{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,11]],"date-time":"2026-09-11T05:07:52Z","timestamp":1789103272536,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":51,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,11]],"date-time":"2026-09-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1789084800000},"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>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Adolescent mental wellbeing is a pressing global concern. Physical literacy (PL) \u2014 the motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge, and understanding to value physical activity for life \u2014 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\u2013mental wellbeing relationship among adolescents.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A cross-sectional survey was conducted in November 2024 with 687 Chinese middle school students from Hubei Province (48.3% female; aged 12\u201316 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.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      The final analytical sample comprised 687 adolescents (48.3% female), who reported moderate levels of PL (\n                      <jats:italic>M<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 3.42, SD = 0.68), BPNS (\n                      <jats:italic>M<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 3.56, SD = 0.62), cognitive reappraisal (\n                      <jats:italic>M<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 4.52, SD = 1.08), and mental wellbeing (\n                      <jats:italic>M<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 3.51, SD = 0.71). PL was positively associated with mental wellbeing (\u03b2 = 0.38,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      &amp;lt; 0.001), the standardized total effect estimated in the structural equation model. The direct effect remained significant (\u03b2 = 0.14,\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      = 0.006). The chain mediation pathway \u2014 PL \u2192 BPNS \u2192 emotion regulation \u2192 mental wellbeing \u2014 was significant (indirect effect = 0.12, 95% CI [0.08, 0.17]), accounting for 31.6% of the total effect. Individual mediation paths through BPNS (indirect effect = 0.05, 95% CI [0.01, 0.09]) and emotion regulation (indirect effect = 0.07, 95% CI [0.04, 0.11]) were also significant. The model explained 42% of the variance in mental wellbeing.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>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.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1950111","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,11]],"date-time":"2026-09-11T04:35:51Z","timestamp":1789101351000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Physical literacy and adolescent mental well-being: A chain mediation of basic psychological needs satisfaction and emotion regulation"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Bing","family":"Zhang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Physical Education, Huanggang Normal University, Huanggang","place":["Hubei, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"497","DOI":"10.1037\/edu0000293","article-title":"Toward an integrative and fine-grained insight in motivating and demotivating teaching styles: The merits of a circumplex approach.","volume":"111","author":"Aelterman","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. 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