Fitness for Life 6th Edition Chapter Review Answers

This study aimed to examine the relationship between physical activity and happiness through systematically reviewing the existing literature. A systematic search of major databases including PubMed/Medline, PsychInfo, SportDiscus, and Embase was performed in 2017 for original research articles published post-1980 with the related keywords of happiness and physical activity. From 1142 retrieved records, fifteen observational studies (thirteen cross-sectional studies and two longitudinal studies) and eight intervention studies (six randomized controlled trials and two non-randomized trials) were included for further analysis. These studies involved a wide range of population from various countries and areas. All the observational studies reported positive associations between physical activity and happiness. As little as 10-min physical activity per week or 1 day of doing exercise per week might result in increased levels of happiness. Mediation effects were examined in two studies indicating the positive relationship between physical activity and happiness might be mediated by health and social functioning. The randomized controlled trials mostly focused on older adults and cancer survivors, and suggested that both aerobic exercise and stretching/balancing exercise were effective in improving happiness. Evidence showed a consistent positive relationship between physical activity and happiness. However, due to the limited number of randomized controlled trials, we cannot draw firm conclusions regarding the causal relationship between physical activity and happiness. Future research is suggested to explore the mechanism of how physical activity influences happiness and to determine the optimal dose and type of physical activity for gaining the benefits of happiness.

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J Happiness Stud

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-018-9976-0

1 3

REVIEW ARTICLE

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between

Physical Activity andHappiness

ZhanjiaZhang1 · WeiyunChen1

© Springer Science+Business Media B.V., part of Springer Nature 2018

Abstract This study aimed to examine the relationship between physical activity and

happiness through systematically reviewing the existing literature. A systematic search of

major databases including PubMed/Medline, PsychInfo, SportDiscus, and Embase was

performed in 2017 for original research articles published post-1980 with the related key-

words of happiness and physical activity. From 1142 retrieved records, fifteen observational

studies (thirteen cross-sectional studies and two longitudinal studies) and eight intervention

studies (six randomized controlled trials and two non-randomized trials) were included for

further analysis. These studies involved a wide range of population from various coun-

tries and areas. All the observational studies reported positive associations between physi-

cal activity and happiness. As little as 10-min physical activity per week or 1day of doing

exercise per week might result in increased levels of happiness. Mediation effects were

examined in two studies indicating the positive relationship between physical activity and

happiness might be mediated by health and social functioning. The randomized controlled

trials mostly focused on older adults and cancer survivors, and suggested that both aerobic

exercise and stretching/balancing exercise were effective in improving happiness. Evidence

showed a consistent positive relationship between physical activity and happiness. How-

ever, due to the limited number of randomized controlled trials, we cannot draw firm con-

clusions regarding the causal relationship between physical activity and happiness. Future

research is suggested to explore the mechanism of how physical activity influences happi-

ness and to determine the optimal dose and type of physical activity for gaining the benefits

of happiness.

Keywords Exercise· Positive psychology· Subjective well-being· Mental health

* Weiyun Chen

chenwy@umich.edu

1 School ofKinesiology, University ofMichigan, 1402 Washington Heights, 3145 OBL, AnnArbor,

MI48109, USA

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

1 3

1 Introduction

The benefits of physical activity (PA) on mental health have been well documented

(Saxena etal. 2005). For instance, there is a large body of literature demonstrating that

PA effectively reduces depression and anxiety (Ströhle 2009). However, previous stud-

ies have predominantly focused on the effects of PA on the negative aspects of mental

health and concerned the use of PA as a preventive or curative approach for mental

disorders (Rosenbaum etal. 2014). The investigation of the relationship between PA

and mental disorders is of importance because mental disorders are linked to increased

morbidity, premature mortality, and greater medical cost (Alexopoulos 2005; Katon

etal. 2003 ). In contrast, the relationship between PA and positive mental constructs

has remained largely unexplored. The World Health Organization has stressed the pos-

itive dimension of mental health and defined that "health is a state of complete physi-

cal, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity"

(WHO 2014 ). At the beginning of 21st century, Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi (2000 )

pointed out the psychology's empirical focus should shift from "only preparing the

worst things in life to also building positive qualities". Therefore, attention should not

only be given to the negative aspects when examining the relationship between PA and

mental health.

Happiness, as a positive component of mental well-being, is generally defined as a

subjective state of mind characterized by enjoyment and contentment reflecting indi-

vidual's overall subjective well-being (Diener 2000; Veenhoven 2010). People rate

happiness as one of the most fundamental goals of their lives (Diener and Seligman

2004). A growing literature has emerged highlighting the health benefits of happiness.

For instance, a 15-year follow-up study suggested that higher levels of happiness are

related with lower mortality and morbidity (Koopmans etal. 2010). Recently, several

countries such as France, Canada, and the UK even included national happiness index

as an indicator of national progress (Ghent 2011).

Among the factors associated with happiness, PA has received increasing attention

among psychologists. Recent cross-sectional studies based on large general population

have shown that PA is associated with happiness (Lathia etal. 2017; Richards et al.

2015). Some reviews indicate that the PA might be an important correlate of happi-

ness and the investigation of the effects of PA on happiness would be a very promis-

ing research area (Diener and Tay 2012; Dolan etal. 2008). Such investigation is also

thought to enable new channels to apply health promotion models to PA interventions

(Huppert 2009).

Would PA also have beneficial effects on happiness as it does on other mental health

constructs such as depression and anxiety? To answer this question, a review of exist-

ing literature concerning the relationship between PA and happiness seems timely. To

the best of our knowledge, there has been no systematic review focusing exclusively

on the relationship between PA and happiness. The primary aim of this study was to

examine the association between PA and happiness through providing a meaningful

synthesis of extant literature. Specifically, two research questions guide this review:

(1) what type, duration, frequency, intensity or domain of PA is more consistently

associated with higher levels of happiness, and (2) which groups of population are

more likely to benefit from such associations.

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between Physical Activity…

1 3

2 Methods

2.1 Search Strategy

In June 2017, we comprehensively searched for original research articles published post-

1980 in major databases including PubMed/Medline, PsychInfo, SportDiscus, and Embase.

Terms and their variants used to identify relevant articles included: physical activity, exer-

cise, happiness, subjective well-being, psychological well-being. The exact term combina-

tions are: [((exercise*) OR (physical activit*)) AND ((happi*) OR (happy) OR (subjective

well-being) OR (psychological well-being))]. Titles and abstracts were screened to pre-

exclude articles that did not meet the selection criteria. Full texts of the remaining arti-

cles were obtained and then screened by two independent reviewers for eligibility. Cohen's

kappa (Cohen 1960) was reported as an index of agreement between reviewers. Reference

lists of included articles were further examined to complete the search.

2.2 Selection Criteria

2.2.1 Types ofStudies

Studies represented in original research articles and published in English-language journals

were considered for inclusion. The review included both observational studies (cross-sec-

tional and longitudinal) and intervention studies (randomized and nonrandomized). Unpub-

lished articles, abstracts, and dissertations were not included in this review.

