Within‐person association between affect and physical activity related to depressive symptomatology: A systematic review and methodological reflections

Physical activity can improve mental health by improving mood and by lowering depressive symptoms. This systematic review uses a structured narrative synthesis to summarise within-person associations between physical activity and affect in naturalistic settings, and how these associations may differ by level of depressive symptomatology. We also reviewed the methodological choices that could influence these outcomes and provide a methodological roadmap as a recommendation for future studies. A systematic review was conducted up to December 2024 of studies that addressed within-person associations between daily physical activity and affect using ambulatory assessment techniques in individuals aged 4-65 years and assessed depressive symptoms. Our selection yielded 32 eligible studies. A consistent finding was the positive within-person association between physical activity and concurrent or subsequent positive affect, while results were mixed for negative affect. Results were further inconclusive regarding the role of depression in this relationship. Common challenges affecting replicability include an often-inadequate assessment of measurement reliability and validity, and insufficient controls for relevant (contextual) factors in these analyses, such as the length of the time-lag and mode of physical activity. Future studies should employ emerging best practices regarding study design, analysis and reporting of ambulatory assessment data. Such rigorous research practice will strengthen our understanding of these relationships and further inform more effective, personalised physical activity interventions to improve mood and depressive symptoms.