Longitudinal Shifts in Movement Behaviors during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Relations to Posttraumatic Stress Disorder among University Students

Jie Feng, Patrick Wing Chung Lau, Lei Shi, Wendy Yajun Huang*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

    1 Citation (Scopus)

    Abstract

    This study examined the longitudinal changes of movement behaviors and their relationships with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among university students during the coronavirus disease 2019 in China. A total of 569 university students completed online surveys twice (Time 1: between December 2020 and January 2021; Time 2: between November and December 2021). Physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep duration and quality, as well as PTSD were self-reported. According to Canadian 24-h movement guidelines, the longitudinal shifts in each movement behavior from Time 1 to Time 2 were divided into four categories (consistently meeting the guidelines, from meeting to not meeting the guidelines, from not meeting to meeting the guidelines, and consistently not meeting the guidelines). Generalized linear mixed models were conducted using 410 valid responses (20.2 ± 1.0 years old at Time 2, 41.2% males). From Time 1 to Time 2, 22.2%, 2.0%, and 45.6% of the students consistently met the physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep guidelines, respectively. Compared to those who consistently met the sedentary behavior guideline, students who consistently failed to meet or changed from meeting to not meeting the guidelines had higher levels of PTSD. Students who had poor sleep quality at both time points or changed from good to bad sleep quality had higher levels of PTSD than those who maintained good sleep quality over time. Compared to those who consistently failed to meet the guideline, students who consistently met the PA guideline had higher levels of PTSD. These findings highlight the needs to improve and maintain healthy behaviors for mental health.

    Original languageEnglish
    Article number13449
    Number of pages12
    JournalInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
    Volume19
    Issue number20
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2 Oct 2022

    Scopus Subject Areas

    • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
    • Pollution
    • Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis

    User-Defined Keywords

    • COVID-19
    • physical activity
    • posttraumatic stress disorder
    • sedentary behavior
    • sleep
    • undergraduate

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