Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42798427›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in psychology2026

Physical literacy and adolescent mental well-being: A chain mediation of basic psychological needs satisfaction and emotion regulation.

Bing Zhang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in psychology, 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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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

1 author.

Bing ZhangInstitute of Physical Education, Huanggang Normal University, Huanggang, Hubei, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Adolescent mental wellbeing is a pressing global concern. Physical literacy (PL) - the motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge, and understanding to value physical activity for life - has emerged as a potentially protective factor for mental wellbeing. However, the mechanisms linking PL to mental wellbeing remain poorly understood. Drawing on Self-Determination Theory and emotion regulation theory, this study examined whether basic psychological needs satisfaction (BPNS) and emotion regulation serve as sequential mediators in the PL-mental wellbeing relationship among adolescents. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in November 2024 with 687 Chinese middle school students from Hubei Province (48.3% female; aged 12-16 years), recruited using stratified cluster sampling from three public schools. Participants completed validated Chinese measures of physical literacy (PPLI), basic psychological needs (BPNSFS), emotion regulation (ERQ), and mental wellbeing (WEMWBS). Covariance-based structural equation modeling (robust maximum likelihood) with bias-corrected bootstrapping (5,000 resamples) tested the chain mediation model. Results: The final analytical sample comprised 687 adolescents (48.3% female), who reported moderate levels of PL ( Conclusion: These findings suggest that PL is associated with adolescent mental wellbeing through a sequential pathway involving BPNS and emotion regulation. The results highlight the potential value of PL development and need-supportive environments in educational settings. Future longitudinal research is needed to examine temporal dynamics.

Indexed as

adolescentsbasic psychological needs satisfactionchain mediationemotion regulationmental wellbeingphysical literacySelf-Determination Theory

Identifiers

PMID42798427
PMCPMC13612352

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.