Huang Wenying, Chen Bin, Hu Chang
Physical Education College, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, China.
Front Public Health. 2025 Aug 13;13:1663474. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1663474. eCollection 2025.
Negative emotions (NE) are strongly linked to disordered eating among female university students, yet the underlying mechanisms require further clarification. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between NE and eating behavior (EB) within this population, specifically examining the mediating role of physical exercise (PE) and exploring the latent profiles of NE through a person-centered approach.
An online survey was administered to 832 female university students, from which 789 valid responses were analyzed. We utilized the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS), the Sakata Eating Behavior Scale short form (EBS-SF), and a single-item PE measure. The data were analyzed using mediation analysis with bootstrapping and Latent Profile Analysis (LPA).
NE was significantly and positively related to problematic EB ( = 0.414, < 0.001) and negatively related to PE ( = -0.390, < 0.001), while PE was negatively related to EB ( = -0.086, < 0.05). PE was confirmed as a partial mediator in the NE-EB relationship (indirect effect = 0.034). Furthermore, LPA identified three distinct NE profiles: an "Emotionally Stable" group (16.86%), a "Transition Risk" group (51.33%), and an "Anxious-Distress" group (31.81%), with these profiles exhibiting significant differences in both EB ( = 65.088) and PE ( = 55.241).
Female university students can be classified into three distinct emotional profiles ("Emotionally Stable," "Transition Risk," and "Anxious-Distress"), which are significantly associated with different levels of physical exercise and problematic eating behaviors. In addition, NE is not only directly associated with EB but also indirectly linked to it by reducing engagement in PE. This finding indicates that health interventions targeting female college students with high NE should, in addition to emotional management, actively promote the development of PE habits to effectively block the pathway from NE to unhealthy eating behaviors. The conclusions should be considered in light of the study's cross-sectional design and its reliance on a single-item measure for PE.
负面情绪（NE）与女大学生饮食失调密切相关，但其潜在机制仍需进一步阐明。本研究旨在调查该人群中NE与饮食行为（EB）之间的关系，具体考察体育锻炼（PE）的中介作用，并通过以人为中心的方法探索NE的潜在特征。
对832名女大学生进行了在线调查，分析了其中789份有效回复。我们使用了抑郁焦虑压力量表（DASS）、坂田饮食行为量表简版（EBS-SF）和单项体育锻炼测量指标。数据采用带有自抽样法的中介分析和潜在类别分析（LPA）进行分析。
NE与问题性EB显著正相关（=0.414，<0.001），与PE显著负相关（=-0.390，<0.001），而PE与EB负相关（=-0.086，<0.05）。PE被确认为NE-EB关系中的部分中介因素（间接效应=0.034）。此外，LPA识别出三种不同的NE特征：“情绪稳定”组（16.86%）、“过渡风险”组（51.33%）和“焦虑困扰”组（31.81%），这些特征在EB（=65.088）和PE（=55.241）方面均表现出显著差异。
女大学生可分为三种不同的情绪特征（“情绪稳定”、“过渡风险”和“焦虑困扰”），这些特征与不同水平的体育锻炼和问题性饮食行为显著相关。此外，NE不仅与EB直接相关，还通过减少体育锻炼参与度而间接与之相关。这一发现表明，针对高NE的女大学生的健康干预措施，除了情绪管理外，还应积极促进体育锻炼习惯的养成，以有效阻断从NE到不健康饮食行为的路径。鉴于本研究的横断面设计及其对单项体育锻炼测量指标的依赖，应考虑这些结论。
