Physical activity and psychological distress: psychosocial and demographic moderators

DELFINO, G.; GONZALEZ INSUA, F.; RODRÍGUEZ ESPÍNOLA, S.

Cracovia

Congreso; 19th General Meeting of the European Association of Social Psychology; 2023

European Association of Social Psychology

Background: There is a lot of meta-analytic evidence that physical activity levels (PA) are related to people’s psychological well­being (PWB) and distress (Allen et al., 2019; Boberska et al., 2018). On the other hand, different systematic reviews reclaim more empirical studies that offer data about the relation’s explanatory models (Fox,1999; Netz et al., 2005). Goals: Analyze the moderation role of demographic and psychosocial variables in the association between PA and PWB. Methods: Cross-sectional, working with three different argentine samples (representative: n1 = 5388 and n2 = 11417, convenience: n3 = 926). Results: PA levels were associated with PWB and distress. Sex (sample 1) and residential conditions (sample 2) do not moderate this relation, but age (sample 1) and performance self-perception (sample 3) do. The effects of PA on well-being and distress are more remarkable in older adults and those who perceive themselves as having a higher level of performance. Conclusions: Findings suggest that the relation between these variables is not independent of the environment and personal characteristics. These results lead to a better understanding of the phenomenon and may provide valuable information for developing public policies.