{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,18]],"date-time":"2026-05-18T05:06:27Z","timestamp":1779080787233,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":46,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,18]],"date-time":"2026-05-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779062400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Psychol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Objective<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Sleep problems are common among college students and represent an important public health concern. Previous studies have shown that physical activity is related to sleep quality. However, the psychological processes involved in this association are not fully understood. This study examined the association between physical activity level and sleep quality in college students and explored the sequential roles of rumination and emotion regulation strategies, including cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study adopted a cross-sectional design. Data were collected from college students using self-report questionnaires measuring physical activity, rumination, emotion regulation strategies, and sleep quality. Correlation analysis and structural equation modeling were conducted. Bootstrapping was used to test the proposed chain mediation model.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Physical activity level was significantly associated with sleep quality. Rumination significantly mediated this association. In addition, two sequential indirect pathways were significant: physical activity \u2192 rumination \u2192 cognitive reappraisal \u2192 sleep quality (effect = \u22120.003, 95% CI [\u22120.006, \u22120.001]) and physical activity \u2192 rumination \u2192 expressive suppression \u2192 sleep quality (effect = \u22120.003, 95% CI [\u22120.006, \u22120.001]). The total indirect effect was also significant (effect = \u22120.029, 95% CI [\u22120.035, \u22120.023]).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study provides an integrated view of how physical activity, rumination, and emotion regulation strategies are associated with sleep quality among college students. The findings highlight the importance of considering cognitive and emotional factors when examining sleep problems in this population. These results may inform physical activity\u2013based approaches to sleep and mental health promotion in university settings. Due to the cross-sectional design, future studies using longitudinal or intervention methods are needed to further examine these associations.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1835863","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,18]],"date-time":"2026-05-18T04:17:56Z","timestamp":1779077876000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Associations between physical activity and sleep quality among college students: the chain-mediating roles of rumination and emotion regulation strategies"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Yingying","family":"Gu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi","place":["Selangor, Malaysia"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Rui","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi","place":["Selangor, Malaysia"]},{"name":"Institute of Sports Science, Nantong University","place":["Nantong, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Jianqin","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Education School, Quanzhou Vocational and Technical University","place":["Quanzhou, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Jiameng","family":"Sun","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi","place":["Selangor, Malaysia"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Mohamad Nizam","family":"Nazarudin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Education, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi","place":["Selangor, Malaysia"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Wanning","family":"Zhu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Sports Institute, Chengdu University of Technology","place":["Chengdu, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,18]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e43595","DOI":"10.7759\/cureus.43595","article-title":"The effect of physical activity on sleep quality and sleep disorder: a systematic review.","volume":"15","author":"Alnawwar","year":"2023","journal-title":"Cureus"},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"265","DOI":"10.5935\/1984-0063.20190092","article-title":"Level of physical activity and sleep characteristics in university students.","volume":"12","author":"Arbinaga","year":"2019","journal-title":"Sleep Sci."},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"180","DOI":"10.1016\/j.sleep.2021.10.014","article-title":"Emotion coping strategies and dysfunctional sleep-related beliefs are associated with objective sleep problems in young adults with insomnia.","volume":"88","author":"Ballot","year":"2021","journal-title":"Sleep Med."},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/brainsci13111569","article-title":"The cognitive cost of repetitive thinking: a study on the effects of shifting and updating on rumination of emotional experiences.","volume":"13","author":"Battista","year":"2023","journal-title":"Brain Sci."},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.5267\/j.msl.2022.11.002","article-title":"Expressive suppression as an emotion regulation technique and its potential impact on perceived stress.","volume":"13","author":"Caramanica","year":"2023","journal-title":"Manage. 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