Liu Yingying, Nie Zizheng, Dong Haokai, Shou Linpei, Xu Jiaoyang, Cao Qinglong, Shi Yitian, Wu Chenyang, Zhang Mu, Yang Jun, Han Shufen
Department of Nutritional and Toxicological Science, School of Public Health and Nursing, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
School of Public Health and Nursing, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Front Psychol. 2025 Jul 15;16:1599041. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1599041. eCollection 2025.
Social anxiety disorder (SAD) profoundly impacts the wellbeing of college students, both physically and psychologically. This study aimed to examine the mediating role of sleep quality on the relationship between physical activity and SAD among Chinese college freshmen.
This was a cross-sectional study enrolling 1,408 participants through convenience sampling. Participants self-reported their physical activity, sleep quality, and social anxiety status using an electronic questionnaire.
The overall prevalence of SAD was 33.05%. A significant negative association was observed between physical activity and SAD (adjusted β = -0.054, 95% CI: -0.053 to -0.001). Mediation analysis indicated that sleep quality may mediated 24.33% of the association between physical activity and SAD (indirect effect estimate = -0.009, direct effect estimate = -0.028, < 0.01).
Less physical activity is associated with SAD among Chinese college freshmen, and this relationship is partially mediated by poor sleep quality. It is recommended that educational institutions implement programs to promote regular physical exercise and enhance sleep quality to mitigate the impacts of SAD in this population.
社交焦虑障碍（SAD）对大学生的身心健康有着深远影响。本研究旨在探讨睡眠质量在中国大学新生体育活动与社交焦虑障碍关系中的中介作用。
这是一项横断面研究，通过便利抽样招募了1408名参与者。参与者使用电子问卷自我报告他们的体育活动、睡眠质量和社交焦虑状况。
社交焦虑障碍的总体患病率为33.05%。体育活动与社交焦虑障碍之间存在显著负相关（调整后的β=-0.054，95%CI：-0.053至-0.001）。中介分析表明，睡眠质量可能介导了体育活动与社交焦虑障碍之间24.33%的关联（间接效应估计值=-0.009，直接效应估计值=-0.028，<0.01）。
中国大学新生中，体育活动较少与社交焦虑障碍相关，且这种关系部分由睡眠质量差介导。建议教育机构实施促进定期体育锻炼和提高睡眠质量的项目，以减轻社交焦虑障碍对该人群的影响。
