The Relationship Among Interpersonal Support of School, Exercise Identity and Adolescents' Exercise Behavior.

Objective: Using a longitudinal and horizontal research design, this study explored the causal relationship among the interpersonal support of school, exercise identity and adolescents' exercise behavior. Methods : A twelve- week, two-stage longitudinal questionnaire was administered to 416 adolescents (47.36% boys) and a cross-sectional questionnaire was administered to 675 adolescents (44.00% boys) using the Perceived Autonomy Support Scale in PE, the Exercise Identity Scale, and the Physical Activity Rating Scale. Results; For adolescents, there were significant gender differences in exercise identity and exercise behavior (higher for males than for females for each indicator), as well as significant differences in school interpersonal support, exercise identity, and exercise behavior (higher for middle school students than for high school students for each indicator). There were the transtemporal-stable significant positive correlations between interpersonal support of school, exercise identity, and exercise behavior for adolescent (p < .01). The cross-lagged analysis revealed that, for adolescents, the interpersonal support of school could predict exercise identity and exercise behavior unidirectionally; moreover, exercise identity could predict exercise behavior unidirectionally as well. Furthermore, this cross-lagged relationship had the characteristic of consistency with gender and learning phase. Cross-sectional analysis confirmed that exercise identity had a totally mediating effect when interpersonal support of school was affecting exercise behavior. Conclusion : Compared with female adolescents, males have a stronger sense of exercise identity and more positive exercise behavior. Moreover, compared with the high school students, the middle school students have stronger interpersonal support of school and the sense of exercise identity, and more positive exercise behavior. For adolescents, the interpersonal support of school, exercise identity and exercise behavior have the mutual causal relationships, in which the interpersonal support of school is the cause variable of exercise identity and exercise behavior, and exercise identity is the causal variable of exercise behavior. The interpersonal support of school can indirectly promote adolescents' exercise behavior by improving their exercise identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]