Well-being and its relationship with sports and physical activity of students during the coronavirus pandemic

Abstract

The main goal of this correlational study is to examine the changes in the amount and type of physical activity of students of various study programs during the coronavirus pandemic. Furthermore, the motives for these changes as well as their relationship with general well-being are investigated. Therefore, 243 students (sport science, humanities, natural sciences) answered questions concerning (a) the amount and type of their physical activity before and during the pandemic, (b) their well-being and (c) their optimism/pessimism. The main result of the study is that the type and the motives for sports and physical activity changed for the study participants during the coronavirus pandemic: Team sports and swimming decreased, while individual sports and physical activity not associated with a sports club/business and with digital media increased. In this study the difference in sports and physical activity seemed to be related to well-being, especially for the students of sport science and humanities. To conclude the study indicated that a change occurred in the type of sports and physical activity as well as change in the motives for physical exercise in students during the pandemic.

Physical Activity and Well-Being during the Second COVID19-Related Lockdown in Germany in 2021

“…Interestingly, in our sample, well-being was not related to PA. This is in line with the large Mannheim Corona Study [35] but in contrast to the aforementioned study in German students [33]. Investigations from the first wave of the pandemic also found positive associations between PA and well-being [36,37].…”

“…There is a paucity of comparable studies during the second wave of the pandemic. A small study in German university students, conducted in February 2021, also reported reductions in PA, but these declines cannot be directly compared to our results because of different methodologies employed [33].…”

Influence of physical activity on well-being at times of the COVID-19 pandemic: a review

“…A pleasing trend was seen regarding substitution of sports venues which were closed within lockdown measures . [20] , [25] It was shown that many people practiced PA at home (indoors and/or outdoors) which can be positively emphasized . [25] At this juncture, it should be mentioned that self-reported WB was higher in people practicing PE within a group .…”

Stress Level of University Students in West Java Indonesia During Early Covid-19 Pandemic

“…The influence of sport and physical activity during the pandemic among students must be regarded as dependent on the study subject. Students of sport science felt more restricted in their sporting exercises than other students (Pietsch, Linder, & Jansen, 2022). From a life full of high physical activity, extensive traveling, competitions, and strong emotions arising from sports-competitive activities, sport students had to adapt to living in an isolated environment without being able to practice their usual activities, having unclear prospects, and experiencing fear of getting diseased (Iancheva et al, 2020).…”