ArticleBMC public health2026
The relationship between school belonging and college students' mental health: a chain mediation model involving physical exercise and a growth mindset.
Article in BMC public health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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Abstract
objectiveThis cross-sectional study examined the association between school belonging and symptom-based mental health among college students and tested whether physical exercise and growth mindset statistically mediated this association.
methodsA cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted among 600 college students. Mediation analysis was performed using the PROCESS macro (Model 6), and 95% confidence intervals were constructed using 5,000 bootstrap repetitions (bias-corrected percentile bootstrap).
resultsThe total effect size of school belonging on college students' mental health was 0.589, with a confidence interval of [0.563, 0.616]; its direct effect size was 0.260, with a confidence interval of [0.210, 0.309]; its total indirect effect was 0.329, with a confidence interval of [0.267, 0.384]. The indirect effect of school belonging via physical exercise was 0.111, with a confidence interval of [0.075, 0.146]; the indirect effect via growth mindset is 0.160, with a confidence interval of [0.119, 0.202]; the chained mediation effect between physical exercise and growth mindset is 0.057, with a confidence interval of [0.034, 0.084]. It should be noted that the mediation effects in this study are statistical mediation effects based on cross-sectional data and do not imply temporal sequence or causal mediation.
conclusionsSchool belonging was positively associated with the mental health indicator among college students. Physical exercise and growth mindset showed statistically significant indirect associations, both independently and through a sequential pathway. These findings should be interpreted as associations based on cross-sectional data. They do not establish temporal ordering or causal mediation, and the outcome mainly reflects fewer psychological symptoms rather than positive mental health.
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