Physical exercise and social body anxiety: Body self-esteem and interpersonal relationships as mediators

This study explored the factors influencing the common occurrence of social body anxiety in college students. We examined the influence of physical exercise on college students’ social body anxiety, and tested the chain mediation effects of body self-esteem and interpersonal relationships on this link. We used random sampling to recruit 479 students at a university in China, and they completed the Physical Exercise Rating Scale, the Social Body Anxiety Self-Assessment Scale, the Body Self-Esteem Scale, and the Interpersonal Relationship Diagnostic Scale. The findings revealed there was a negative correlation between physical exercise and social body anxiety. Body self-esteem and interpersonal relationships had both independent and chain mediating effects on the link between physical exercise and social body anxiety. These findings offer practical insights for alleviating social body anxiety among college students.