Cognitive Catalysts: Examining the Influence of Mental Workload, Decision‐Making, and Emotional Intelligence on Innovation in Physical Education

ABSTRACT The study portrays physical education (PE) as essential for enhancing individuals' understanding of others and shaping behavioral goals. However, individuals in Chinese society lack access to recent improvements in this field of knowledge. Accordingly, this study explores the impact of various psychological factors, such as mental workload, decision‐making process, behavioral intention, and emotional intelligence on innovation in PE in China using cross‐sectional data of general population. The findings show that mental workload, the decision‐making process, and emotional intelligence significantly affect behavioral intention and innovation in PE, while behavioral intention also significantly influences innovation in PE. Furthermore, the results show that behavioral intention significantly mediates the relationship between the decision‐making process and innovation, as well as between emotional intelligence and innovation in physical education. Therefore, this research offers substantial theoretical and practical implications by guiding educators and policymakers to design emotionally intelligent, decision‐oriented physical education programs that foster innovation in China.