2.2.2 Participants

Since one goal of this review was to identify the populations that might benefit more from

the effects of PA on happiness, there was no limit regarding the type and the age of par-

ticipants. Both healthy populations and populations with certain diseases or chronic condi-

tions were included in the review.

2.2.3 Outcome Measures

Studies considered for inclusion were required to have a specific assessment for individ-

ual's happiness level. Studies whose assessment tools were initially designed for mental

health or well-being but later interpreted as happiness were excluded. Additionally, all the

included studies should examine PA as an outcome either objectively or subjectively and

incorporate at least one indicator for PA such as domain and frequency (for observational

studies), or use PA programs as interventions (for intervention studies). All studies should

clearly report the associations between PA and happiness or the effects of PA on happiness.

2.3 Data Extraction

The following information was extracted and summarized using a structured template by

two reviewers independently: author details, year of publication; type of study, characteris-

tics of participants (age, health status), sample size, measures of happiness, measures of PA

or intervention details (type, duration, and intensity of PA), and main findings. In studies

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

1 3

that included outcomes other than PA and happiness, we only focus our analysis on PA and

happiness. Disagreements in coding were resolved through discussion by two reviewers.

No attempt was made to contact the authors of included articles for missing information.

3 Results

3.1 Search Results

Through the systematic search, a total of 1142 records were initially retrieved. After

removal of duplicates 741 distinct records were identified for screening phase. The process

of inclusion of the studies is presented in Fig.1. After reviewing the title and abstracts, 29

studies were considered potentially eligible for inclusion. For these studies, full-text articles

were obtained and assessed for eligibility, with 23 studies ultimately accepted for inclu-

sion. The main reasons for exclusion were no specific measure for PA, no specific measure

for happiness, or other constructs (mental health issues, life satisfaction, and quality of life)

Fig. 1 Flowchart of study selection

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between Physical Activity…

1 3

were measured but later interpreted as happiness. The Cohen's kappa was 0.89, indicating

high agreement between reviewers according to criteria suggested by Cohen (1960).

3.2 Characteristics ofIncluded Studies

Among the 23 studies, fifteen were observational studies and eight were intervention stud-

ies. Except two articles were published in 2000, the rest of the included articles were pub-

lished after 2007. The included studies were conducted at widely distributed countries,

with eight from North America, eight from Europe, five from Asia, and one from South

America and Australia each. Due to the different study designs, the results of observational

studies and intervention studies were presented separately below.

3.3 Observational Studies

The comprehensive search identified thirteen cross-sectional and two longitudinal studies

examining the relationship between PA and happiness (Table1). The sample size of the

observational studies ranged from 70 to 370,568, with the median sample size of 3461.

Most of the studies comprised healthy population covering adolescents, adults, and older

adults, except three studies targeting special population including children and adolescents

with cerebral palsy (Maher etal. 2016), drug abusers (Nani etal. 2017), and ovarian cancer

survivors (Stevinson etal. 2009). Happiness level was measured by single-item question

in eight studies, such as "Over the past 4weeks have you been a happy person?" and "In

general, how would you describe your happiness?" (Barreto 2014; Baruth etal. 2011; Kye

et al. 2016 ; Lera-López et al. 2016; Maher et al. 2016; Min et al. 2017; Richards et al.

2015; Wang etal. 2012). Other methods for assessing happiness level included Subjective

Happiness Scale in three studies (Piqueras et al. 2011; Rasmussen and Laumann 2014 ;

Stubbe etal. 2007), Fordyce Happiness Scale in two studies (Moljord etal. 2011; Stevin-

son etal. 2009), Oxford Happiness Questionnaire in one study (Nani etal. 2017), and scale

on mood adjectives in the other study (Lathia etal. 2017), which all consisted of multiple

items.

Among the fifteen observational studies, PA has been mostly assessed using self-

reported measures with only one exception (Lathia et al. 2017) that adopted smart-

phone sensors to collect PA data. The self-reported measures included International

Physical Activity Questionnaire (Lera-López etal. 2016; Richards etal. 2015), Godin

Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire (Nani etal. 2017; Stevinson etal. 2009), Physi-

cal Activity Questionnaire for Older Adults (Barreto 2014), Physical Activity Question-

naire for Adolescents (Maher etal. 2016), Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System

questionnaire (Min etal. 2017), Self-developed Historical Physical Activity Question-

naire (Baruth et al. 2011), Canadian National Population Health Survey (Wang etal.

2012), and single-item question on PA frequency (Kye etal. 2016; Moljord etal. 2011 ;

Piqueras et al. 2011) or PA volume (Rasmussen and Laumann 2014; Stubbe et al.

2007). Derived from these self-reported measures, the outcomes of PA included total

time spent doing PA per week (Lera-López etal. 2016; Rasmussen and Laumann 2014 ;

Richards etal. 2015; Stevinson etal. 2009; Stubbe et al. 2007), metabolic equivalent

(MET)-min/week (Barreto 2014; Baruth etal. 2011), number of days doing moderate or

vigorous intensity PA per week (Kye etal. 2016; Min etal. 2017; Moljord etal. 2011 ;

Nani etal. 2017), categories of PA levels (i.e. active or inactive) (Wang etal. 2012 ),

extent of PA frequency (i.e. always or not always) (Piqueras etal. 2011), average score

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

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Table 1 Main characteristics of observational studies investigating the relationship between physical activity and happiness

Author (year), country Study design Participants Sample size Measure of happiness Measure of PA Main findings

Barreto (2014), France Cross-sectional Older adults, mean

age = 72.9

323 Single-item question Physical Activity Ques-

tionnaire for Older

Adults (QAPPA)

PA was indirectly associ-

ated to happiness, which

was mediated by health

status and social function-

ing

Baruth etal. (2011), USA Longitudinal Sedentary adults, aged

21–75

2132 Single-item question Self-developed Historical

Physical Activity Ques-

tionnaire

Men who were happier

at baseline had greater

increases in PA compared

to men who were not

happy; no relationship

between happiness and

PA was found in women

Kye etal. (2016), Korea Cross-sectional Adolescents, aged 12–18 72,435 Single-item question Single-item question on

PA frequency

A positive relationship

between PA and happi-

ness was found in boys

but not in girls

Lathia etal. (2017), UK Cross-sectional General public, aged

15–44

12,838 Two dimensional affect

grid; 7-point scale on

mood adjectives

Real time self-report;

smartphone sensor/built-

in accelerometer

Both self-reported PA and

objectively measured PA

were positively associated

with happiness

Lera-López etal. (2016),

Spain

Cross-sectional Adults, aged 50–70 765 Single-item question International Physical

Activity Questionnaire

(IPAQ)

Leisure time PA was

positively associated with

happiness; this relation-

ship is partially mediated

by perceived health

Maher etal. (2016),

Australia

Cross-sectional Children and adolescents

with cerebral palsy,

mean age = 13.9

70 Single-item question Physical Activity Ques-

tionnaire for Adoles-

cents (PAQ-A)

PA was weakly associated

with happiness in young

people with cerebral palsy

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between Physical Activity…

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Table 1 (continued)

Author (year), country Study design Participants Sample size Measure of happiness Measure of PA Main findings

