Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the associations of social support and self-efficacy with physical Activity (PA) and the mediating effect of self-efficacy on the relationship between social support and PA in Chinese adolescents. Participants included a total of 2341 Chinese adolescents (aged 12.75 ± 1.46 years). Self-reported instruments, including the physical activity questionnaire for adolescents, the social support revalued scale and the exercise self-efficacy scale, were used to measure physical activity, social support and exercise self-efficacy. Results showed that social support (r = 0.29, p < 0.05) and exercise self-efficacy (r = 0.43, p < 0.05) were significant and positive predictors of PA among Chinese adolescents, and exercise self-efficacy was a significant mediator in the relationship between social support and PA (standardized effect size = 0.15, p < 0.001). Such findings were evident with similar patterns in both male and female adolescents. The findings of this study have indicated the importance of social support and exercise self-efficacy on PA promotion in adolescents, which will aid the development of effective interventions in this population.
Highlights
Physical activity (PA) refers to any movement of skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure.Regular participation in physical Activity (PA) promotes physical health [1] and reduces the risk of noncommunicable diseases [2,3]
Social support, PA level and exercise self-efficacy were all collected by self-report, which may lead to common method biases (CMB)
The results of this study indicated that exercise self-efficacy has a significant positive predictive effect on adolescent PA, which is consistent with previous study findings [49,50]
Summary
Regular participation in PA promotes physical health (e.g., bone growth and development, muscular strength, cardiovascular fitness) [1] and reduces the risk of noncommunicable diseases [2,3]. It benefits psychological and cognitive development, optimizes social cognition, enhances social ability, strengthens self-confidence and facilitates social interaction in adolescents [3,4]. Developing a habit for regular PA in childhood and adolescence is important for both physical and mental health. Chinese adolescents were found to be physically inactive, with only 10.3% performing
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