Effects of Physical Activity Interventions on Physical Self-Perception in College Students: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Background: Although the physical activities have demonstrated efficacy in improving physical self-perception, the findings of available studies in college students were conflicting. This review aimed to examine the effects of physical activity interventions on physical self-perception in college students. Methods: Web of Science, PubMed, Cochrane Library, EBSCOhost, Embase, Scopus, CNKI, WanFang, and Chinese Technical Periodicals were searched from inception to April 2024. Studies were included if they were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or non-RCTs (non-RCTs) that examined the effects of physical activity interventions on college students’ physical self-perception. Random-effects models were used in meta-analyses to synthesize effect sizes. Results: Forty studies (17 RCTs and 23 non-RCTs) with 4955 participants were included in this meta-analysis. Overall, physical activity interventions had small to moderate significant effect on physical self-worth (standardized mean difference [SMD] = 0.44, P < .00001), perceived sports competence (SMD = 0.60, P < .00001), perceived physical condition (SMD = 0.45, P < .00001), perceived physical strength (SMD = 0.53, P < .00001), and perceived body attractiveness (SMD = 0.54, P < .00001). Significant differences were observed in study design (P = .031–.039), intervention type (P = .003–.031), and intervention duration (P = .002–.036) for some aspects of physical self-perception, such as perceived physical strength and perceived body attractiveness. Conclusions: Physical activity interventions have beneficial effects on physical self-perception in college students, especially those conducted for 12 weeks, 3 times or more per week, lasting 90 minutes or more per session. Large, high-quality RCTs are required to further confirm these findings.