Abstract
To explore the impact of physical exercise on student burnout, 800 non-physical education major students in a university in Suzhou are selected as research objects to carry out an empirical study on influences of physical exercise on student burnout, and SPSS27.0 software is used to process data obtained by empirical research. The results indicate that physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience differ based on demographic variables; There are significant correlations between physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience, which shows that physical exercise, psychological resilience and student burnout have significantly negative correlation, and physical exercise and psychological resilience have significantly positive correlation; Psychological resilience plays a mediating role in the influence of physical exercise on student burnout. Based on this, in order to alleviate students’ fatigue and leverage the influence of physical exercise and mediating role of psychological resilience, suggestions and countermeasures to improve the effect of physical exercise and enhance psychological resilience are put forward.
Keywords: Physical exercise, Student burnout, Psychological resilience, Demographic variable
Introduction
Student burnout is a serious problem in the field of education, which has serious negative impact on students’ academic performance and long-term development. Student burnout refers to a phenomenon in which students hold a negative attitude towards school curriculum and academic performance, accompanied by the following behaviors: losing their enthusiasm for school curriculum and school activities, presenting a negative state, and being cold and distant to classmates and friends. Therefore, understanding the factors influencing student burnout can effectively alleviate their fatigue, improve their learning motivation and interest, and promote their future healthy development, which has profound significance.
Mariano H C Á J et al. [1] analyze the current situation and causes of student burnout by taking 954 students as research objects, and conclude that the current trend of student burnout is lacking in learning motivation and heavy learning pressure, which leads to the occurrence of student burnout, and the main reasons are the pressure of going on to higher education and employment. Qiang J et al. [2] conduct questionnaire survey on 1022 Chinese college students and conclude that the main reasons for students’ sense of burnout are self-regulating fatigue and self-compassion, which magnifies students’ uncertain endurance, and student burnout can be alleviated through appropriate physical exercise. Malakcioglu C [3] conducts a survey on student burnout of 630 medical students and find that medical students also suffer from emotional loneliness, social loneliness, and psychological stress, which leads to increasing burnout among students. Aitken W G H et al. [4]. follow PRISMA methodology to review scientific literature and find that the problem of student burnout is becoming increasingly serious, and reasons for student burnout are mainly attributed to teachers’ teaching methods and students’ mental health. If teachers’ teaching methods are single and students’ mental health level is at a low level, students are more likely to have burnout. He L et al. [5] conduct a questionnaire survey on 450 Chinese students and analyze data using SPSS24.0 software. They find that there are correlations between students’ perceived emotional support from teachers and their sense of burnout.
The above studies show that reasons for the occurrence of student burnout mainly come from three aspects: The first is social pressure, the second is teachers’ single teaching method, and the third is students’ mental health level. Student burnout can be reduced through physical exercise and psychological counseling. For example, Jin C et al. [6] investigate relationships between physical exercise and student burnout and believe that physical exercise can alleviate student burnout by relaxing body and mind. Through a randomized controlled trial, Messina I et al. [7] find that providing psychological counseling services to students with high levels of burnout and enhancing physical exercise for them can effectively alleviate their burnout. Ardenghi S et al. [8] believe that personality, empathy and teachers’ caring are conducive to improving students’ psychological resilience and improving student burnout. Kuang Y et al. [9] use the joint learning method to detect the mental health and student burnout of college students in several regions of China, and conclude that college students can reduce the possibility of depression and burnout through physical exercise. However, the above studies have not explored the specific mechanisms of physical exercise on student burnout. Therefore, to clarify the mechanisms of physical exercise on student burnout, this paper carries out an empirical study on the influence of physical exercise on students’ sense of burnout with psychological resilience as the intermediary.
The organizational structure of this article is arranged as follows: The first section analyzes the purpose of this research and reviews the current situation and causes of student burnout in relevant literature; The second section puts forward research hypotheses according to literature contents, which are that physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience differ based on demographic variables, there are significant correlations among physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience, and psychological resilience plays a mediating role in the process of physical exercise affecting student burnout; The third section selects research objects and designs research methods; The fourth section analyzes the influences of physical exercise on student burnout and mediating role of psychological resilience; The fifth section summarizes conclusions of this article, and puts forward suggestions and countermeasures according to conclusions.
