Bridging the relationship between physical exercise and mental health in adolescents based on network analysis

Mengbi Yang; Shubin Si; Kechuang Zhang; Min Xi; Weixia Zhang

doi:10.1002/pchj.756

Bridging the relationship between physical exercise and mental health in adolescents based on network analysis

Psych J. 2024 Apr 16. doi: 10.1002/pchj.756. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Mengbi Yang¹, Shubin Si^{1

2}, Kechuang Zhang¹, Min Xi^{3

4}, Weixia Zhang⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China.
² Key Laboratory of Industrial Engineering and Intelligent Manufacturing, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
³ Hospital of Northwestern Polytechnical University, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China.
⁴ The Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, Institute of Health and Rehabilitation Science, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, The Key Laboratory of Neuro-informatics and Rehabilitation Engineering of Ministry of Civil Affairs, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
⁵ Department of Physical Education, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China.

PMID: 38627203
DOI: 10.1002/pchj.756

Abstract

Although physical exercise has been recommended as a useful means of enhancing the mental health of adolescents, the exact mechanisms through which physical exercise plays a role are unclear. Both physical exercise and mental health are complex concepts with multiple facets, and traditional methods may constrain the manifestations of their mapping relationships. This research aimed to find the bridging connections between physical exercise and mental health. Mental health and physical exercise behaviors were assessed using the Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90) and the Adolescent Physical Activity Questionnaire (PAQ-A) in 9072 Chinese adolescents, respectively. Network analysis was utilized to construct the mental health-physical exercise network and to analyze the relationships between individual physical exercise behaviors and mental health symptoms. Core and bridging nodes were identified based on expected influence (EI) and bridge expected influence (BEI). Gender differences were also examined. The results revealed specific and distinct pathways between physical exercise and mental health (e.g., winter sports-obsessive-compulsive symptoms, winter sports-phobia). For both males and females, anxiety, depression, interpersonal sensitivity, ball sports, and evening activity were the most central symptoms/behaviors, reflecting their relative significance in their respective associations. The nodes with the highest BEI were obsessive-compulsive symptoms and physical education, showing negative associations with nodes in the other community. Furthermore, in the male group, somatization and winter sports stood out as the most positive bridge nodes. Conversely, in the female group, interpersonal sensitivity and sports games were the most positive bridge nodes. These findings illuminate the pathways linking physical exercise and mental health, supporting the implementation of physical exercise in a more elaborate way.

Keywords: adolescents; bridge connections; mental health; network analysis; physical exercise.

Abstract

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