The Level of Anxiety among Medical University Students with Physical Activity of Different Intensity

Abstract

Introduction: High standards are set for university students in the learning process while young people are not always psy- chologically and emotionally ready to comply with such requirements. New living conditions, difficulties of higher education, and/or the forthcoming examination period can suppress adaptive capabilities and cause stress and anxiety in students.Objective: To compare the levels of situational and personal anxiety in medical university students having different intensityof physical activity. Materials and methods: The study involved 684 medical students (30.7 % of boys and 69.3 % of girls) aged 18 to 25 years. Based on the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) and in accordance with the metabolic equivalent of task (MET) indicators, all students were divided into three groups by their physical activity intensity (low (1), moderate (2), and high (3)). The level of situational and personal anxiety was assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, a 40-item self-completed questionnaire, developed by Charles D. Spielberger and adapted by Yuri L. Hanin. Results: We established a higher level of situational anxiety in students with low physical activity compared to those with high intensity (42.18 ± 3.67 against 31.29 ± 3.45 points, respectively, p < 0.05). Similar results were obtained in groups 1 and 3 for personal anxiety (47.69 ± 3.71 against 33.30 ± 3.50 points, p < 0.01). The sex-specific analysis of average levels of situational and personal anxiety in group 2 showed higher personal anxiety in young women than in men (48.14 ± 3.81 against 36.06 ± 3.49 points, respectively, p < 0.05). Conclusions: Our findings demonstrated a statistically significant inverse correlation between the levels of both situational and personal anxiety and the intensity of physical activity among the medical university students.