Physical activity in university students: mediating role against academic stress and motivation to perform it (Original)

Abstract

Physical exercise acts as a way to buffer academic stress. Despite this, many young people do not engage in it. The study aims to analyze the physical activity of health students from the Technical University of Machala, their perception of the importance of physical exercise for academic stress, and the motivation to do it. It was an observational, cross-sectional study, with snowball sampling. 123 nursing, medicine, biochemistry and pharmacy students were surveyed. Data on physical activity, duration and dedication, their perception of whether it positively affects academic stress, and motivation were collected. 65% performed physical exercises, being more frequent in men. The most common physical activities are walking/running and using weights, followed by soccer. The Nursing students surveyed were the ones who reported the most physical activity and dedication and the least were those of medicine, which could be related to the semesters in which they are. 95.9% of those surveyed consider that physical activity is beneficial for reducing academic stress. The most motivated students to practice physical exercises were nursing students. The fundamental motivations were health, enjoyment and competition. Significant differences were found in the dimensions by careers, which could be defined by the semesters. The desire, need and intrinsic motivation of students to exercise exists, but it is limited by academic responsibilities.