Min etal. (2017), Korea Cross-sectional Adolescents, mean

age = 15.1

370,568 Single-item question Youth Risk Behavior

Surveillance System

questionnaire (YRBSS)

There was a positive

relationship between PA

frequency and happiness;

this relationship was

stronger among overweigh

adolescents

Moljord etal. (2011),

Norway

Cross-sectional Adolescents, mean

age = 14.9

1508 Fordyce happiness scale Single-item question on

PA frequency

PA frequency was positively

associated with happiness

Nani etal. (2017), Greece Cross-sectional Drug abusers, aged > 20 73 Oxford Happiness Ques-

tionnaire

Godin Leisure-Time Exer-

cise Questionnaire

PA frequency was slightly

positively associated

with the respondents'

happiness; no relationship

between PA intensity and

happiness was found

Piqueras etal. (2011),

Chile

Cross-sectional College students, mean

age = 19.89

3461 Subjective happiness scale Single-item question on

PA frequency

PA frequency was positively

associated with happiness

Rasmussen and Laumann

(2014 ), Norway

Cross-sectional Adults, mean age = 24.86 438 Subjective happiness scale Single-item question on

PA volume

PA level during adolescence

was positively associated

with happiness in adult

Richards etal. (2015),

European Union

Cross-sectional General public, aged > 15 11,637 Single-item question International Physical

Activity Questionnaire

(IPAQ) short from

PA volume was positively

associated with happi-

ness; the association was

domain-specific

Stevinson etal. (2009),

Canada

Cross-sectional Ovarian cancer survivors,

mean age = 60.2

359 Fordyce happiness scale Godin Leisure-Time Exer-

cise Questionnaire

Meeting PA guidelines was

positively associated with

happiness.

Stubbe etal. (2007),

Netherland

Cross-sectional Adults from twin families,

aged 18–65

8306 Subjective happiness scale Single-item question on

PA volume

PA was associated with

higher levels of happiness.

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

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Table 1 (continued)

Author (year), country Study design Participants Sample size Measure of happiness Measure of PA Main findings

Wang etal. (2012),

Canada

Longitudinal Household residents,

aged > 12

17,276 Single-item question National population health

survey

Leisure time PA had a

long—term positive asso-

ciation with happiness

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between Physical Activity…

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of the questionnaire (Maher etal. 2016). Most studies controlled for potential confound-

ing variables such as gender, age, body mass index (BMI), economic status and so forth.

Two studies examined the mediation effect of the social functioning and health status

(Barreto 2014 ), perceived health (Lera-López etal. 2016) on the relationship between

PA and happiness.

The results from the included observational studies generally support the beneficial

relationship between PA and happiness. All these studies found happiness was positively

associated with PA, either directly or indirectly. Richards etal. (2015) found that there

was a positive dose–response relationship between PA and happiness among citizens in

15 European countries. Compared with inactive people, the odds ratio of being happy

was 20, 29, and 52% higher for people being insufficiently active, sufficiently active,

and very active, respectively. Similarly, Lathia etal. (2017) found that PA measured by

accelerometer in smartphones was positively related to happiness in 10370 smartphone

users, although the correlation coefficient was only r = 0.03. Two longitudinal studies

provided stronger evidence. Baruth etal. (2011) examined the change in physical activ-

ity for at least 6months among 2132 sedentary adults and found that men who were

happy at baseline had greater increases in PA than those were not happy at baseline.

The results indicated greater level of happiness might lead to greater level of PA. Wang

et al. (2012) examined both the leisure time PA and happiness at baseline and after

2 years among 17,276 Canadian household residents. The results showed that people

who remained inactive at baseline and 2-year follow-up had 3 times the odds of being

unhappy than those who were inactive at baseline but became active at 2-year follow-

up. And those who were active at baseline but went inactive after 2years had 1.7 times

the odds of being unhappy than those who remained active at both baseline and 2-year

follow-up.

Several studies investigated the relationship between happiness and PA exclusively

among youth or adolescents. Min etal. (2017) and Kye etal. (2016) both found that the

number of days doing moderate or vigorous intensity PA per week was positively asso-

ciated with happiness among Korean adolescents. Engaging PA at least once per week,

compared to none, had 1.4 times the odds of being happy in normal-weight adolescents

and 1.5 times the odds in overweight adolescents. Likewise, Moljord etal. (2011) found

that adolescents who participated PA two or more times per week had significantly

higher happiness level than those engaged PA 1day or less per week. Besides, Piqueras

etal. (2011) found that college students who always participated PA had 1.3 times the

odds of being happy than their peers who did not.

Three studies examined the relationship between happiness and PA in older adults.

Barreto (2014) found that increased MET-min/week was associated with higher levels

of happiness in older adults. However, this positive association was mediated by the

health status and social functioning of older adults. Similarly, Lera-López etal. (2016 )

found that the total time in PA per week was positively related to happiness level in

older adults and the relationship was partially mediated by perceived health.

Additionally, three studies investigated the relationship between PA and happiness

among special population. Specifically, Stevinson etal. (2009) found that meeting pub-

lic health PA guidelines (150min of moderate/vigorous PA) was significantly associ-

ated with happiness level among ovarian cancer survivors. Maher etal. (2016) found

that PA significantly predicted happiness level in children and adolescents with cerebral

palsy. Nani etal. (2017) found that the times of exercise per week, regardless of inten-

sity, were slightly associated with the happiness among drug abusers.

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

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3.4 Intervention Studies

A total of eight intervention studies were identified in which six were RCTs and two

were non-randomized trials (Table 2). The sample size ranged from 46 to 400, with

the median sample size of 123.5. Participants in RCTs included older adults (Khazaee-

Pool etal. 2015; McAuley etal. 2000; Tse etal. 2014), cancer survivors (Cadmus etal.

2009; Courneya etal. 2009), and postmenopausal women (Courneya etal. 2017). The

two non-randomized trials targeted the study population of college students (Mack etal.

2000) and primary school children (Yook etal. 2017). The happiness measures of these

studies included Fordyce Happiness Scale (Cadmus etal. 2009; Courneya et al. 2009 ,

2017), Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (Khazaee-Pool etal. 2015), Subjective Happi-

ness Scale (Tse etal. 2014), Emotional Assessment Scale (Mack etal. 2000), Memorial

University of Newfoundland Scale of Happiness (McAuley etal. 2000), Psychological

Well-being Scale (Yook etal. 2017).

The types of PA programs implemented in the intervention studies included aerobic

exercises (Cadmus etal. 2009; Courneya etal. 2009 , 2017 ; McAuley etal. 2000), mixed

school PA classes (Mack et al. 2000; Yook et al. 2017), and stretching and balance

exercises (Khazaee-Pool etal. 2015; Tse et al. 2014). All these studies clearly speci-

fied the time, frequency, and duration of the PA programs, with the time ranging from

30 to 75min, frequency from once per week to five times per week, and duration from

7weeks to 12months. The intensity of PA programs was reported in four studies by

indicating the percentage of maximum heart rate (Cadmus etal. 2009; Courneya etal.

2017) or the percentage of maximum rate of oxygen consumption (Courneya etal. 2009 ;

McAuley etal. 2000).

