human beings from various aspects including physical exercise behaviours. This study aims to explore the influence of the COVID-19 epidemic on exercise self-efficacy and exercise behaviour, as well as the intermediary effects of exercise motivation. A sample of 1,115 undergraduate students was investigated using the physical exercise behaviour scale, exercise self-efficacy scale, and exercise motivation scale, combined with the COVID-19 epidemic environment as an influencing factor. SPSS was used for statistical analysis and AMOS for the prediction model building. Logical analysis was undertaken to sort out and analyse the data. The structural equation model reveals that exercise self-efficacy has a positive effect on exercise motivation and exercise behaviour. Meanwhile, the COVID-19 epidemic environment negatively influences exercise behaviour through the intermediary role of exercise self-efficacy and exercise motivation. Moreover, the intermediary effect of exercise self-efficacy is greater than that of exercise self-efficacy and exercise motivation. This study provides both theoretical implications and practical guidelines for society and undergraduate students to improve their exercise behaviour during epidemic.

How digital health technologies promote healthy life in the Post-COVID-19 Era: evidences from national survey on Chinese adolescents and youngsters

“…Previous studies revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted people's physical activities ( 3 ), which were highly correlated with one's health, physical appearance, and psychological benefits. However, few works were shed light on the role of health technologies on individual's wellness.…”

“…People have significantly less access to outdoor exercise or professional fitness equipment due to outdoor movement restrictions ( 2 ). COVID-19 pandemic has also created barriers to physical activities among adolescents and youngsters, whose health management has entered a dilemma ( 3 ). Several studies have investigated the adverse mental health consequences associated with COVID-19 pandemic ( 4 ), and concluded that the pandemic negatively affected people's mental health (e.g., increase in post-traumatic stress symptoms, depression, anxiety, and insomnia) by influencing multiple factors ( 5 , 6 ).…”

Adaptation and validation of the Weight Efficacy Lifestyle Questionnaire (WEL) in a Chilean sample

“…Self-efficacy can be understood as a generally held ability [ 1 ] and a specific resource within a particular domain. It has thus been described as having a positive impact on self-health care [ 3 ], and its influence is recognized on such diverse behaviors as healthy food intake [ 4 ], regular exercise [ 5 ], and controlling one’s alcohol and tobacco consumption [ 6 ] to cite a few examples.…”

Physical activity and subjective well-being of older adults during COVID-19 prevention and control normalization: Mediating role of outdoor exercise environment and regulating role of exercise form

“…There are many studies on physical activity and subjective well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, targeting various groups—professional athletes ( Schinke et al, 2020 ), children ( Yarımkaya and Esentürk, 2020 ), middle school students ( Okuyama et al, 2021 ), university students ( Wang et al, 2022 ), and adults ( Qi et al, 2020 ). However, there have been few studies on physical activity and subjective well-being in older adults, focusing mainly on whether physical activity participation has a positive effect on subjective well-being during this specific period ( Carriedo et al, 2020 ; Goethals et al, 2020 ; Son et al, 2021 ).…”