Research hypotheses
Due to the different physiological structure, students of different genders have significant differences in intensity, time and efficiency of physical exercise. Due to different experiences and experiences, students of different ages also have significant differences in the student burnout and psychological resilience [10]. Combined with above studies, this paper believes that there are certain differences in the physical exercise of different students in terms of demographic variables such as gender and grade, and there are also certain differences in student burnout and psychological toughness. Therefore, this paper proposes that:
Hypothesis 1
Physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience are different in demographic variables.
Physical exercise is beneficial to enhance blood circulation, promote metabolism, and effectively help the body relax, which has a positive effect on reducing student burnout and improving psychological resilience [11]. When students experience fatigue in their learning and life, engaging in appropriate physical exercise is beneficial for improving psychological resilience and reducing burnout [12]. Based on this, this paper argues that there are correlations among physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience, then this paper proposes that:
Hypothesis 2
There are significant correlations among physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience, showing that physical exercise, psychological resilience and student burnout are significantly negatively correlated, while physical exercise and psychological resilience are significantly positively correlated.
Physical exercise can promote the secretion of psychological hormones in the brain, which has a positive impact on diverting attention and improving psychological resilience [13]. The higher the level of psychological resilience, the stronger students’ enthusiasm, optimism, and strength, and the more they can correctly release their inner emotions, thereby reducing their sense of fatigue [14]. Therefore, physical exercise can improve students’ psychological resilience, and then reduce student burnout, so this study proposes that:
Hypothesis 3
Psychological resilience acts as a mediator in the process of physical exercise affecting student burnout.
Research objects and research methods
Research objects
Selecting 200 non sports major freshmen to seniors from a university in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province as the research subjects, there were a total of 800 college students [15]. This study collected data through random distribution of survey questionnaires [16]. A total of 800 questionnaires were distributed, and 784 valid questionnaires were collected, with an effective rate of 98%. Demographic variables of samples presented in Table 1 are obtained.
Table 1.
Demographic variables of samples
| Demographic variables | Category | Number | Proportion /% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gender | Male | 346 | 44.13 |
| Female | 438 | 55.87 | |
| Grade | Freshman | 197 | 25.13 |
| Sophomore | 199 | 25.38 | |
| Junior | 193 | 24.62 | |
| Senior | 195 | 24.87 | |
| Registered residence | City | 268 | 34.18 |
| Town | 257 | 32.78 | |
| Rural | 259 | 33.04 | |
| The only child | Yes | 456 | 58.16 |
| No | 328 | 41.84 | |
| Parents’ occupation | Workers | 198 | 25.26 |
| Farmer | 196 | 25.00 | |
| Civil servant | 192 | 24.49 | |
| Other | 198 | 25.25 |
Research tools
This study uses Physical Activity Rating Scale (PARS-3) to evaluate physical exercise status of college students [17]. The internal consistency coefficient of this scale is 0.87, and the fitting indexes of confirmatory factor analysis are X2/df = 2.20, GFI = 0.98, NFI = 0.98, CFI = 0.99, RMSEA = 0.07, which meet the application requirements. Furthermore, PARS-3 scale is divided into three dimensions, namely intensity, time and frequency, and it is scored using five-grade scoring criteria ranging from 1 to 5 points [18]. The higher the score, the greater the amount of exercise.
Adolescent Learning Burnout Scale (ALBS) is adopted to assess college students’ learning burnout [19]. Cronbach’s α coefficient of this scale is 0.87. In addition, this scale is divided into three dimensions, namely emotional burnout, burnout and low sense of achievement. The Cronbach’s α coefficients of these three dimensions are 0.81, 0.79 and 0.76, respectively, which meet the application requirements [20]. ALBS scale adopts a five-grade scoring criteria of completely inconsistent, relatively inconsistent, uncertain, relatively consistent, and completely consistent [21]. A higher score indicates a greater sense of learning burnout.