Overall, the intervention studies that investigated the effects of PA on happiness

showed inconsistent results, with 3 RCTs (Courneya etal. 2009; Khazaee-Pool etal.

2015; Tse etal. 2014) and 1 non-randomized trial (Yook etal. 2017) reporting a sig-

nificant difference in the change of happiness between intervention group and control

group.

Four RCTs have investigated the effects of aerobic exercise on happiness, with two

studies using no intervention or usual care as control (Cadmus etal. 2009; Courneya

etal. 2009 ), one study using stretching exercise as control (McAuley etal. 2000), and

the other study comparing high volume aerobic exercise and moderate volume aerobic

exercise (Courneya etal. 2017). Cadmus etal. (2009) compared the effects of 30-min

moderate to—vigorous intensity aerobic exercises with 5 times per week for 6months

with that of usual care among breast cancer survivors. The results showed that happi-

ness level, which was measured by Fordyce Happiness Scale, was remained consist-

ent in both intervention and control groups after 6-month intervention. On the contrary,

Courneya etal. (2009) used the same assessment for happiness as Cadmus etal. (2009 )

did and found that happiness level improved significantly in intervention group but not

in control group after 12-week intervention of 45-min aerobic exercise with three times

per week among lymphoma patients. More recently, Courneya etal. (2017) compared

the effects of different PA volumes (30 vs. 60min of moderate-intensity aerobic exer-

cise, both 5 times per week) on happiness among postmenopausal women and found

that there was no difference in the improvement of happiness between moderate vol-

ume group and high volume group after 12-month intervention. Besides, McAuley etal.

(2000 ) compared effects of moderate intensity aerobic exercise with stretching exer-

cise among sedentary older adults, with 40min each time and three times per week for

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between Physical Activity…

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Table 2 Main characteristics of intervention studies examining the effects of physical activity on happiness

Author (year),

country

Study design Participants Sample size Intervention Control Measure of happi-

ness

Main findings

Cadmus etal. (2009),

USA

RCT Breast cancer

survivors, mean

age = 55.2

125 30min of moderate

to-vigorous physi-

cal activity, 5×/

week, 6months

Usual care Fordyce happiness

scale

Happiness level

remained consistent

in both exercise and

usual care groups

Courneya etal.

(2009 ), Canada

RCT Lymphoma patients,

mean age = 53.2

122 45min of aerobic

exercise, 3×/week,

12weeks

Usual care Fordyce happiness

scale

Intervention group sig-

nificantly improved

happiness level after

12-week aerobic

exercise program

while control group

did not

Courneya etal.

(2017 ), Canada

RCT Healthy but inactive

postmenopausal

women, aged

50–74

400 Moderate volume

group: 30min of

aerobic exer-

cise, 5×/week,

12months high

volume group:

60min of aerobic

exercise, 5×/week,

12months

NA Fordyce happiness

scale

There was no differ-

ence in change of

happiness between

moderate volume

group and high

volume group

Khazaee-Pool etal.

(2015 ), Iran

RCT Older adults, mean

age = 71

120 30min of stretch-

ing and balance

exercise, 3×/week,

8weeks

Regular activities Oxford Happiness

Questionnaire

Intervention group sig-

nificantly improved

happiness level after

8-week PA program

while control group

did not

Mack etal. (2000),

USA

Non-randomized Undergraduate

students, mean

age = 19.6

74 75min of volleyball,

power walking or

jogging class, 2×/

week, 7weeks

NA Emotional assess-

ment scale

Happiness level did not

change significantly

after 7-week PA

courses

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

1 3

Table 2 (continued)

Author (year),

country

Study design Participants Sample size Intervention Control Measure of happi-

ness

Main findings

McAuley etal.

(2000 ), USA

RCT Sedentary older

adults, mean

age = 65.5

174 40min of aerobic

exercise, 3×/week,

6months

40min of stretch-

ing and toning

exercise, 3×/week,

6months

Memorial University

of Newfoundland

scale of happiness

Both PA groups

improved happiness

after 6-month inter-

vention and there

was no difference in

the change of happi-

ness between groups

Tse etal. (2014),

China

RCT Older adults living

in nursing homes,

mean age = 85.5

396 60min of stretch-

ing and balance

exercises, 1×/week,

8weeks

Usual care Subjective happiness

scale

Intervention group sig-

nificantly improved

happiness level after

8-week PA program

while control group

did not

Yook etal. (2017),

Korea

Non-randomized Primary school

students, mean

age = 10.98

46 40min of yoga,

running activity or

Kin-Ball, 1×/week,

8weeks

Regular activities Psychological well-

being scale

Intervention group sig-

nificantly improved

happiness level after

8-week PA program

while control group

did not

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between Physical Activity…

1 3

6months. McAuley etal. (2000) found that happiness level significantly improved in

both aerobic exercise group and stretching exercise group after 6-month intervention

and there was no difference in the change of happiness between the two groups.

Two RCTs examining the effects of stretching, balancing exercises in older adults

reported beneficial effects of PA on happiness. Specifically, Khazaee-Pool etal. (2015 )

conducted 30-min stretching and balance exercise with 3 times per week for 8 weeks

among older adults aged 65–89 years. This study found that intervention group signifi-

cantly increased happiness level after 8-week while non-intervention group did not. Like-

wise, Tse etal. (2014) found that 8-week stretching and balancing exercises intervention,

with 60min each time and one time per week, significantly improved happiness level in

intervention group but not in usual care group among older adults living in nursing homes.

Besides the RCTs, two non-randomized studies have investigated the effects of PA

classes in students. Yook etal. (2017) found that happiness level changed significantly over

8-week intervention of PA classes, with 40min each class and one class per week, includ-

ing various sports activities and yoga among primary school students. In contrast, Mack

etal. (2000) involved participants of undergraduate students and found the happiness level

remained unchanged over 7-week intervention of PA classes including volleyball, power

walking, and jogging, with 75min each class and two classes per week.

4 Discussion

This literature review examined the existing evidence concerning the relationship between

PA and happiness. A total of fifteen observational studies and eight intervention stud-

ies were systematically reviewed to identify which aspects of PA were more consistently

associated with happiness and what kinds of population were more likely to benefits from

the effects of PA on happiness. This review extends prior knowledge of the relationship

between PA and mental health by focusing the positive dimension of mental health. The

research findings generally support the beneficial relationship between PA and happiness.

Of the thirteen cross-sectional studies, the positive relationship between PA and happi-

ness was found among a wide range of population. Although the cross-sectional studies

could only provide correlational evidence, potential confounding variables were controlled

in most of the studies, thus adding the additional credibility to their findings. Two longi-

tudinal studies provided stronger evidence demonstrating that PA may have a long-term

positive association with happiness, with one study showing greater level of PA resulted in

higher levels of happiness while the other showing the opposite direction that higher levels

of happiness lead to increased PA. Six RCTs mainly involved cancer survivors and older

adults showing that both aerobic exercises and balancing and stretching exercises were

effective in improving individual's happiness level. Only one RCT reported no significant

change in happiness after 6-month aerobic exercise intervention in breast cancer survivors.

Two non-randomized trials examined the effects of PA class on happiness in youth and

children but showing inconsistent results.

