The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood

IntroductionThis study aims to explore the mechanism of physical exercise’s influence on the academic achievement of contemporary college students, and focuses on the mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood in it.MethodsThrough a large-scale questionnaire survey of 540 college stu...

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Main Authors: Yong Jiang, Siyu Ren
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-08-01
Series:Frontiers in Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1642778/full
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author Yong Jiang
Siyu Ren
author_facet Yong Jiang
Siyu Ren
author_sort Yong Jiang
collection DOAJ
description IntroductionThis study aims to explore the mechanism of physical exercise’s influence on the academic achievement of contemporary college students, and focuses on the mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood in it.MethodsThrough a large-scale questionnaire survey of 540 college students, a chain mediation model was constructed, and the mediating effects of emotional intelligence and academic mood were examined and analyzed using structural equation modeling and Bootstrap method.Results(1) Physical exercise can positively predict college students’ academic achievement; (2) Physical exercise can mediate college students’ academic achievement through emotional intelligence and academic mood, respectively; (3) Physical exercise can affect college students’ academic achievement through emotional intelligence and academic mood in a chain. Three pathways of mediating effects: physical exercise → emotional intelligence → academic achievement (path 1), physical exercise → academic mood → academic achievement (path 2), and physical exercise → emotional intelligence → academic mood → academic achievement (path 3).DiscussionThe results of the study show that physical exercise not only directly promotes academic achievement, but also indirectly affects academic achievement through the mediating effect of emotional intelligence and academic mood. This study provides empirical evidence for an in-depth understanding of the relationship between physical exercise and academic achievement, and provides theoretical references for the synergistic promotion of college students’ mental health and academic development.
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spelling doaj-art-1ad84835b8174f52afb2ecf5b87d35262025-08-20T03:05:41ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782025-08-011610.3389/fpsyg.2025.16427781642778The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic moodYong JiangSiyu RenIntroductionThis study aims to explore the mechanism of physical exercise’s influence on the academic achievement of contemporary college students, and focuses on the mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood in it.MethodsThrough a large-scale questionnaire survey of 540 college students, a chain mediation model was constructed, and the mediating effects of emotional intelligence and academic mood were examined and analyzed using structural equation modeling and Bootstrap method.Results(1) Physical exercise can positively predict college students’ academic achievement; (2) Physical exercise can mediate college students’ academic achievement through emotional intelligence and academic mood, respectively; (3) Physical exercise can affect college students’ academic achievement through emotional intelligence and academic mood in a chain. Three pathways of mediating effects: physical exercise → emotional intelligence → academic achievement (path 1), physical exercise → academic mood → academic achievement (path 2), and physical exercise → emotional intelligence → academic mood → academic achievement (path 3).DiscussionThe results of the study show that physical exercise not only directly promotes academic achievement, but also indirectly affects academic achievement through the mediating effect of emotional intelligence and academic mood. This study provides empirical evidence for an in-depth understanding of the relationship between physical exercise and academic achievement, and provides theoretical references for the synergistic promotion of college students’ mental health and academic development.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1642778/fullphysical exerciseacademic achievementemotional intelligenceacademic moodchain mediation
spellingShingle Yong Jiang
Siyu Ren
The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood
Frontiers in Psychology
physical exercise
academic achievement
emotional intelligence
academic mood
chain mediation
title The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood
title_full The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood
title_fullStr The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood
title_full_unstemmed The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood
title_short The effects of physical exercise on college students’ academic achievement: the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood
title_sort effects of physical exercise on college students academic achievement the chain mediating role of emotional intelligence and academic mood
topic physical exercise
academic achievement
emotional intelligence
academic mood
chain mediation
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1642778/full
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