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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1412199

Expectations regarding school decreases emotional distress among college students in Western China: The buffering role of physical exercises

Provisionally accepted
Di Su Di Su 1,2Lina Huang Lina Huang 3Helin Zou Helin Zou 4Lulu Zhang Lulu Zhang 5Yi Feng Yi Feng 6*
  • 1 Mental Health Counselling Centre, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, China
  • 2 Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
  • 3 School of Sports Economics and Management, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China
  • 4 School of Statistics and Mathematics, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
  • 5 Mental Health Education and Counseling Center, China University of Petroleum-Beijing at Karamay, Xinjiang, China
  • 6 Mental Health Center, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: College students in Western China face unique economic, cultural, and educational environments, yet limited studies have specifically investigated the factors or interventions concerning emotional distress within this population. Aim: This study aimed to explore whether school belongingness mediates the relationship between expectations regarding school and emotional distress among college students in Western China, and whether physical exercise moderates this mediation. Methods: Employing a cross-sectional design, 1,063 college students in Xinjiang, China were recruited for this study. A self-administered electronic questionnaire assessed expectations regarding school, school belongingness, physical exercise, anxiety, and depression. Structural equation modeling was utilized to analyze mediating and moderating effects. Results: Expectations regarding school was negatively associated with emotional distress. School exclusion and school acceptance fully mediated the effect of expectations regarding school on emotional distress. Physical exercise moderated the mediating effect of school exclusion, but not that of school acceptance. Conclusion: Expectations regarding school and school belongingness, particularly the exclusion component, emerge as pivotal factors influencing emotional distress among college students in Western China. Furthermore, physical exercise presents itself as a promising targeted intervention for alleviating emotional distress within this demographic.

    Keywords: Emotional distress, physical exercise, School belongingness, school exclusion, expectations regarding school

    Received: 04 Apr 2024; Accepted: 27 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Su, Huang, Zou, Zhang and Feng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Yi Feng, Mental Health Center, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.