Our findings suggest that PA frequency and PA volume are essential factors in the rela-

tionship between PA and happiness, and more importantly, even a small change of PA

makes a difference in happiness. Studies showed the significant difference in happiness

levels between doing exercise 1day per week and none per week. As little as 10min PA

per week might greatly increase the odds of being happy. Such pattern that small amounts

of PA yield benefits was similar in the relationship between PA and other aspects of men-

tal health, such as depression and anxiety (Dunn etal. 2001; Teychenne etal. 2008). In

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

1 3

addition, there seems to be a threshold effect for the relationship between PA and happi-

ness. Several cross-sectional studies found that there was no difference in happiness levels

between active individuals (150–300min moderate to—vigorous PA per week) and very

active individuals (> 300min moderate to—vigorous PA per week). This was further sup-

ported by one RCT which compared the moderate volume of PA intervention (150min

aerobic exercise per week) with the high volume of PA intervention (300min aerobic exer-

cise per week) and found no difference in the change of happiness between two groups.

There might not be an optimal type or intensity of PA in the relationship between PA and

happiness. The RCTs have demonstrated aerobic exercise and stretching/balancing exercise

were equally effective in improving happiness. The positive associations between PA and

various intensities of PA (light, moderate, vigorous) were reported across observational

studies. In addition, the relationship between PA and happiness might be domain-specific,

in which leisure time PA showing the most consistent positive association with happiness.

Our findings indicate that overweight population might gain more benefits of PA on

happiness than normal-weight population. It might be because overweight population is

at higher risk of being unhappy and thus has more room to improve (Cornelisse-Vermaat

etal. 2006 ). Gender difference was found in two studies, with males showing the positive

association between PA and happiness while females not. One possible explanation may be

that the men are more likely to participate in PA for the reason of enjoyment than women

(Azevedo etal. 2007). Only a few studies have explored the potential mechanism of the

effects of PA on happiness. Mediators were found in two studies, in which health status,

social functioning, and perceived health appeared to account for the relationship between

the PA and happiness. It is consistent with previous studies which demonstrated social rela-

tionships and health were important determinants of happiness (Caunt etal. 2013). Previ-

ous studies have shown that there were some differences across cultures in terms of the

causes of happiness, such as the relationship between self-esteem and happiness was mod-

erated by individualism (Diener etal. 2013). Our results indicate that physical activity is

consistently correlated with happiness in countries across various areas, indicating no cul-

tural difference in the relationship between PA and happiness.

4.1 Limitations intheExisting Literature

Although there is a growing trend examining the relationship between PA and happiness,

which could be indicated by the increasing number of publications in the recent years and

by the global range where the studies were conducted, several limitations exist and make

it relatively difficult to draw relatively conclusive inference. First, only a small number of

RCTs has been conducted compared to observational studies. Furthermore, all these RCTs

targeted individuals who were more likely to suffer mental health problems, e.g. older

adults and cancer survivors. Therefore, there is a lack of the RCTs examining the effects

of PA on happiness among healthy population. Second, a myriad of outcome measures was

used in both observational and intervention studies, leading to the difficulties in synthesiz-

ing results across different studies. For example, near half of the studies used one-item

question to measure happiness, which assumed that respondents understood that happiness

was an overall evaluation of life, while other studies adopted well-validated questionnaires

such as Subjective Happiness Scale, which consisted of multiple questions to measure

individual's happiness level. Although there is no consensus regarding the "gold stand-

ard" of happiness measures, we believe that well-established, multiple-item scales of hap-

piness will provide more credibility to the measurement. We recommend three mostly cited

A Systematic Review oftheRelationship Between Physical Activity…

1 3

measures of happiness, whose reliabilities and validities have been demonstrated to be high

in different populations and various cultural contexts. These measures are Subjective Hap-

piness Scale (Lyubomirsky and Lepper 1999), Fordyce Happiness Scale (Fordyce 2005 ),

and Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (Hills and Argyle 2002). For the measures of PA,

except one study used smartphone sensors to measure PA, the other studies used self-report

approaches to assess PA. And among these self-report measures, various aspects of PA

were captured due to different questionnaires used. For example, some studies only meas-

ured leisure-time PA and some only assessed the vigorous PA, and the recall period of PA

also differed across these questionnaires. Third, although most studies reported a positive

association between PA and happiness, only a few studies attempted to explore the mecha-

nism of how PA impacted happiness or, reversely, how happiness impacted PA. Fourth,

the dose–response relationship between PA and happiness remains largely unknown, espe-

cially given the limited evidence by intervention studies.

4.2 Suggestions forFuture Research

According to the limitations, we suggest that future research address the following needs.

First of all, more RCTs are needed to examine the effects of PA on happiness, especially

among the general public and healthy populations. In addition, these future RCTs should

make an effort to compare the effects of different types, frequencies, intensities of PA, and

to explore the dose–response relationship between PA and happiness to determine whether

there is an optimal dose of PA for the improvement of happiness. Second, we suggest that

future studies investigate the underlying mechanism of the effects of PA on happiness, or

the effects of happiness on PA. For example, PA might increase happiness level via several

physiological or psychological pathways, which have already indicated by a few studies.

Disentangling the relationship between PA and happiness might expand the strategies for

the PA intervention in health promotion. Third, objective measure of PA, such as using

accelerometers or smartphone sensors, is needed for both observational and intervention

studies in future research. On the one hand, the objective measures and subjective meas-

ures of PA could lead to largely different results since the subjective measures of PA may

result in self-report bias (Troiano etal. 2008). On the other hand, by objectively measuring

PA, we could separate the effects of PA per se from other elements during the process of

PA, such as social interaction. In addition to addressing these limitations of the existing

studies, we suggest future studies extend the research focus to the relationship between

PA and other positive psychology related concepts, such as life satisfaction, optimism,

and hope. Investigations of the relationships between PA and these concepts help us bet-

ter understand how PA shapes people's lives in positive ways. Moreover, we recommend

that future research should investigate the relationships of physical fitness and sedentary

behaviors with happiness. Previous studies have shown that sedentary behaviors and lower

physical fitness are associated with increased risks of mental health issues (Hoare et al.

2016; Schuch etal. 2016), but studies of their relationships with positive mental constructs

have been lacking.

4.3 Limitations oftheCurrent Review

This review only included studies published in peer-reviewed journals with English lan-

guage, which might lead to potential publication bias and thus overestimating the posi-

tive relationship between PA and happiness. Although we searched the main databases for

Z.Zhang, W.Chen

1 3

biomedical and psychological research, other databases, such as Scopus and Web of Sci-

ence, may cover extra relevant studies. Due to the limited number of RCTs, we could not

draw causal inference on the relationship between PA and happiness. The quality of the

included studies was not assessed in this review and we did not weight the findings based

on the rigor of individual study. Quantitative synthesis was also not conducted due to the

limited evidence and the large variability across the studies.

5 Conclusion

This review identified fifteen observational and eight intervention studies which inves-

tigated the relationship between PA and happiness. The available evidence indicates the

positive relationship between PA and happiness among wide range of population. As little

as 10min PA per week or 1day of doing exercise per week makes differences in happiness

level. However, numerous aspects have remained largely unexplored. More research is nec-

essary to determine the optimal dose and type of PA for gaining the benefits of happiness,

and explore the pathways through which PA would possibly affect happiness. More RCTs

are warranted for future research in order to draw causal conclusions.

