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The Relationship between Stress, Leisure Time Vigorous Physical Activity and Depressive Symptoms in Adolescents

Unni K. Moksnes, Monica Lillefjell and Geir A. Espnes

Background: This study investigated the association between stress, leisure-time vigorous physical activity
(LVPA) and depressive symptoms in adolescents 13-18 years. The stress moderating role of LVPA was also
investigated. Clarification of the role of physical activity in relation to stress and mental health can be used to form
health promoting interventions to strengthen adolescent development.
Methods: The sample consisted of n = 1183 students from public schools in Mid-Norway (age groups: 13–14
years, 15–16 years and 17–18 years). The adolescents reported scores on the Adolescent Stress Questionnaire
(ASQ), a scale assessing non-clinical depressive symptoms and one item assessing frequency of LVPA.
Results: Boys` mean scores on LVPA increased with age, whereas girls’ scores remained stable across the
age groups. A significant association was found between increasing stress related to stress of peer pressure, school
attendance, and school performance and depressive symptoms for both boys and girls. For girls, stress of home
life was additionally significantly associated with depressive symptoms. In sum, the stress domains explained 42%
of the variance in depressive symptoms for girls and 28% of the variance for boys. LVPA did not show a significant
association with depressive symptoms for either boys or girls. A stress protective role of high LVPA was found for
boys in relation to stress of peer pressure, teacher/adult interaction and school performance. In girls, a significant
stress protective effect of high LVPA was found in relation to stress of home life and peer pressure.
Conclusion: The results show that the stress explained most of the variance in depressive symptoms in both
genders, whereas LVPA had a limited role. Results encourage a search for further knowledge about the association
between domain specific stress, LVPA and depressive symptoms and the development of interventions itself is
needed targeting stress related problems.