Objectives The purpose of this study was to identify the factors affecting health promoting behaviors in male high school students.
 Methods The subjects were 212 male high school students located in C city. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires. For data analysis, descriptive statistics, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and stepwise multiple regression analysis were used using SPSS version 27.0.
 Results Influences of academic stress, overdependence on smartphones, and interpersonal competence were positively correlated with health promoting behaviors. The variables affecting the health promoting behaviors of the subjects were interpersonal competence (β=.614, p<.001), grade level (β=.170, p=.001), smartphone dependence (β=-.160, p=.002), and the total explanatory power of these variables was 52.3% (F=78.129, p<.001).
 Conclusions Interpersonal competence was one of the biggest influential factors on health promoting behaviors. In order to improve the health promoting behavior of high school students, the development of interpersonal competence in consideration of the characteristics of their developmental stages must be carried out in parallel. And it is necessary to create an educational plan that can reduce the negative impact of overindependence on smartphones in consideration of the subject's personal environment.