Compliance with Ethical Standards

Conflict of interest The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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... Physical activity (PA), for example, physical exercise, sports, and physically active hobbies (Gottschlich et al., 2019), is known as an essential factor related to psychological health (Zhang and Chen, 2019). Several studies have documented a positive relationship between PA and happiness (Zhang and Chen, 2019). ...

... Physical activity (PA), for example, physical exercise, sports, and physically active hobbies (Gottschlich et al., 2019), is known as an essential factor related to psychological health (Zhang and Chen, 2019). Several studies have documented a positive relationship between PA and happiness (Zhang and Chen, 2019). For example, in the Student Activity and Sports Participation Survey Ireland program, students with moderate and high physical activity according to the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form were more likely to be happy (Murphy et al., 2018). ...

... Physical activity is an essential factor for mental health, but few studies have examined the relationship between PA frequency and mental health among physicians (Zhang and Chen, 2019). To address this research gap, our national psychiatric hospital's survey provided a unique opportunity. ...

• Jin Luo
• Huanzhong Liu
• Yuanli Liu
• Yi-Lang Tang

This study aimed to examine the level of mental health and its correlates, particularly physical activity (PA) frequency, among physicians in tertiary psychiatric hospitals. In a national crosssectional survey, 4,520 physicians nested in 41 tertiary psychiatric hospitals from 29 provinces completed the online questionnaire. Their mean age was 38.5 ± 8.6 years, and 41.86% of physicians were men. More than one-third (35.24%) of physicians reported no PA in the past month, and only 21.88% reported happiness. Only 55.15 and 58.10% of the physicians reported normal status of depression and anxiety, respectively. In the adjusted multivariable ordinal logistic regression, higher PA frequency was associated with depression, anxiety, and happiness, except those who reported PA almost every day. Programs that aim to increase PA may promote the mental health of physicians in tertiary psychiatric hospitals.

... Another study found that more physically active elderly people tend to live longer and happier lives than those who are less active [14]. More generally, Zhang and Chen [15] reported a systematic review of 23 studies of the relationship between physical activity and happiness, which found a consistent and significant positive relationship across age and geography. Drawing on a combination of cross-sectional, longitudinal, and experimental studies, the authors concluded that as little as 10 min of physical activity per week or one day of exercise per week might result in increased levels of happiness. ...

... The predicted pattern would fit well with the finding from Tkach and Lyobmiursky's [19] study on 500 ethnically diverse undergraduates, suggesting that exercise is one of the most common (and seemingly most impactful) happiness-promoting strategies there is. It would also resonate well with reviews on the general association between physical activity and happiness [15,18], described above, and with a recent study of daily emotional well-being during the pandemic [20]. Using experience-sampling methods, the latter study collected around 3000 daily episodes among 200 participants and found that physical exercise and other outdoor activities was the strongest predictor of positive affect (and was negatively correlated with negative affect). ...

... Thus, we found clear support for the primary hypothesis in the current study (H1). This finding resonates well with previous research suggesting that exercise is an effective happiness-promoting strategy [19], and that level of physical activity has been positively linked to happiness [15,18] and daily emotional well-being during the pandemic [20]. Our findings also echo previous research associating inactivity with more negative emotions [20]. ...

Societal crises and personal challenges are often followed by substantial changes in physical activity. Is there a link between such changes and psychological well-being? Seeking to answer this question, we conducted a correlational study on a representative sample in Sweden during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic (N = 1035). About 49% of the sample had decreased their physical activity compared to their self-reported activity level prior to the pandemic, whereas 32% had increased it. The results showed a positive and robust association between changes in daily activity level and corresponding changes in psychological well-being. Specifically, individuals who had reduced their physical activity over the last year reported lower life satisfaction than before, and individuals who had increased their physical activity reported higher life satisfaction than before. The amount of complete physical inactivity (sitting) showed a similar pattern as the exercise data, meaning that individuals who reported increasing inactivity per day also reported a greater decline in life satisfaction. Additional analyses showed that the association between daily activity level and life satisfaction was somewhat stronger for men than for women, but there was no difference when comparing individual versus organized activities. The current study was based on a cross-sectional design, measuring self-reported change over time. Recent work from other research teams have used longitudinal data and experience-sampling in different settings, finding similar results. We conclude that there is good reason to recommend physical exercise as a coping strategy in difficult times.

... Maternal distress and depressive symptoms previously associated with more screen time in young children (Duch et al., 2013), and a review found maternal stress to be consistently linked with lower levels of physical activity and higher levels of sedentary behavior among children of different ages, but not with dietary intake of healthy or unhealthy foods (O'Connor et al., 2017). Happiness associates with higher amounts of physical activity among adult populations (Zhang & Chen, 2019). Moreover, happiness associated with lower mortality in a prospective 15-year follow-up study, but not after adjusting for physical activity (Koopmans et al., 2010). ...

We examined whether parental happiness associate with preschoolers' healthy energy balance-related behaviors (EBRBs) and with the co-occurrence of multiple healthy EBRBs. This cross-sectional study included 647 pairs of parents (88% mothers) and children (mean age 4.7, SD 0.9 years). Parents completed the Subjective Happiness Scale. In addition, ActiGraph accelerometers measured children's physical activity, and parents reported screen time and food consumption on behalf of their children. We defined four healthy EBRBs: meeting physical activity guidelines; meeting screen time guidelines; a higher consumption of vegetables, fruits and berries; and a lower consumption of sugary foods, treats and drinks. Parental happiness scores did not associate with children's healthy EBRBs when each behavior was analyzed separately. However, parents with higher happiness scores were more likely to have a child with 2 or 3–4 healthy EBRBs than a child with 0–1 healthy EBRBs. To conclude, parents who are happier have children with multiple healthy EBRBs. Targeting parental wellbeing should be considered when promoting children's healthy EBRBs.

... The academic literature provides support for a positive relation between physical exercise and happiness (for example, in the systematic review carried out by Zhang and Chen [43]). This association is also found between exercising and life satisfaction (see for example Pettay [44], with almost 800 college students in the United States of America, and Lera-López et al. [22], with a sample of 816 individuals aged from 50 to 70 in Spain). ...

... Furthermore, the fundamental components that form happiness are the essential situations such as health, nutrition, and freedom (8). For example, Zhang and Chen (2019) expressed that doing exercise even once a week made a difference in the level of happiness (9). Furthermore, some researchers emphasized that moderate level or extreme physical activity at least once a week was positively associated with happiness among adolescents (10)(11). ...

