Physical literacy and mental well-being in adults: a cross-sectional examination of their association and links with physical activity engagement.

Background: Physical literacy, the integrated motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge, and understanding that underpins lifelong physical activity, has been advanced as a holistic determinant of health. Yet, evidence linking it to positively framed mental well-being in adults remains scarce and is dominated by samples of children and adolescents. Aim: This study examined the association between physical literacy and mental well-being in Turkish adults and tested whether both constructs differed by sex, educational attainment, athletic background, regular exercise participation, and habitual physical activity level. Methods: In a cross-sectional design, 375 adults (64.5% male; mean age = 32.23 years, SD = 11.03, range 18-71), a convenience sample skewed toward physically active and tertiary-educated men, completed validated Turkish measures of physical literacy and mental well-being. Active-living exposures were assessed using a single self-report item. Internal consistency was high (physical literacy α = 0.89, ω = 0.90; mental well-being α = 0.92, ω = 0.92). Pearson correlations, Results: Physical literacy was moderately and positively associated with mental well-being ( Conclusion: Higher physical literacy co-occurs with better mental well-being in adults and remains associated with mental well-being after adjustment for covariates, positioning it as a candidate target for adult mental health promotion. The cross-sectional design and active, educated convenience sample preclude causal and population-level inference, and independent confirmatory validation of the adapted instrument is needed before these findings are treated as more than provisional.