A chain-mediated model of the effect of physical exercise on loneliness

Group differences in loneliness, social support, interpersonal relationships, and physical exercise

The Mann–Whitney U test revealed significant gender disparities in loneliness, social support, interpersonal relationships, and physical exercise among college students. In comparison to male students, female students exhibited higher levels of loneliness, lower levels of social support, poorer interpersonal relationship quality, and reduced physical exercise levels, aligning with previous research perspectives³⁷. According to emotional attribution theory, when faced with negative experiences, men tend to attribute them to external factors, whereas women are inclined to attribute them to personal shortcomings³⁸. Consequently, in social interactions, men experiencing negativity may externalize their emotions more readily, perceiving them as a result of external disapproval or rejection, whereas women may internalize them, fostering a sense of loneliness through self-criticism. This tendency is reinforced by previous findings indicating that women, due to differences in emotional brain structure, are more susceptible to negative emotions and find it challenging to regulate them through cognitive strategies, thereby increasing their vulnerability to loneliness³⁹. Moreover, inherent differences in habits and gender roles may contribute to the observed gender disparities in physical exercise, with female college students often exhibiting quieter and more stable exercise habits. Thus, gender discrepancies in loneliness, social support, interpersonal relationships, and physical exercise may be intricately linked to variations in emotional attribution styles, lifestyle habits, and gender role perceptions among male and female college students.

The Kruskal–Wallis H test conducted on grades revealed significant variations in loneliness and social support among college students across different academic years. Loneliness exhibited a decreasing trend from freshman to junior year, while social support displayed a successive increase, aligning with prior research findings^40,40. As students progress through their academic journey, they accrue more social experience through peer interactions, thereby enhancing their ability to navigate external school-level factors and adopt rational approaches to managing interpersonal relationships. Consequently, senior college students are more inclined to employ positive coping strategies when faced with feelings of isolation or neglect, mitigating the accumulation of loneliness. Additionally, as students mature, they broaden their social experiences, resulting in more diverse interpersonal relationships, and garnering support from various societal aspects. Therefore, consistent with earlier studies, senior college students demonstrate a higher propensity to seek social support. In summary, disparities in loneliness and social support across different academic years among college students may be attributed to the stability of social experiences, emotional regulation capabilities, and behavioral preferences.

Impact of loneliness, social supports, and interpersonal relationships on college students’ physical exercises

Partial correlation and regression analyses, controlling for gender, age, and grade, revealed a significant negative influence of loneliness on college students’ physical exercise, whereas social support and interpersonal relationships had a positive impact. This finding aligns with previous research⁴². The bootstrap method further confirmed a significant chain mediation effect between social support and interpersonal relationships, when loneliness affected college students’ physical exercise. In addition, gender moderated the impact of loneliness on social support and interpersonal relationships.

Discussion on the direct impact effect

First, the analysis supports hypothesis H1, indicating that loneliness significantly negatively impacts college students’ physical exercise, aligning with previous research findings⁴³. The data indicate that loneliness can hinder the development of interpersonal skills, leading to depression and withdrawal from social interactions, prompting individuals to create social distance and resist social engagements. Consequently, for college students, higher levels of loneliness correlate with greater difficulty in establishing consistent exercise routines, resulting in decreased participation. When experiencing loneliness, which is attributed to poor social connections and peer relationships, students tend to exhibit internalized issues such as reduced social interactions and negativity⁴⁴. Consequently, during exercise activities, they may display low self-confidence, activity levels, and engagement. This analysis validates previous assertions that loneliness can diminish motivation for physical activity⁴⁵, indicating that it serves as a negative emotion stemming from social isolation, fostering tendencies toward self-isolation and avoidance, thereby impeding psychological and behavioral engagement in physical exercise. As the fluency theory posits, the subject’s cognitive experiences serve as cues influencing subsequent behaviors⁴⁶.

Second, the analysis upholds H2, indicating that social support significantly and positively influences college students’ physical exercise, consistent with prior research findings^47,48. Social support serves various functions, including bolstering self-esteem and enhancing self-confidence, guiding college students to establish beliefs, and fostering persistence in exercise. Individuals with stronger social support networks are better equipped to navigate environmental challenges, effectively reducing feelings of loneliness⁴⁹, and fostering improvements in physical and mental health, self-concept, and personality development⁵⁰. Moreover, social support facilitates enhancements in body mass index, promotes enthusiasm for sports participation, strengthens belief in and enthusiasm for exercise, alleviates depression and negative emotions, and fosters a positive exercise identity among college students.

Furthermore, the study revealed that social support and interpersonal relationships act as mediators in the relationship between loneliness and physical exercise, with a chain mediating effect (95% CI − 0.021, − 0.007). Social support emerged as a predictor of interpersonal relationships, indicating that individuals with higher levels of social support exhibit stronger interpersonal relationships than those with lower levels of social support, aligning with prior research findings^50,51,52,53.

Discussion on the indirect effect

In addition to the direct effect, the study also found that social support had a partial mediating effect between physical exercise and loneliness, accounting for 26.49% of the total effect value. College students are in the stage of role transformation and social adaptation. They need the support of their teachers, classmates and family members in the new environment, which will help them integrate into the campus and social environment better, build new and harmonious relationships and engage in outdoor sports with them to reduce loneliness⁴².

Secondly, interpersonal relationship played a mediating role between physical exercise and loneliness, accounting for 6.77% of the total effect. Physical exercise can promote the smooth development of their interpersonal relationships, the higher the frequency of physical exercise groups are more likely to form good interpersonal relationships, and promote their own People skills development. The more college students take part in physical exercise, the more interpersonal communication opportunities, get al.ong with vitality, subjective well-being will be higher. To reduce the incidence of loneliness⁵³.

Finally, social support and interpersonal relationship played a chain mediating role between physical exercise and loneliness, accounting for 2.78% of the total effect. This indicates that the reduction of loneliness can not only affect physical exercise through social support, but also improve the quality of interpersonal relationships, promote the level of social support and affect the level of physical exercise. Good physical exercise habits can help students to reduce the psychological isolation, ease the pain and trouble, but also help students to coordinate interpersonal relationships, improve the level of social support, expand the circle of communication and friends, that is, the higher the level of physical exercise, the better the interpersonal relationship, the more beneficial to the level of social support, promote the level of loneliness to reduce⁵⁴.