Study Objectives: Happiness is an important emotion for the careers and performances of athletes. For this reason, the research aimed to measure the happiness perceptions of the female athletes playing in the Turkish Sultans Volleyball League. Methods: In accordance with this purpose, interviews were conducted with 18 Turkish volleyball players by using the criterion sampling method, one of the purposive sampling methods. A questionnaire that involved a personal information form and a semi-structured interview form prepared by the researchers was used as the data collection tool. In the analysis of qualitative data, descriptive analysis techniques were utilized. Results: The interview form contained a single question that investigated three things giving happiness to volleyball. This question was supported by the question of "why". When the data was analyzed, it was determined that the main themes that affected the happiness perceptions of the volleyball players were sociological, psychological, economic, and physiological reasons. Conclusion: In conclusion, for Turkish female volleyball players playing in the Turkish Sultans League, happiness is; doing the sport they love in the team they feel belonged to, building a career through quality training thanks to adequate club facilities, working with qualified coaches who are fair, winning matches, and earning money by playing in accordance with their goals, and thus improving their self-confidence, and being physically, and mentally healthy.

... Study results also found exercise routine as another predictor of happiness among nursing students. Although we could not retrieve any study into the impact of exercise routine of nursing students on their happiness, studies from other discipline and population showed a significant positive association between students exercise routine and happiness [25]. Therefore, motivating nursing students for developing regular exercise routine can enhance their happiness level. ...

Introduction: Happiness is a fundamental need of human beings and it is vital aspect in the development and training of budding nurses as future nurse. However, budding nurses feel under stress and low level of happiness. Aim: The present study aimed to investigate happiness level and its predictors among budding nurses in India. Methods: This cross-sectional, multicentric study was performed in 2021 on conveniently selected 908 budding nurses studying in different nursing institutions in India. Data were collected using a researcher made demographic questionnaire and the Oxford Happiness Inventory. Data were analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistic. Results: Among 996 enrolled budding nurses, 908 were analyzed. The mean happiness scores of them were 126.75 ±19.69 (score range 29-174). The significant predictors of budding nurses happiness were motivational factor to join nursing (p<0.001), exercise routine (p<0.001), habit of substance abuse (p=0.008), perceived health status (p=0.004), relationship with family members (p=<0.001), relationship with teaching faculty (p=0.048) and relationship with friends (p<0.001). Conclusion: Budding nurses in India, have moderate level of happiness. Happiness is influenced by various factors. Nurse administrators and educators, in developing curriculum and activities, need to pay special attention to budding nurses' happiness and its predictors.

... Richards et al. (2015) find a significant association between the volume of physical activity and happiness in a large sample from 15 European countries. Zhang and Chen (2019), in a systematic review of the relationship between physical activity and happiness also find positive associations between physical activity and happiness. ...

• Adelina Gschwandtner
• Sarah Jewell
• Uma Kambhampati

This paper considers the impact of two measures of lifestyle—the consumption of fruit and vegetables and doing exercise—on individual well-being. Since lifestyle is likely to be endogenous, we correct for this by using two dimensions of delayed gratification as instruments. The ability to delay gratification enables individuals to give greater weight to the investment component of lifestyle decisions rather than merely the affective component. Our analysis is based on the UK Understanding Society Data, which covers 40,000 UK households over time. We find that the two delayed gratification instruments are positive and significant in influencing lifestyle. In Stage 2, we find that fruit and vegetable consumption and sports activity increase life satisfaction, though the impacts vary for men and women. These results are robust across income quartiles, region, gender, education and age groups.

... Unlike the typical sedentary video game, exergames resemble moderate-intensity physical exercise with increased energy expenditure, heart rate, and oxygen consumption during gameplay (Haddock, 2012;Wu, Wu, & Chu, 2015). Considering the well-established psychological benefits of physical exercise (Zhang & Chen, 2019), exergames may likewise be highly beneficial for psychological health. Indeed, research on exergames has consistently revealed associations between higher frequency of playing exergames and better emotional outcomes, such as fewer depressive symptoms, reduced anxiety, and greater positive affect across different age groups (Viana et al., 2017;Zheng, Li, Salmon, & Theng, 2020). ...

The appeal of video gaming has undoubtedly withstood the test of time. In view of its increasing popularity, lay people and researchers alike have taken an interest in the psychological consequences of video gaming. However, there seems to be a paradox associated with the effect of video gaming on gamers' well-being—namely, while most video game players cite "fun" as their motivation to play video games, video games continue to hold a notorious reputation among some researchers for being detrimental to mental health and emotional well-being as measured by indicators such as happiness, perceived stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. We suggest that a significant contributor to the mixed literature is the oversight of contextual factors that may moderate this relationship. The current review highlights five important contextual factors that should be considered when studying the associations between the frequency of video gaming and well-being. Specifically, we suggest that unless the social context (who), type (what), motivation (why), time and day (when), and amount (how much) of video gaming activities are adequately considered, examinations of well-being outcomes in relation to video gaming will remain incomplete.

• Mohammad Hatami
• Maryam Kalhor Nia Golkar
• Simin Farshadi

This study aimed to compare the effect of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and acceptance and commitment therapy (AT) on resilience, happiness, and hope of veterans with psychopathy. The present study was applied in terms of purpose, a pre-test, post-test, and follow-up research in terms of method, and a quasi-experimental design in terms of nature. The results showed a difference between the mean scores of resilience, happiness, and hope in the three acceptance and commitment therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and control groups within pre-test, post-test, and follow-up steps. There was a difference between the effects of ACT and CBT on resilience, happiness, and hope of veterans with psychopathy living in Dezful. Moreover, ACT performed better rather than CBT in terms of resilience, happiness, and hope rate among veterans with psychopathy living in Dezful, Iran.

Background: Moving around and being physically active can often be challenging for people with a visual impairment. The combination of a visual and intellectual disability can make being physically active even more difficult. The aim of the current study was to examine whether a technological device for physical activity promotion would be associated with more movement and whether using it would be experienced as enjoyable for people with visual and intellectual disabilities. Methods: A randomised multiple baseline design was used for this study. The participants were nine adults with a visual impairment and an IQ between 20 and 50. As participants interacted with the Light Curtain, movement was measured with triaxial accelerometers embedded in the Empatica E4 wristband. Independent observers scored activity, alertness and well-being from video-recordings using the following observation lists: the Happiness Feature Score (HFS) and the Arousal and Valence Scale (AVS). Results: Physical activity measured with the accelerometer and positive excitement measured with the AVS significantly increased among participants when they were engaged with the Light Curtain compared with care-as-usual activities. Well-being measured with the HFS did not show a significant difference between the baseline and intervention phases. Conclusions: Engagement with the Light Curtain increased physical activity and positive excitement in persons with visual and intellectual disabilities, but more research is necessary to understand how the Light Curtain might affect happiness and well-being.

PurposeExercise may offer a further opportunity to achieve pleasant conditions, without the use of substances or addiction supporting the promotion of a healthy lifestyle that is incompatible with the use of drugs. The aim of the present study was to explore the influence of physical activity on the degree of happiness among drug abusers in Greece. Methods Permission was asked from five Greek rehabilitation institutes and was granted from three of them. A total of 150 participants were approached, of whom only 73 finally filled in the questionnaires. To determine participants' happiness with life, the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ) was used. The respondents' physical activity intensity and frequency was measured with Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire. SPSS 20.0 for Windows was used for statistical analysis of the data gathered. Descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations) were conducted. ResultsAs for the dimension of OHQ evaluating the happiness with life, the results showed that the respondents were only moderately happy. They also moderately exercise in terms of intensity and frequency. Regression analysis was performed with the OHQ dimension as the dependent variable and the respondents' exercise intensity as the independent one. The analysis indicated that the exercise intensity did not predict the respondents' happiness with life (p > 0.05). On the contrary, frequency of exercise slightly (24%) predicted the respondents' happiness (F = 4.34, p < 0.05). Conclusions Results suggest that attendants of rehabilitation centers in Greece should be motivated to participate more frequently in exercise and recreation programs to somehow improve their happiness with their life.

