The Role of Self-Esteem and Depression in the Relationship Between Physical Activity and Academic Procrastination Among Chinese Undergraduate Students: A Serial Mediation Model

Changqing Li,1 Sha Qu,2 Kai Ren3 1College of Physical Education and Health Science, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, People’s Republic of China; 2College of Sport Science, Beijing Sport University, Beijing, 100084, People’s Republic of China; 3College of Physical Education and Health Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Kai Ren, Email [email protected]: Physical activity has been found to be negatively correlated with academic procrastination. However, the potential mediating variables in this relationship are not well understood. This study aimed to explore the mediating effects of self-esteem and depression in the relationship between physical activity and academic procrastination among Chinese undergraduate students.Patients and Methods: A total of 1233 Chinese undergraduate students participated in the study. The unidimensionality of the self-esteem, depression, and academic procrastination was examined using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Serial mediation analysis was conducted using SPSS 25.0 macro-PROCESS 3.3 to examine whether self-esteem and depression jointly mediated the relationship between physical activity and academic procrastination.Results: Self-esteem, depression, and academic procrastination displayed a good-fit to the one-factor model. The results indicated that physical activity indirectly impact academic procrastination through three pathways: (1) self-esteem (β=− 0.011, Boots 95% CI [− 0.021, − 0.001]), which accounted for of 12.09% of the total effect, (2) depression (β=− 0.022, Boots 95% CI [− 0.036, − 0.009]), which accounted for 24.18% of the total effect, and (3) self-esteem and depression (β=− 0.006, Boots 95% CI [− 0.011, − 0.002]), which accounted for 6.59% of the total effect. The total mediating effect was 42.86%.Conclusion: These findings suggest that self-esteem and depression playing a mediating role in the relationship between physical activity and academic procrastination, respectively. Moreover, self-esteem and depression co-mediate this relationship through a serial pathway.Plain Language Summary: This study explores the connection between physical activity and the tendency of undergraduate students in China to delay their academic tasks. Researchers were particularly interested in how feelings of self-worth (self-esteem) and mood (depression) might influence this relationship. We found that students who are more active physically tend to procrastinate less on their study. This effect is partly because physical activity boosts their self-esteem and reduces feelings of depression. Both these factors, individually and together, help explain why active students are more likely to tackle their academic tasks promptly. Basically, being physically active not only helps students feel better about themselves and less depressed but also encourages them to be more diligent with their studies.Keywords: physical activity, self-esteem, depression, academic procrastination