Furthermore, the level of psychological resilience is assessed using Psychological Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) [22]. The internal consistency coefficient of this scale is 0.89, and its retest reliability is 0.87. Moreover, this scale is divided into three dimensions: tenacity, optimism and strength, and also adopts five-grade scoring criteria for scoring [23]. The higher the score, the better the psychological resilience.
Statistical tools
SPSS27.0 software is adopted to analyze the recovered questionnaire data. Firstly, Harman single factor test is utilized to perform common method bias test on samples [24]. When only one factor is released or a factor is large, the method is considered to have serious common method bias; otherwise, there is no common method bias. Then, descriptive statistics is conducted on samples, and independent-samples t test and one-way variance are used to analyze the differences of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience in demographic variables [25]. When the P-value of analysis results is less than 0.1, it indicates that there are differences in demographic variables. Afterwards, correlations between physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience are tested by Pearson bivariate correlation analysis method. When the P value of correlation results is less than 0.1, it indicates that there is a correlation between the two pairs. Finally, Model 4 in process3.5 is adopted to analyze the mediating role of psychological resilience. If the P-value in the results is less than 0.1, it indicates that psychological resilience plays an mediation effect.
Results and analysis
Common method bias test
Harman single factor test is used to conduct common method bias test on samples, and test results are shown in Table 2. Where, there are 7 factors with eigenvalues greater than 1, and variation explained by the first main factor is 32.14%, which is less than the critical value of 40%. This indicates that there is no serious common method bias problem, and further studies can be conducted [26].
Table 2.
Results of common method bias test
| Component | Initial eigenvalue | Extraction sums of squared loadings | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | % of the variance | Accumulation% | Total | % of the variance | Accumulation% | |
| 1 | 13.70 | 24.58 | 24.58 | 13.70 | 24.58 | 13.70 |
| 2 | 10.95 | 16.13 | 40.71 | 10.95 | 16.13 | 10.95 |
| 3 | 6.58 | 12.55 | 53.26 | 6.58 | 12.55 | 6.58 |
| 4 | 4.31 | 8.76 | 62.02 | 4.31 | 8.76 | 4.31 |
| 5 | 2.88 | 4.12 | 66.14 | 2.88 | 4.12 | 2.88 |
| 6 | 1.56 | 3.78 | 69.92 | 1.56 | 3.78 | 1.56 |
| 7 | 1.23 | 2.11 | 72.03 | 1.23 | 2.11 | 1.23 |
| 8 | 0.99 | 1.30 | 73.33 | - | - | - |
Descriptive statistics
Table 3 presents the descriptive statistical results of samples. Analysis of Table 3 reveals that mean values of physical exercise and each dimension are higher than average values, indicating that the amount of physical exercise of study subjects is at the middle and upper level. Mean value of student burnout is 52.64, which is higher than average value, indicating that student burnout is at an above average level; The mean value of psychological resilience is 92.65, which is higher than average value, indicating that psychological resilience of study objects is at a relatively high level [27].
Table 3.
Descriptive statistical results
| Variable | Maximum value | Minimum value | Mean value | Standard deviation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 5.00 | 1.00 | 3.43 | 1.54 |
| Intensity | 5.00 | 1.00 | 4.11 | 2.33 |
| Efficiency | 4.00 | 1.00 | 3.92 | 1.35 |
| Physical exercise | 75.00 | 22.00 | 24.11 | 1.02 |
| Emotional fatigue | 38.00 | 9.00 | 21.05 | 5.34 |
| Boredom | 28.00 | 5.00 | 16.89 | 3.25 |
| Low sense of achievement | 29.00 | 7.00 | 12.56 | 3.45 |
| Student burnout | 83.00 | 21.00 | 52.64 | 12.03 |
| Tenacity | 123.00 | 25.00 | 94.01 | 17.65 |
| Optimism | 20.00 | 5.00 | 15.61 | 3.21 |
| Strength | 35.00 | 9.00 | 31.02 | 4.15 |
| Psychological resilience | 123.00 | 22.00 | 92.65 | 16.02 |
Differences in demographic variables
Differences in gender variable
Table 4 illustrates differences of gender variable in various dimensions of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience. According to Table 4, differences between gender variables on various dimensions, physical exercise and psychological resilience are significant. Therefore, boys have significantly higher levels of physical exercise and psychological resilience than girls, while there are no significant differences in student burnout. The reason for this is that physiological structure of students of different genders is different, which leads to differences in the efficiency and time of exercise, as well as the sense of achievement and emotional boredom [28].
