- Menglong Li: Physical Education Institute, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, China.
BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of exercise dependence on the psychological health of Chinese college students.
SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 1601 college students from three universities in Hunan, China, were selected as research subjects. Several measurement scales, including the exercise addiction Inventory, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies depression Scale, and the Subjective Well-being Scale, were used to survey the psychological health problem of these students and to analyze the effects of exercise dependence on their psychological health.
RESULTS: exercise dependence, based on the structural equation model analysis, can positively influence state Anxiety (P<0.05), depression (P<0.05), and subjective well-being (P<0.05) of Chinese students. By contrast, exercise dependence negatively influences students' self-satisfaction (P<0.05), social behavior (P<0.05), and vigor (P<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: exercise dependence adversely affects the psychological health of college students. Further research using multi-dimensional exercise addiction scales should be conducted to identify all the negative effects of exercise addiction factors on psychological health.