Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role.

J Lin; T Guo; Benjamin  Becker; Q Yu; ST Chen; S Brendon; MM Hossain; PM Cunha; FC Soares; N Veronese; JJ Yu; I Grabovac; L Smith; A Yeung; L Zou; H Li

doi:10.2147/prbm.s277435

Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role.

J Lin, T Guo, Benjamin Becker, Q Yu, ST Chen, S Brendon, MM Hossain, PM Cunha, FC Soares, N Veronese, JJ Yu, I Grabovac, L Smith, A Yeung, L Zou, H Li^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Clinical Psychology

Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Purpose: The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and associated restrictive measures have implications for depressive symptoms (henceforth depression) of young people and risk may be associated with their reduced physical activity (PA) level. Therefore, we aimed to examine the association between depressive symptoms and PA among college students with different gender and gender role (masculinity traits and femininity traits) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Participants and Methods: Cross-sectional study included 628 healthy college students from nineteen different locations. The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scales (CES-D), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and the 50-item Chinese Sex-Role Inventory (CSRI-50) were used to measure depressive symptoms, PA continuous (weekly metabolic equivalent minutes, MET-minutes/week) and categorical indicators (activity level category) and gender role, respectively. The statistical analyses were used in partial correlation analysis, t-test, one-way ANOVA, moderation model tests, and linear regression model tests.

Results: Total of 34.72% participants had clinically relevant depression (16, CES-D scale). Total of 58.6% participants were classified as a “low” activity level for spending less time on PA. Depression significantly negatively correlated with MET-minutes/week in moderate-intensity PA but not vigorous and walking scores. Of note, the depression-PA association was only moderated by the “low” activity level group in terms of categorical scores across gender groups. Participants with higher masculinity traits were less likely to have depression among all participants. Moreover, more recovered cases and fewer deaths could also predict the lower depression risk in the “high” activity level group.

Conclusion: Moderate-intensity PA is beneficial for reducing depression risk among college students at a low activity level. College students with fewer masculinity traits (regardless of gender) are highly vulnerable to depression during the outbreak of COVID-19. Effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic seems critical to alleviating the burden of mental disorders of the public including depression.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1123-1134
Number of pages	12
Journal	Psychology Research and Behavior Management
Volume	13
Early online date	2 Dec 2020
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.2147/prbm.s277435
Publication status	Published - 2020

Funding

This study is supported by the following: Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions (2019SHIBS0003); National Natural Science Foundation of China (31671150; 31871115); Guangdong Key Project (2018B030335001); Guangdong Major Program (2016KZDXM009); Innovative Team Program in Higher Education of Guangdong (2015KCXTD009); Shenzhen Basic Research Scheme (JCYJ20150729104249783); Shenzhen Peacock Plan (KQTD2015033016104926); Clinical Lectureship (ICA-CL-2017-03-001) jointly funded by Health Education England (HEE) and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). Brendon Stubbs is part-funded by the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. Brendon Stubbs also holds active grants with the Medical Research Council and Guys and St Thomas Charity (GSTT). Brendon Stubbs has received consultancy fees from ASICS Europe BV. The views expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the (partner organisation), the NHS, the NIHR, the Department of Health and Social Care, the MRC or GSTT.

Funders	Funder number
Guangdong Key Project	2018B030335001
Guangdong Major Program	2016KZDXM009
Guys and St Thomas Charity
Health Education England
Innovative T eam Program in Higher Education of Guangdong	2015KCXTD009
Shenzhen Basic Research Scheme	JCYJ20150729104249783
Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions	2019SHIBS0003
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
Guangdong Innovative and Entrepreneurial Research Team Program
Medical Research Council
National Institute for Health Research
Department of Health and Social Care
National Natural Science Foundation of China	31871 1 15, 31671 150
Shenzhen Peacock Plan	ICA-CL-2017-03-001, KQTD2015033016104926

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Lin, J., Guo, T., Becker, B., Yu, Q., Chen, ST., Brendon, S., Hossain, MM., Cunha, PM., Soares, FC., Veronese, N., Yu, JJ., Grabovac, I., Smith, L., Yeung, A., Zou, L., & Li, H. (2020). Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role. Psychology Research and Behavior Management, 13, 1123-1134. https://doi.org/10.2147/prbm.s277435

@article{2c38ded92f4d4d97ae1a61fbd9021cde,

title = "Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role.",

abstract = "Purpose: The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and associated restrictive measures have implications for depressive symptoms (henceforth depression) of young people and risk may be associated with their reduced physical activity (PA) level. Therefore, we aimed to examine the association between depressive symptoms and PA among college students with different gender and gender role (masculinity traits and femininity traits) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants and Methods: Cross-sectional study included 628 healthy college students from nineteen different locations. The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scales (CES-D), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and the 50-item Chinese Sex-Role Inventory (CSRI-50) were used to measure depressive symptoms, PA continuous (weekly metabolic equivalent minutes, MET-minutes/week) and categorical indicators (activity level category) and gender role, respectively. The statistical analyses were used in partial correlation analysis, t-test, one-way ANOVA, moderation model tests, and linear regression model tests. Results: Total of 34.72\% participants had clinically relevant depression (16, CES-D scale). Total of 58.6\% participants were classified as a “low” activity level for spending less time on PA. Depression significantly negatively correlated with MET-minutes/week in moderate-intensity PA but not vigorous and walking scores. Of note, the depression-PA association was only moderated by the “low” activity level group in terms of categorical scores across gender groups. Participants with higher masculinity traits were less likely to have depression among all participants. Moreover, more recovered cases and fewer deaths could also predict the lower depression risk in the “high” activity level group. Conclusion: Moderate-intensity PA is beneficial for reducing depression risk among college students at a low activity level. College students with fewer masculinity traits (regardless of gender) are highly vulnerable to depression during the outbreak of COVID-19. Effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic seems critical to alleviating the burden of mental disorders of the public including depression. ",

