20.500.12556/RUP-23122 Physical activity, body appreciation, and perceived stress in relation to life satisfaction among university students first_pagesettingsOrder Article Reprints Open AccessArticle Physical Activity, Body Appreciation, and Perceived Stress in Relation to Life Satisfaction Among University Students by Vojko Vučković 1,*ORCID,Tanja Kajtna 1ORCID andKlemen Širok 2ORCID 1 Faculty of Sport, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia 2 Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Primorska, 6310 Izola, Slovenia * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Healthcare 2026, 14(11), 1572; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14111572 Submission received: 31 March 2026 / Revised: 29 May 2026 / Accepted: 2 June 2026 / Published: 4 June 2026 (This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Physical Activity and Sports in Enhancing Psychological Well-Being and Quality of Life) Downloadkeyboard_arrow_down Versions Notes Abstract Background: University students experience increased psychological distress during academic transitions, yet modifiable lifestyle determinants of their subjective well-being remain incompletely understood within integrated analytical frameworks. Methods: A cross-sectional survey (N = 194 undergraduates; 52.6% women; M age = 21.9 years) used validated instruments: the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), Body Appreciation Scale-2 Short Form (BAS-2SF), Brief Resilience Scale (BRS), International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and single-item measures of financial security and screen time. Physical activity (PA) was log-transformed (MET_log). Multiple simultaneous regression and structural equation modelling (SEM) were conducted. Results: Perceived stress was the strongest negative predictor of life satisfaction (B = −0.561, p < 0.001), while financial security was a significant positive predictor (B = +0.171, p = 0.023). SEM showed that body appreciation was associated with life satisfaction primarily through lower perceived stress (indirect effect = 0.107; consistent with indirect-only association pattern), while PA showed a significant direct association with life satisfaction (β = +0.143, p = 0.030), independent of the stress pathway. The indirect effect of PA via stress was not significant in the SEM. Model fit was acceptable (CFI = 0.951; RMSEA = 0.067). Conclusions: Perceived stress was statistically associated with the relationship between body appreciation and subjective well-being, while PA showed a direct statistical association with well-being that was independent of the stress pathway. Given the cross-sectional nature of this study, these findings suggest that university health promotion programmes may consider integrating positive body image and stress management components alongside PA promotion to support student psychological well-being. physical activity life satisfaction perceived stress body appreciation university students structural equation modelling well-being telesna dejavnost zadovoljstvo z življenjem zaznani stres sprejemanje telesa študenti modeliranje strukturnih enačb blagostanje true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2026-06-07 16:14:34 2026-06-07 16:14:35 2026-06-08 03:08:04 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 str. 1-12 iss. 11, [article no.] 1572 Vol. 14 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova Objavljeno NiDoloceno 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 2026-06-04 796.07:159.923.2 2227-9032 10.3390/healthcare14111572 280715523 https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/14/11/1572 1 1342798f-627b-11f1-9e8d-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=33785 https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14111572 1 13c7b409-627b-11f1-9e8d-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=33786 RAZ_Vuckovic_Vojko_2026.pdf RAZ_Vuckovic_Vojko_2026.pdf 1 1492788282B5EF7F6066CDDD690F0F03 1c4bdd02c929e1bdd427c7fed9d85253e6791f02224ab536a1d2512061e10202 2c1e0046-627b-11f1-9e8d-005056ac49c0 https://repozitorij.upr.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=33787 Fakulteta za vede o zdravju 0 0 0