The purpose and the motivation for future practice of physical activity and related factors in Japanese university students

Abstract

Purpose: We investigated the purpose and the motivation for the future practice of physical activity and related factors in Japanese university students. Materials and Methods: The participants were 499 university students (407 men and 92 women). Participants were surveyed using an anonymous self-administered questionnaire. Questionnaire items were anthropometrics, current exercise habits, preference for exercise, existence of exercise partners, benefits of exercise, self-efficacy for exercise, and the purpose to be motivated to exercising in the future. Results: The exercise group had higher scores for preference for exercise, exercise partners, self-efficacy for exercise, and benefits of exercise than the non-exercise group. The exercise group also reported being more likely to be motivated to exercise in the future than the nonexercise group. In the exercise group, those who felt benefits of exercise were more likely to be motivated to exercise for enhancement of health, enjoyment, making friends, prevention of illness, and enhancement of competitiveness. In the non-exercise group, those who had a preference for exercise were more likely to be motivated to exercise in the future for enjoyment, prevention of illness, and enhancement of competitiveness. In both the exercise and non-exercise groups, women were markedly more likely to be motivated to exercise in the future for aesthetics. Conclusions: These results indicate that there is a difference in the purpose and the motivation for future practice of physical activity between the exercise group and the non-exercise group as well as between genders. Nakamura, H. (2019). The purpose and the motivation for future practice of physical activity and related factors in Japanese university students.

Motivação para a prática de atividade física em estudantes de enfermagem

“…In this study, psychological and physical motives predict physical activity among nursing students. This corroborates the results of Miyawaki et al (2019). These authors also observed that students were motivated by extrinsic factors such as weight control and intrinsic factors such as relieving stress and anxiety arising from academic life, i.e., feeling psychologically well.…”

“…However, individuals do not experience these needs in a similar way, and motivations result from different factors, such as age, gender, context, timing, and personal, social, economic, and cultural trends, among others (Martins et al, 2018). In a study exploring the motivation for physical activity and related factors in a sample of 499 Japanese university students (407 men and 92 women), Miyawaki et al (2019) demonstrated that self-efficacy and physical and psychological benefits were inherent factors for physical activity. Students who were more physically active reported benefits from physical activity and were more motivated to exercise for health enhancement, enjoyment, making friends, illness prevention, and competitiveness enhancement.…”

Key influences on university students’ physical activity: a systematic review using the Theoretical Domains Framework and the COM-B model of human behaviour

“…Exercise could wait until graduation without compromising overall health. [48] Facilitator "You need to be active to prevent yourself from having open heart surgery" [57] Maintaining or improving one's physical appearance 5 (13) Facilitator [37,40,45,64,65] The most cited motivators to exercise were improved […] physical appearance. [65]…”

Obesity Prevalence Through Diet and Physical Activity in Medical Faculty Students

“…Weight loss can also be done by implementing a low energy diet with a low fat or low carbohydrate composition accompanied by aerobic exercise (Dewantari & Ambartana, 2017). So, each student must have different motivations related to physical activity and diet that they want to do so that the goal of dealing with excess weight can be achieved ( (Miyawaki et al, 2019). Thus, it can be understood that overweight and obesity are often theorized using the energy…”