Table 4.
Differences of gender variables in various dimensions of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience
| Variable | Male | Female | t | p |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 31.26 | 15.28 | 3.26 | 0.00 |
| Intensity | 30.10 | 16.12 | 2.33 | 0.00 |
| Efficiency | 28.73 | 15.11 | 2.64 | 0.00 |
| Physical exercise | 31.85 | 16.29 | 8.03 | 0.00 |
| Emotional fatigue | 23.16 | 22.98 | 1.25 | 0.12 |
| Boredom | 16.59 | 15.32 | 0.36 | 0.15 |
| Low sense of achievement | 15.26 | 15.18 | −6.17 | 0.26 |
| Student burnout | 54.12 | 53.98 | −0.56 | 0.48 |
| Tenacity | 48.23 | 46.19 | 3.26 | 0.01 |
| Optimism | 14.15 | 12.65 | 3.15 | 0.00 |
| Strength | 31.11 | 30.25 | 3.57 | 0.03 |
| Psychological resilience | 94.26 | 90.28 | 4.13 | 0.00 |
Differences in grade variable
Table 5 shows the differences of grade variables in various dimensions of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience. Analyzing Table 5 reveals that physical exercise has the remarkable difference in grade variables, which are manifested in senior > junior > sophomore > freshman. In terms of student burnout, grade variables are different significantly in the dimensions of emotional fatigue and boredom. On the dimension of emotional fatigue, it is manifested as freshman > junior > sophomore > senior, and on the dimension of boredom, it is manifested as junior > senior > freshman > sophomore. However, there is no significant difference in the low achievement dimension and the total score of student burnout among grade variables. In terms of psychological resilience, there are significant differences among grade variables only in the strength dimension, which is manifested in freshman > sophomore > junior > senior, and there are no significant differences in the other dimensions and the total score of psychological resilience. The reason for this is that students of different grades experience varying levels of academic pressure, thus their physical exercise time, psychological resilience, and degree of burnout are different. Therefore, physical exercise, psychological resilience, and student burnout differ based on grade variable [29].
Table 5.
Differences in physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience among grade variables
| Variable | Freshman | Sophomore | Junior | Senior | F | p | LSD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 15.23 | 18.28 | 21.36 | 25.18 | 13.21 | 0.00 | senior > junior > sophomore > freshman |
| Intensity | 11.13 | 15.89 | 20.25 | 24.90 | 12.35 | 0.00 | |
| Efficiency | 13.28 | 17.45 | 22.17 | 26.24 | 12.64 | 0.00 | |
| Physical exercise | 16.23 | 20.29 | 25.38 | 29.14 | 14.03 | 0.00 | |
| Emotional fatigue | 23.17 | 22.98 | 23.15 | 21.06 | 1.22 | 0.02 | freshman > junior > sophomore > senior |
| Boredom | 16.52 | 15.31 | 17.59 | 14.14 | 3.38 | 0.01 | junior > senior > freshman > sophomore |
| Low sense of achievement | 15.27 | 15.11 | 14.28 | 14.12 | 3.17 | 0.13 | - |
| Student burnout | 54.13 | 53.97 | 53.02 | 52.98 | 0.55 | 0.12 | - |
| Tenacity | 46.21 | 46.13 | 46.32 | 43.12 | 1.26 | 0.01 | - |
| Optimism | 14.91 | 13.14 | 12.98 | 12.87 | 1.19 | 0.86 | freshman > sophomore > junior > senior |
| Strength | 30.19 | 30.26 | 30.12 | 30.05 | 2.57 | 0.23 | - |
| Psychological resilience | 90.20 | 90.28 | 90.14 | 90.01 | 1.15 | 0.11 | - |
Differences in registered residence variable
Table 6 shows that physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience differ based on household registration location variable. According to Table 6, physical exercise and its various dimensions have significant differences in residence registration location variables, which are manifested as city > town > rural; Student burnout and psychological resilience and their dimensions have no significant difference in registered residence variable. The reason is that students in the city, township and countryside have certain differences in economy and education. Compared students in the township and countryside, students in the city have better family economic conditions, so parents pay more attention to their children’s physical exercise, are willing to invest more resources in their children’s physical exercise, and provide better sports facilities [30].
