The serial mediating effects of mindfulness and anxiety in the relationship between physical exercise and smartphone addiction among college students

Physical exercise is associated with lower levels of smartphone addiction among college students, but the psychological pathways underlying this association and potential gender differences warrant further investigation. Between October 11 and 21, 2025, 1795 questionnaires were collected from ten higher education institutions in Fuzhou, China. After screening, 1670 students aged 18–22 were included. Physical exercise, mindfulness, anxiety, and smartphone addiction were measured using scales. PROCESS Models 6 and 90 were used to examine indirect associations and gender moderation. Higher levels of physical exercise were associated with lower smartphone addiction. The indirect associations through mindfulness, anxiety, and the sequential mindfulness–anxiety pathway were all statistically significant. Gender significantly moderated the adjusted direct association between physical exercise and smartphone addiction, with a stronger negative association among female students. However, gender did not significantly moderate the association between anxiety and smartphone addiction or the corresponding indirect pathways. These findings suggest that mindfulness and anxiety are closely related to the association between physical exercise and smartphone addiction, although the cross-sectional design does not support causal inference.