author = "J Lin and T Guo and Benjamin Becker and Q Yu and ST Chen and S Brendon and MM Hossain and PM Cunha and FC Soares and N Veronese and JJ Yu and I Grabovac and L Smith and A Yeung and L Zou and H Li",

year = "2020",

doi = "10.2147/prbm.s277435",

language = "English",

volume = "13",

pages = "1123--1134",

journal = "Psychology Research and Behavior Management",

issn = "1179-1578",

publisher = "Dove Medical Press Ltd.",

}

Lin, J, Guo, T, Becker, B, Yu, Q, Chen, ST, Brendon, S, Hossain, MM, Cunha, PM, Soares, FC, Veronese, N, Yu, JJ, Grabovac, I, Smith, L, Yeung, A, Zou, L & Li, H 2020, 'Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role.', Psychology Research and Behavior Management, vol. 13, pp. 1123-1134. https://doi.org/10.2147/prbm.s277435

Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role. / Lin, J; Guo, T; Becker, Benjamin et al.
In: Psychology Research and Behavior Management, Vol. 13, 2020, p. 1123-1134.

Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

TY - JOUR

T1 - Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role.

AU - Lin, J

AU - Guo, T

AU - Becker, Benjamin

AU - Yu, Q

AU - Chen, ST

AU - Brendon, S

AU - Hossain, MM

AU - Cunha, PM

AU - Soares, FC

AU - Veronese, N

AU - Yu, JJ

AU - Grabovac, I

AU - Smith, L

AU - Yeung, A

AU - Zou, L

AU - Li, H

PY - 2020

Y1 - 2020

N2 - Purpose: The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and associated restrictive measures have implications for depressive symptoms (henceforth depression) of young people and risk may be associated with their reduced physical activity (PA) level. Therefore, we aimed to examine the association between depressive symptoms and PA among college students with different gender and gender role (masculinity traits and femininity traits) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants and Methods: Cross-sectional study included 628 healthy college students from nineteen different locations. The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scales (CES-D), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and the 50-item Chinese Sex-Role Inventory (CSRI-50) were used to measure depressive symptoms, PA continuous (weekly metabolic equivalent minutes, MET-minutes/week) and categorical indicators (activity level category) and gender role, respectively. The statistical analyses were used in partial correlation analysis, t-test, one-way ANOVA, moderation model tests, and linear regression model tests. Results: Total of 34.72% participants had clinically relevant depression (16, CES-D scale). Total of 58.6% participants were classified as a “low” activity level for spending less time on PA. Depression significantly negatively correlated with MET-minutes/week in moderate-intensity PA but not vigorous and walking scores. Of note, the depression-PA association was only moderated by the “low” activity level group in terms of categorical scores across gender groups. Participants with higher masculinity traits were less likely to have depression among all participants. Moreover, more recovered cases and fewer deaths could also predict the lower depression risk in the “high” activity level group. Conclusion: Moderate-intensity PA is beneficial for reducing depression risk among college students at a low activity level. College students with fewer masculinity traits (regardless of gender) are highly vulnerable to depression during the outbreak of COVID-19. Effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic seems critical to alleviating the burden of mental disorders of the public including depression.

AB - Purpose: The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and associated restrictive measures have implications for depressive symptoms (henceforth depression) of young people and risk may be associated with their reduced physical activity (PA) level. Therefore, we aimed to examine the association between depressive symptoms and PA among college students with different gender and gender role (masculinity traits and femininity traits) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants and Methods: Cross-sectional study included 628 healthy college students from nineteen different locations. The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scales (CES-D), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and the 50-item Chinese Sex-Role Inventory (CSRI-50) were used to measure depressive symptoms, PA continuous (weekly metabolic equivalent minutes, MET-minutes/week) and categorical indicators (activity level category) and gender role, respectively. The statistical analyses were used in partial correlation analysis, t-test, one-way ANOVA, moderation model tests, and linear regression model tests. Results: Total of 34.72% participants had clinically relevant depression (16, CES-D scale). Total of 58.6% participants were classified as a “low” activity level for spending less time on PA. Depression significantly negatively correlated with MET-minutes/week in moderate-intensity PA but not vigorous and walking scores. Of note, the depression-PA association was only moderated by the “low” activity level group in terms of categorical scores across gender groups. Participants with higher masculinity traits were less likely to have depression among all participants. Moreover, more recovered cases and fewer deaths could also predict the lower depression risk in the “high” activity level group. Conclusion: Moderate-intensity PA is beneficial for reducing depression risk among college students at a low activity level. College students with fewer masculinity traits (regardless of gender) are highly vulnerable to depression during the outbreak of COVID-19. Effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic seems critical to alleviating the burden of mental disorders of the public including depression.

UR - http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/33299364

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85097985559

UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85097985559&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.2147/prbm.s277435

DO - 10.2147/prbm.s277435

M3 - Article

C2 - 33299364

SN - 1179-1578

VL - 13

SP - 1123

EP - 1134

JO - Psychology Research and Behavior Management

JF - Psychology Research and Behavior Management

ER -

Depression is Associated with Moderate-Intensity Physical Activity Among College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Differs by Activity Level, Gender and Gender Role.

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