Table 6.
Differences in the dimensions of physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience among variables of registered residence
| Variable | City | Town | Rural | F | p | LSD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 18.02 | 21.14 | 25.10 | −3.26 | 0.00 | city > town > rural |
| Intensity | 19.15 | 23.12 | 28.73 | −2.33 | 0.00 | |
| Efficiency | 17.08 | 20.11 | 28.14 | −2.64 | 0.00 | |
| Physical exercise | 15.76 | 18.23 | 22.95 | −3.03 | 0.00 | |
| Emotional fatigue | 23.23 | 22.38 | 22.15 | 1.36 | 0.15 | - |
| Boredom | 16.67 | 15.45 | 15.22 | 1.78 | 0.24 | - |
| Low sense of achievement | 15.36 | 15.07 | 14.98 | 2.13 | 0.29 | - |
| Student burnout | 54.04 | 53.12 | 53.06 | 1.28 | 0.56 | - |
| Tenacity | 48.15 | 46.12 | 46.28 | −0.26 | 0.38 | - |
| Optimism | 14.28 | 12.33 | 12.03 | −0.11 | 0.27 | - |
| Strength | 31.45 | 30.98 | 30.46 | −1.50 | 0.13 | - |
| Psychological resilience | 94.12 | 90.25 | 90.11 | −1.13 | 0.15 | - |
Differences in the only child variable
Table 7 illustrates the difference analysis results of physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience in the only child variables. According to Table 7, physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience are not related to whether students are only children. The reason for this is that there is no significant difference in physical exercise education and psychological education between parents of only child and parents of non-only child [31].
Table 7.
Difference analysis results of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience in the only child variables
| Variable | Only child | Non-only child | t | p |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 33.21 | 35.22 | 3.21 | 0.12 |
| Intensity | 30.10 | 28.12 | 2.35 | 0.25 |
| Efficiency | 28.73 | 27.11 | 2.67 | 0.33 |
| Physical exercise | 31.85 | 32.20 | 8.03 | 0.27 |
| Emotional fatigue | 23.14 | 22.98 | 1.28 | 0.12 |
| Boredom | 16.59 | 16.32 | 0.36 | 0.15 |
| Low sense of achievement | 15.28 | 15.17 | 6.17 | 0.26 |
| Student burnout | 54.12 | 53.98 | 0.56 | 0.40 |
| Tenacity | 48.27 | 48.15 | 3.27 | 0.15 |
| Optimism | 14.15 | 13.65 | 3.15 | 0.21 |
| Strength | 31.15 | 30.25 | 3.56 | 0.23 |
| Psychological resilience | 94.20 | 93.24 | 4.13 | 0.42 |
Differences in parents’ occupation variable
Table 8 shows the difference analysis results of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience in parents’ occupation variables. According to Table 8, physical exercise, student fatigue, and psychological resilience show significant difference in parents’ occupation variables. The reason is that parents’ occupation has no significant influence on students’ physical exercise concept and psychological quality, and students will not do physical exercise because of their parents’ occupation. Therefore, there is no significant difference between physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience in parents’ occupation variables.
Table 8.
