Prosocial behavior in adolescents refers to actions performed in daily life that benefit others, the collective, or society at large (Carlo & Padilla-Walker, 2020). It serves as a key indicator of moral development during adolescence (Carlo & Padilla-Walker, 2020) and can be measured across three dimensions: actively helping others, voluntarily adhering to social norms and order, and treating others with sincerity and kindness (Richaud et al., 2012). Physical activity similarly enhances mental health and social integration among children and adolescents (Booth et al., 2023). Its impact on promoting adolescents’ prosocial behavior has garnered academic attention in sports psychology, with research indicating that physical activity reduces aggressive behavior while boosting cooperation and sharing (Rodríguez et al., 2016), thereby improving quality of life and well-being (Wang et al., 2020). Studies have found associations between physical activity and enhanced social and problem-solving skills (Lee et al., 2017), with regularly active (vs. less active) adolescents demonstrating better prosocial behavior and fewer interpersonal challenges (Moeijes et al., 2019).

 

Prior research has established a connection between adolescents’ physical activity and prosocial behavior. Experimental studies across diverse populations have consistently demonstrated that physical activity enhances prosocial tendencies (Metwaly, 2015), with physical education courses specifically predicting positive social behavior (Park et al., 2017). In a large-scale dataset analysis of studies conducted in China, Wan et al. (2021) further indicated that regular exercise increased prosocial behavior by over 0.20 standard deviations. Collectively, these findings support a robust positive correlation between physical activity and adolescents’ prosocial behavior, aligning with the dominant academic consensus.

 

However, the existing literature has limitations. First, there is a lack of research on rural adolescents. Compared to their urban counterparts, rural adolescents experience a stronger sense of inferiority, loneliness, and tense interpersonal relationships (Shi & Wang, 2023), which may lead to lower prosocial behavior. With fewer external resources available to rural adolescents, it is worth studying whether physical exercise has a greater predictive effect on them compared to urban adolescents, enhancing understanding of its role in educational equity. Second, researchers have not conducted a differentiated analysis of the predictive effect of physical exercise on prosocial behavior. Comparative studies among groups are essential for precise suggestions on addressing inequities.

 

This study used the China Education Panel Survey database (Shen, 2025), focusing on rural adolescents, and applied quantile regression to explore the differential predictive effect of physical exercise on prosocial behavior and draw more accurate conclusions and implications.

Social learning theory (Bandura, 1977) and self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2012) posit that participation in collective sports fosters prosocial behaviors, such as cooperation, through observational learning and role playing (Spitzer & Hollmann, 2013). Prior research has highlighted that physical exercise can mitigate rural educational resource deficits by enhancing social skills through group activities (Park et al., 2017). Notably, a threshold effect has been revealed in which exercise demonstrates greater marginal utility for individuals with lower baseline prosociality levels (Rodriguez-Ayllon et al., 2019). These findings underscore the importance of examining the heterogeneous impacts of physical exercise on prosocial behavior. Thus, we proposed the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis 1: Physical exercise will positively predict rural adolescents’ prosocial behavior, with differential effects occurring across varying levels of prosocial behavior.

 

Considering China’s unique 4–2–1 family structure under the one-child policy (i.e., a household composed of four grandparents, two parents, and one child), family resources are concentrated on the child (Xian et al., 2022), which may amplify the intervention effects of physical exercise. Research has shown that social support from sports activities among children without siblings more effectively translates into prosocial motivation (Zurc, 2012). In contrast, sibling interactions in families serve a prosocial training function, potentially weakening the marginal utility of physical exercise (Liu et al., 2020). Thus, the nonlinear relationship between physical exercise and prosocial behavior may be more pronounced in only-child families. We therefore proposed the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis 2: The nonlinear predictive effect of physical exercise on prosocial behavior will be more significant among rural adolescents who are only children compared to those who have siblings.

 

We drew on resource substitution theory (Ross & Mirowsky, 2006) and the family stress model (Masarik & Conger, 2017). Yeung et al. (2002) found that low-income families often face issues of insufficient educational investment and psychological stress transmission. Physical exercise, as a low-cost intervention, may help to address this. Empirical studies have shown that when family economic pressure exceeds a critical threshold, adolescents’ behavioral development is more susceptible to external interventions (Conger et al., 1999). However, high-income families already have multiple prosocial development channels (e.g., extracurricular training and international exchanges), which may lead to diminishing marginal utility of physical exercise (Owen et al., 2022). This may further strengthen the nonlinear characteristics of physical exercise observed in low-income groups. Therefore, we proposed the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis 3: The nonlinear predictive effect of physical exercise on prosocial behavior will be more significant among rural adolescents from low-income, compared to upper–middle income, families.

This study used data from the 2014–2015 China Education Panel Survey, covering demographic, family, extracurricular, and behavioral development dimensions. After screening, 4,219 valid student samples were retained from 112 schools and 301 classes (original N = 10,750). Prosocial behavior was the dependent variable, physical exercise was the independent variable, and we controlled for gender, school type, parental relationship, family income, parental education, and only-child status. Variable descriptions are available on request from the corresponding author.

To address the research goals, this study used ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and quantile regression to examine the association between adolescents’ physical exercise and prosocial behavior. OLS assumes a constant linear prediction across all distribution points, but the actual relationship may exhibit heterogeneous effects across prosocial behavior levels, indicating subgroup differences in exercise’s impact. As a linear model, OLS cannot capture these quantile-specific effects.

 

Quantile regression, conversely, can reveal how physical exercise influences different prosocial behavior quantiles, offering nuanced insights into their relationship while producing robust estimates less affected by outliers. The specific formulas we used are available on request from the corresponding author.

