engleski

Contribution of physical activity and stress to explanation of emotional well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic

A pandemic of coronavirus disease was declared in February 2020 in Croatia, and series of strict measures were brought, like physical and social distancing. Most businesses and facilities were closed, gatherings were forbidden, and many people worked from home. Consequently, there has been a change in people’s lifestyles during home confinement. In general, these conditions have brought changes in physical activity and well-being. The main goal of this research was to explore the relation of emotional well- being and physical activity and stress. This research was conducted in the period from the middle to the end of May 2020, during the first wave of coronavirus pandemic in Croatia. The research was conducted on 580 participants (409 females), aged 18 to 69 years. Participants completed an online questionnaire comprised demographics, Body mass index (BMI), change of body mass (since the beginning of the epidemic in Croatia), physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire – Short Form, IPAQ- SF), health survey (Short Form Health Survey, SF-36) and level of stress (measuring with one question). Regarding respondents BMI, there was a range from 15.78 to 44.64. Most participants have a normal or healthy weight (55.2%), almost a third is overweight (30%), about 13 percentage is obese (12.8%), and the least of them is underweight (2.1%). Physical activity was assessed using the frequency and duration of walking, physical activity of moderate-intensity, physical activity of vigorous-intensity, and sedentary behaviour. With emotional well-being as a criterion, change of body mass (β = -.097, p = .01), physical activity (β = .106, p = .02), and level of stress (β = -.353, p < .00) explained 21.4% variance of criterion (F (9, 570) = 17.20, p < .00). A measure of body mass was not a significant predictor. The level of stress independently explains 11.6% of the total percentage of explained variance. Results showed a mediation effect of perceived stress on the association between gender and emotional well-being, wherein male participants with lower levels of stress have greater emotional well-being. Data shows that those participants with minor or no changes in body mass, those who were more physically active and perceived less stress have better adapted to the new crisis of coronavirus. Physical activity is an important factor, but perceived stress was a more significant predictor of people’s emotional well-being during home confinement.

emotional well-being ; physical activity ; stress ; Covid-19 pandemic

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