Differences of parents’ occupation variables in physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience
| Variable | Workers | Farmer | Civil servant | Other | F | p | LSD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 15.22 | 15.28 | 16.32 | 16.17 | 3.21 | 0.52 | - |
| Intensity | 15.13 | 15.30 | 15.25 | 15.90 | 2.35 | 0.25 | - |
| Efficiency | 27.26 | 27.45 | 26.16 | 26.24 | 2.64 | 0.24 | - |
| Physical exercise | 16.23 | 16.30 | 17.38 | 17.12 | 4.03 | 0.16 | - |
| Emotional fatigue | 15.16 | 16.98 | 16.17 | 16.03 | 1.22 | 0.12 | - |
| Boredom | 16.52 | 15.32 | 17.60 | 16.14 | 3.38 | 0.11 | - |
| Low sense of achievement | 15.22 | 15.11 | 14.28 | 14.16 | 3.17 | 0.13 | - |
| Student burnout | 54.13 | 53.96 | 53.75 | 52.96 | 0.55 | 0.12 | - |
| Tenacity | 46.23 | 46.13 | 46.30 | 43.17 | 1.26 | 0.26 | - |
| Optimism | 14.91 | 13.16 | 13.15 | 13.82 | 1.19 | 0.86 | - |
| Strength | 30.22 | 30.26 | 30.17 | 30.04 | 2.57 | 0.23 | - |
| Psychological resilience | 90.23 | 90.25 | 90.16 | 90.03 | 1.15 | 0.11 | - |
Comprehensive analysis of the results shown in Tables 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 reveals that there are significant differences among physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience in the demographic variables, which confirms that hypothesis 1 is true.
Correlation analysis
Independent-samples t test and single factor analysis of variance are used to analyze correlations between physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience, and the results are shown in Table 9. According to Table 9, physical exercise and its various dimensions are significantly negatively correlated with student burnout and its various dimensions, and have passed the 5% significance test. The greater the amount of physical exercise, the lower the burnout of students. There are significant positive correlations between physical exercise and psychological resilience in all dimensions, and have passed the 5% significance test. The greater the amount of physical exercise, the higher the level of psychological resilience. There are significant negative correlations between student burnout and psychological resilience in all dimensions. The higher psychological resilience, the lower student burnout. The reason for this is that physical exercise is beneficial for promoting students’ metabolism, helping them relax their bodies, improving their psychological resilience, and reducing their burnout. From this, it can be concluded that there are significant correlations among physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience. The higher levels of physical exercise and psychological resilience, the lower student burnout, which proves hypothesis 2 is valid.
Table 9.
Correlation test results of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience
| Variable | Time | Intensity | Efficiency | Physical exercise | Emotional fatigue | Boredom | Low sense of achievement | Student burnout | Tenacity | Optimism | Strength | Psychological resilience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Intensity | 0.86** | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Efficiency | 0.75** | 0.72** | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Physical exercise | 0.84** | 0.86** | 0.81** | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Emotional fatigue | −0.23** | −0.45** | −0.36** | −0.28** | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Boredom | −0.45** | −0.26** | −0.38** | −0.36** | −0.78** | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Low sense of achievement | −0.38** | −0.43** | −0.41** | −0.35** | −0.56** | −0.86** | 1 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Student burnout | −0.64** | −0.42** | −0.36** | −0.39** | −0.88** | −0.73** | −0.14** | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Tenacity | 0.25** | 0.39** | 0.44** | 0.51** | −0.32** | −0.26** | −0.33** | −0.32** | 1 | - | - | - |
| Optimism | 0.37** | 0.28** | 0.42** | 0.34** | −0.28** | −0.41** | −0.37** | −0.53** | 0.23** | 1 | - | - |
| Strength | 0.36** | 0.45** | 0.36** | 0.25** | −0.36** | −0.42** | −0.41** | −0.49** | 0.34** | 0.41** | 1 | - |
| Psychological resilience | 0.41** | 0.46** | 0.37** | 0.38** | −0.45** | −0.36** | −0.39** | −0.41** | 0.35** | 0.39** | 0.54** | 1 |
**indicates p < 0.05
Test of mediating role
Mediation effect test
This study utilized model4 in process plug-in to test the mediating role of psychological resilience in influences of physical exercise on student burnout, and Bootstrap was set to repeat sampling 5000 times. Test results presented in Table 10 are obtained.
