Abstract
BackgroundEffective social problem-solving abilities can contribute to decreased risk of poor mental health. In addition, physical activity has a favorable effect on mental health. These previous studies suggest that physical activity and social problem-solving ability can interact by helping to sustain mental health. The present study aimed to determine the association between attitude and practice of physical activity and social problem-solving ability among university students.MethodsInformation on physical activity and social problem-solving was collected using a self-administered questionnaire. We analyzed data from 185 students who participated in the questionnaire surveys and psychological tests. Social problem-solving as measured by the Social Problem-Solving Inventory-Revised (SPSI-R) (median score 10.85) was the dependent variable. Multiple logistic regression analysis was employed to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for higher SPSI-R according to physical activity categories.ResultsThe multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that the ORs (95% CI) in reference to participants who said they never considered exercising were 2.08 (0.69–6.93), 1.62 (0.55–5.26), 2.78 (0.86–9.77), and 6.23 (1.81–23.97) for participants who did not exercise but intended to start, tried to exercise but did not, exercised but not regularly, and exercised regularly, respectively. This finding suggested that positive linear association between physical activity and social problem-solving ability (p value for linear trend < 0.01).ConclusionsThe present findings suggest that regular physical activity or intention to start physical activity may be an effective strategy to improve social problem-solving ability.
Highlights
Effective social problem-solving abilities can contribute to decreased risk of poor mental health
Multivariate odds ratio and 95% confidence interval of higher Social Problem-Solving Inventory-Revised (SPSI-R) and subscales according to physical activity As shown in Table 3, the unadjusted analysis indicated that the Odds ratio (OR) in reference to participants who answered “I do not practice physical activity, and I never think about doing so” were 2.03 (0.68–6.65), 1.68 (0.58–5.34), 3.11 (1.00–10.60), and 7.00 (2.11–26.13) for participants who did not exercise but intended to start, tried to exercise but did not, exercised but not regularly, and exercised regularly, respectively (p value for linear trend < 0.01)
This study investigated the association between attitude and practice of physical activity and social problemsolving ability among Japanese university students
Summary
Effective social problem-solving abilities can contribute to decreased risk of poor mental health. Social problem-solving ability involves the higher-level cognitive processes needed to cope appropriately with various stressful problems experienced in life [1, 2]. It can be described as encompassing two components: problem orientation and problem-solving skills. Problem-solving skills are effective coping techniques for dealing with a particular problematic situation. Physical activity has a favorable effect on mental health [10, 11]. There are many studies that have reported on mental health issues in
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