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Volume 3,Issue 9

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26 October 2025

Research on the Impact of College Students’ Social Physique Anxiety on Physical Exercise Behavior

Kuan Wen1 Yanli Cui2 Shengjie Tang3
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1 Physical Education Department, Hanzhong Vocational and Technical College, Hanzhong 723000, Shaanxi, China
2 Department of Basic Courses, Hanzhong Vocational and Technical College, Hanzhong 723000, Shaanxi, China
3 School of Physical Education, Shaanxi University of Technology, Hanzhong 723000, Shaanxi, China
EIR 2025 , 3(9), 34–44; https://doi.org/10.18063/EIR.v3i9.1137
© 2025 by the Author. Licensee Whioce Publishing, Singapore. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

This study focuses on the impact of college students’ social physique anxiety on their physical exercise behavior. Social physique anxiety (SPA) refers to the anxious emotion experienced by individuals in social situations due to the fear of negative evaluations of their physique by others. A questionnaire survey was conducted among college students sampled from universities to collect data on their SPA levels and physical exercise behaviors, including exercise frequency, duration, and project selection. Statistical methods such as correlation analysis and regression analysis were used to process the data. Exercise behavioral intention drives exercise behavior through attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control, verifying the applicability of the Theory of Planned Behavior; SPA is positively correlated with exercise intention, or affects behavior through mediating/moderating paths; exercise intensity, duration, and frequency are holistic, and psychological variables reinforce each other; physical discomfort has no significant correlation with exercise and social anxiety. It is suggested to develop an “exercise motivation profile” tool and implement a “sports ambassador program”, carry out group counseling for high-anxiety groups and provide low-social-pressure exercise options, and jointly offer “body mindfulness” courses to guide rational cognition of body functions.

Keywords
College students
Exercise behavior
Social physique anxiety
Structural equation model
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