Table 10.
Results of mediating effect test
| Result variable | Predictive variable | R | R 2 | F | β | t |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Student burnout | Physical exercise | 0.38 | 0.40 | 221.26** | −0.12 | −14.56*** |
| Psychological resilience | Physical exercise | 0.35 | 0.41 | 256.47** | 0.56 | 13.28*** |
| Student burnout | Physical exercise | 0.33 | 0.45 | 138.56** | −0.32 | −7.56*** |
| Psychological resilience | - | - | - | −0.38 | −8.43*** |
According to the analysis of Table 10, physical exercise and student burnout are negatively correlated at 1% significance level, indicating that physical exercise negatively influences student burnout. When mediating variable of psychological resilience is introduced, the effect of physical exercise on student burnout is still significantly negative, indicating that psychological resilience plays a mediating role in influences of physical exercise on student burnout. This proves that hypothesis 3 is true.
Influence path analysis
Analyzing the results in Table 10 reveals that psychological resilience plays an intermediary role in the influence of physical exercise on student burnout. To further clarify the impact path of psychological resilience, an analysis of the influence path of psychological resilience is carried out, and the results are shown in Table 11.
Table 11.
Influence path analysis of mediating variable of physical exercise
| Path | Effect size | BootSE | BootLLCI | BootULCI | Effect ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indirect effect: physical exercise → psychological resilience → student burnout | −0.32 | 0.02 | −0.16 | −0.14 | 46.88% |
| Direct effect: physical exercise → student burnout | −0.40 | 0.03 | −0.12 | −0.08 | 53.12% |
| Total effect | −0.72 | 0.03 | −0.14 | −0.09 | 100.00% |
Table 11 shows that indirect effect value of physical exercise is −0.32, and its confidence interval is [−0.16, −0.14], accounting for 46.88%; The direct effect value of physical exercise is −0.40, and its confidence interval is [−0.12,−0.08], accounting for 53.12%; Confidence intervals for indirect effect, direct effect, and total effect do not include 0. Psychological resilience has significant indirect, direct and total effects in the impact of physical exercise on student burnout. Therefore, psychological resilience acts as a mediator in influences of physical exercise on student burnout, which proves the validity of hypothesis 3. The reason is that physical exercise can divert students’ attention to difficulties and challenges, and improve students’ psychological resilience, thereby reducing student burnout [32].
Figure 1 shows the mediating role of psychological resilience in the effect of physical exercise on student burnout.
Fig. 1.
Mediating role of psychological resilience
Conclusion
By measuring and evaluating physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience of 800 non sports major freshmen to seniors at a university in Suzhou, this study explores the influences of physical exercise on student burnout and mediating role of psychological resilience. Following conclusions are drawn:
There are differences among physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience in demographic variables. Among them, gender variables have significant differences in physical exercise and psychological resilience and their dimensions. Physical exercise and psychological resilience of boys are significantly higher than those of girls, but there is no significant difference in student burnout and its dimensions. Grade variable has significant difference in physical exercise, which is manifested as senior > junior > sophomore > freshman. There were significant differences among grade variables in the two dimensions of student burnout, emotional fatigue and boredom. For example, on the dimension of emotional fatigue, it manifests as freshman > junior > sophomore > senior, and on the dimension of boredom, it manifests as junior > senior > freshman > sophomore. There are significant differences in the strength dimension of psychological resilience, which is manifested as freshman > sophomore > junior > senior, and there are no significant differences in other dimensions. Furthermore, there are significant differences among physical exercise and its dimensions in residence registration variables, which is manifested as rural > town > urban. There are no significant differences among student burnout, psychological resilience and their dimensions in the variables of registered residence. This is consistent with the research results of Awad A A F [33]. The reason for this is that students of different genders and ages have significant differences in physical exercise intensity, time, efficiency, and acceptance of challenges, thus students’ physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience differ based on demographic variables.