Table 1 presents the OLS regression results for prosocial behavior development level among rural adolescents, controlling for the variables of gender, school type, parental relationship, family economic status, only-child status, and parents’ education level. Physical exercise significantly and positively predicted the prosocial behavior of rural adolescents, such that for every additional unit of physical exercise time, their prosocial behavior score increased by 0.409.

To explore the heterogeneity of physical exercise’s predictive effect on rural adolescents’ prosocial behavior, this study used quantile regression modeling, which comprehensively describes the marginal predictive effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable at different quantiles. We estimated regression results at 0.10, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 0.90 quantiles. As can be seen in Table 2, physical exercise positively predicted prosocial behavior at all quantiles (p < .001).

Figure 1 shows the regression coefficients and confidence intervals. As the quantile increased, the predictive effect of physical exercise followed an inverted V-shaped pattern, peaking at 0.50. Before 0.50, the quantile regression coefficients exceeded the OLS values, indicating a greater predictive effect on medium-to-low-level groups.

To test the robustness of the OLS and quantile regressions and explore the differential predictive effect of physical exercise on different types of rural adolescents, we next conducted a regression analysis of the subsamples. Adolescents were grouped into only-child and child-with-siblings categories, and we performed a quantile regression for each group separately. The results are presented in Table 3.

Table 3 indicates that physical exercise significantly promoted prosocial behavior in rural adolescent groups, regardless of whether they were an only child or had siblings. However, Figure 2 shows there was a stronger overall effect on the only-child group. The predictive effect on the child-with-siblings group was balanced across quantiles. In contrast, the only-child group showed polarization. For example, for every unit increase in physical exercise among the child-with-siblings group, prosocial behavior at high and low quantiles increased by 0.347 units and 0.257 units, respectively. In the only-child group, prosocial behavior at high and low quantiles increased by 0.604 units and 0.207 units, respectively.

To explore the predictive effect of physical exercise on the prosocial behavior of rural adolescents from different family economic backgrounds at various quantile points, we divided the adolescents into low-income and upper–middle-income groups based on their family’s economic situation, and conducted separate quantile regression analyses for each group. The results in Table 4 show that physical exercise positively predicted rural adolescents’ prosocial behavior across family economic backgrounds.

Figure 3 reveals that at different quantiles, low-income rural adolescents benefitted more from exercise than did upper–middle-income adolescents. For upper–middle-income adolescents, the predictive effect was small and stable, peaking at the 0.50 quantile. In contrast, low-income adolescents showed polarization, with the highest increase occurring at the 0.10 quantile and the lowest at the 0.90 quantile.

We found that physical exercise significantly predicted rural adolescents’ prosocial behavior, which aligns with empirical evidence obtained in an earlier study (Wan et al., 2021) demonstrating that regular physical activity enhanced adolescents’ prosocial tendencies. This phenomenon can be explained by three key mechanisms. Physiologically, physical exercise boosts cerebral blood flow and catecholamine production, enhancing self-efficacy and reducing negative emotions—processes that directly facilitate prosocial behavior (Sleiman et al., 2016). Psychologically, exercise mitigates anxiety, stress, and depression (Opstoel et al., 2020), fostering emotional states conducive to prosocial tendencies. Sociologically, physical activities provide interactive environments where adolescents develop teamwork and social skills, which are critical for promoting prosocial behavior (Zinatdinovich & Makhsetbaevich, 2023).

 

The effect of physical exercise on prosocial behavior varied across subgroups, aligning with the economic principle of diminishing marginal utility. Adolescents with lower prosocial behavior levels—often characterized by weaker cognitive development (Li & Shao, 2022)—derived greater benefits from exercise. For rural adolescents who had siblings, exercise effects on prosocial behavior were consistent across quantiles, whereas children without siblings exhibited stronger associations at lower quantile levels. This divergence may stem from sibling interactions in multichild families moderating the impact of exercise on prosocial behavior.

 

In terms of family economic background, the prosocial behavior of upper-to-middle-income rural adolescents was consistently influenced by physical exercise. In contrast, low-income rural adolescents benefitted more from exercise at lower quantiles, which is in line with family investment theory. Scarce resources in low-income families make physical exercise a more critical factor in promoting prosocial behavior.

This study has several limitations. We omitted macrolevel factors like community and societal contexts from our research framework, and did not differentiate between exercise types and intensities. Additionally, our use of a cross-sectional design means we cannot rule out potential reverse causality. Future research could employ more rigorous experimental methods to clarify the causal link between physical exercise and prosocial behavior, along with its connections to broader adolescent development.

Using 2014–2015 China Education Panel Survey data, this study examined the effect and heterogeneity of physical exercise on rural adolescents’ prosocial behavior, yielding four key conclusions. First, physical exercise significantly enhanced rural adolescents’ prosocial behavior. Second, exercise effects exhibited a quantile-dependent inverted V-shaped pattern, with adolescents who had moderate levels of prosocial behavior deriving the greatest benefits and extreme groups showing weaker associations. Third, adolescents with siblings demonstrated consistent exercise effects across quantiles, while children without siblings exhibited polarized responses. Fourth, low-income adolescents experienced stronger quantile-specific benefits with polarization, whereas their upper-to-middle-income peers showed diminished advantages.

 

Our findings indicate that physical exercise enhanced rural adolescents’ prosocial behavior, which, in turn, promoted both their physical health and moral development. The differential predictive effect across groups highlights the role of exercise in educational equity, particularly for low-income adolescents. Thus, when using physical exercise to promote the prosocial behavior of rural adolescents, it is necessary to formulate appropriate strategies based on the development level of their prosocial behavior.

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