Naslov
Physical Activity and Psychological Well-Being of Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
(Physical Activity and Psychological Well-Being of Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic)

Autori
Vrbanac, Karlo ; Glavaš, Dragan ; Magaš, Mislav ; Pandžić, Mario

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Sažeci sa skupova, sažetak, znanstveni

Skup
The 3rd International Scientific Conference of Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Croatia: Coping with Crisis - Pathways towards Resilience

Mjesto i datum
Zagreb, Hrvatska, 9.-11.12.2021

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Predavanje

Vrsta recenzije
Međunarodna recenzija

Ključne riječi
Physical Activity, Psychological Well-Being, Students, COVID-19

Sažetak
The change in the daily routine during the COVID-19 pandemic specifically affected students. For example, the lack of even mild everyday activities like walking or cycling or usual moderate physical activity (PA) students usually experience during the week calls for caution, considering the possible adverse effect of physical inactivity. Thus, from a health and psychological standpoint, it is crucial to explore how PA in the weeks of the pandemic affects students' psychological well-being. To test it empirically, we comprised 262 students (Mage = 21.73 ; TR = 18 - 27 ; Nmale = 85, Nfemale = 177) who completed the Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaire, the scale "Mental health" of the SF 36 Health Survey and International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF) as a self-administered format of the last seven days PA. Given theoretical suggestions of mood dimensions and mental health as indicators of psychological well-being and correlations confirmed, we utilized the factorial MANOVA. To test the generalizability of PA across gender, we included gender as one and IPAQ PA intensity categories as other independent variables and psychological well-being as the dependent variable. The result showed a significant effect of higher last seven days PA intensity on psychological wellbeing independent of gender. More specifically, lower irritability, fatigue and numbness, and higher mental health characterized students involved in moderate and high, compared to those involved in low PA intensity. Compared to less physically active students in the last seven days, moderately active students also showed lower irritability, fatigue, numbness, and higher vigour. Furthermore, students involved in high PA intensity for the last seven days showed more increased vigour, better mental health, and lower numbness than those involved in moderate PA intensity. The results also showed lower fatigue and numbness of male compared to female students. Additionally, the results suggested some tendencies of the different effects of PA intensity on fatigue, irritability and mental health of male and female students. However, those tendencies were not statistically significant and indicated a possible discussion of the possibility of an ununiformed effect of PA. We also discuss our study's findings regarding other theoretically relevant moderators and mediators of PA effects.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Psihologija, Kineziologija

POVEZANOST RADA