There are significant correlations between physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience, showing that physical exercise and psychological resilience are significantly negatively correlated with student burnout, while physical exercise is significantly positively correlated with psychological resilience. This is consistent with the findings of Li M et al. [34] The reason for this is that physical exercise is beneficial for promoting students’ metabolism, helping them relax their bodies, improving their psychological resilience, thus reducing student burnout.
The effect of physical exercise on student burnout is mediated by psychological resilience, and mediating pathway is physical exercise→psychological resilience→student burnout. This is consistent with the results of Lu Y et al. [35]. The reason is that physical exercise can divert students’ attention to difficulties and challenges, and improve students’ psychological toughness, thereby reducing student burnout.
Based on the above conclusions, to reduce student burnout, give full play to the influence of physical exercise and the mediating role of psychological resilience, the following suggestions and countermeasures are proposed:
Choose the right physical exercise program. There is a negative correlation between physical exercise and students burnout, so improving the effect of physical exercise is conducive to reducing student burnout. Choosing physical exercise items that they are interested in and suitable for is conducive to enhancing the effect of physical exercise for students and reducing their sense of burnout. Furthermore, students should choose physical exercise program according to their own physical fitness and physical exercise needs, such as jogging and swimming for beginners, and aerobics for those who have a certain foundation.
Master correct physical exercise methods. If students want to achieve the effect of physical exercise, they should first master the correct physical exercise methods. Students can constantly change the exercise intensity, exercise time, and exercise form to find their own way of exercise, so as to improve their excitement and interest in physical exercise, and enhance the effect of physical exercise.
Reasonably arrange the exercise intensity and time. The time and intensity of physical exercise have a significant impact on the effectiveness of physical exercise. If physical exercise cannot be sustained and gradual, it is highly likely to lead to unsatisfactory results. For example, when doing strength physical exercise, students can do progressive exercises of 1%, 5%, 10% of the maximum weight. By using the above methods, time, intensity, and efficiency of physical exercise can be ensured, and the effectiveness of physical exercise can be improved, thereby reducing student burnout.
Develop tough character. For students themselves, they should cultivate their own tough character in daily life, such as setting small goals and learning new skills, and constantly challenge themselves to gradually form tough character; For schools, ideological and political education can be used to guide and encourage students to have a strong sense of purpose and continue to strive for goals, so as to enhance their psychological resilience.
Enhance the strength of psychological resilience. For example, students should insist on physical exercise and try to challenge themselves to improve their psychological resilience by overcoming difficulties. At the same time, they can also adjust their mentality to persevere in the face of difficulties and break through adversity, thus enhancing the strength of psychological resilience. Through the above methods, psychological resilience can be effectively enhanced and student burnout can be reduced.
As can be seen, this research has achieved certain results. However, due to the limitations of conditions, only 800 students in a university in Jiangsu Province are empirically studied, which can not fully reflect the current situation, corresponding relationship and mechanism of physical exercise, student burnout and psychological resilience of all Chinese college students, thus the research results have certain limitations. Therefore, the next step of research will attempt to select more college students as research subjects under the premise of conditions, so as to reflect the specific situation of physical exercise, student burnout, and psychological resilience of Chinese college students.
Acknowledgements
Not Applicable.
Authors’ contributions
Delin Deng: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, investigation, Formal Analysis, Writing - Original Draft, Visualization; Qichao Sun: Conceptualization, Resources, Supervision, Writing - Review & Editing, Investigation; Hui Li : Data Curation,Writing -Original Draft, Software, Validation, Resources.
Funding
Not.
Data availability
No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.
Declarations
Ethics approval and consent to participate
All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. The study has been approved by the Ethics Committee of Suzhou Jiulong Hospital. This study obtained written consent from all subjects or their parents/legal guardians.
Consent for publication
No.
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interests.
Footnotes
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
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Data Availability Statement
No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.