Physical activity, both exercise and non-exercise, has far-reaching benefits to physical health. Although exercise has also been linked to psychological health (e.g., happiness), little research has examined physical activity more broadly, taking into account non-exercise activity as well as exercise. We examined the relationship between physical activity (measured broadly) and happiness using a smartphone application. This app has collected self-reports of happiness and physical activity from over ten thousand participants, while passively gathering information about physical activity from the accelerometers on users' phones. The findings reveal that individuals who are more physically active are happier. Further, individuals are happier in the moments when they are more physically active. These results emerged when assessing activity subjectively, via self-report, or objectively, via participants' smartphone accelerometers. Overall, this research suggests that not only exercise but also non-exercise physical activity is related to happiness. This research further demonstrates how smartphones can be used to collect large-scale data to examine psychological, behavioral, and health-related phenomena as they naturally occur in everyday life.

Background With technological developments and modernised sedentary lifestyles has come an increase in diseases associated with inactivity such as obesity and other non-communicable diseases. Emerging evidence suggests that time spent sedentary may also interact with mental health. This systematic review examined the associations between sedentary behaviour and mental health problems among adolescents. Methods This systematic review followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, and applied a quality assessment tool for quantitative studies to identity best available evidence. Following stringent search strategy of the databases; Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Global Health, Health Source: Nursing and Academic Edition, MEDLINE, PsychARTICLES and PsycINFO, we identified 32 articles eligible for review. ResultsAll studies reported leisure screen time among adolescents, and two thirds of identified studies examined depressive symptomatology. Other mental health measures were; anxiety symptoms, self-esteem, suicide ideation, loneliness, stress, and psychological distress. Strong consistent evidence was found for the relationship between both depressive symptomatology and psychological distress, and time spent using screens for leisure. Moderate evidence supported the relationship between low self-esteem and screen use. Poorer mental health status was found among adolescents using screen time more than 2–3 h per day, and gender differences exist. Essential information was missing for quality of evidence including heterogeneity in mental health and screen time-based measures, and self-report data collection methods. Conclusions The findings are of particular significance given the global public health concern of lifestyle-attributed diseases and the possibility for novel approaches to mental health. Future research should examine the psychological impact of reducing time spent using screens for leisure among adolescents, whilst accounting for possible confounding factors such as physical activity and dietary behaviours. It is critical that the reciprocal relationship between lifestyle behaviours and mental health is represented in both the psychiatric and public health forum.

• Su Yeon Kye
• Keeho Park
• Jeonghyun Kwon

Objectives: We examined the associations between happiness and a wide range of health behaviors in South Korean adolescents. Methods: Study data were derived from the ninth Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBS) administered from June to July 2013. In addition to happiness levels, the questionnaire includes items on sociodemographics and health-related lifestyle factors (smoking, drinking, having breakfast, fruit and vegetable intake, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and hours of sleep). Results: The multivariate analysis revealed that higher levels of happiness were associated with smoking, drinking, having breakfast, eating fruits daily, vegetable intake, participating in at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day, sedentary behavior, and hours of sleep. Additionally, there were gender differences in relationships between happiness and eating fruit daily, participation in physical activity, and sedentary behavior. Conclusions: These results encourage public health professionals to consider the psychological aspects of adolescent life in working to improve their health behaviors and outcomes.

This study examined associations between physical activity (PA), weight status, and psychological well-being (PWB) among South Korean adolescents. Pooled data from a total of 370,568 adolescents (M age = 15.05 years) who participated in the Korea Youth Risk Behavior web-based Surveys 2009–2013 were included in the analyses. Multiple logistic regressions were performed after adjusting for age, gender, region, economic status, and maturity. Though we found that overweight, compared to normal weight, was adversely associated with low/no stress (OR = 0.91, 95%CI = 0.88–0.94), engaging in PA at least once/week compared to none, regardless of weight status, was favorably associated with happiness (underweight: OR = 1.53, 95%CI = 1.18–1.98; normal weight: OR = 1.41, 95%CI = 1.28–1.54; overweight: OR = 1.51, 95%CI = 1.22–1.87) and low/no stress (underweight: OR = 1.26, 95%CI = 1.12–1.41; normal weight: OR = 1.35, 95%CI = 1.30–1.41 in normal weight; overweight: OR = 1.28, 95%CI = 1.16–1.40). Furthermore, after adjusting for covariates and weight status, a day increase in weekly vigorous PA was associated with higher likelihoods of reporting happiness (OR = 1.16, 95%CI = 1.15–1.17) and low/no stress (OR = 1.09, 95%CI = 1.09–1.10) (p-trend < 0.001). Similarly, a 1-day increase in strengthening exercise was associated with happiness (OR = 1.06, 95%CI = 1.05–1.06) and low/no stress (OR = 1.05, 95%CI = 1.05–1.06) (p-trend < 0.001). The observed patterns of the relationships suggest that PA participation, even for a minimum amount, may be beneficial to PWB. Also, PA may negate the association between overweight status and PWB among adolescents.

Background Exercise generally improves quality of life (QoL) and psychosocial functioning in adult populations but few randomized trials have examined dose-response effects. PurposeThe purpose of the present study was to report the QoL and psychosocial outcomes from the Breast Cancer and Exercise Trial in Alberta (BETA). Methods Healthy but inactive postmenopausal women at risk for breast cancer were randomized to a year-long aerobic exercise intervention consisting of either 150 min/week (moderate volume group, n = 200) or 300 min/week (high volume group, n = 200). QoL was assessed at baseline and 1 year using the short form-36 health survey. Sleep quality, depression, anxiety, stress, self-esteem, and happiness were also assessed. Participant preference for group assignment (i.e., exercise volume) was assessed at baseline and tested as a moderator. ResultsThere were no statistically significant dose-response effects of aerobic exercise on any QoL, sleep quality, or psychosocial outcome. Participant preference for group assignment did not moderate any QoL, sleep quality, or psychosocial responses. Marital status was a significant moderator (p for interaction = 0.01) and obesity showed a trend towards being a moderator (p for interaction = 0.08) of the dose-response effects of aerobic exercise on global sleep quality such that unmarried and obese women improved sleep quality with the higher volume of aerobic exercise. ConclusionsA higher volume of aerobic exercise, approximately double the minimum public health guideline, did not provide additional QoL or psychosocial benefits compared to the minimum public health guideline in inactive postmenopausal women, even for women who preferred the higher volume of exercise at baseline. Trial RegistrationTrial Registration clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT1435005.

Fitness for Life 6th Edition Chapter Review Answers

Source: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323992118_A_Systematic_Review_of_the_Relationship_Between_Physical_Activity_and_Happiness

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