Investigation of Factors Influencing Sports Engagement and Physical Activities of Undergraduate Male Students in Saudi Arabian Context

Background and study aim: Engagement in sports activities seems to affect university students positively. Nevertheless, the Saudi Arabian academic context is experiencing a decrease in participation in such activities, leading to problems for the student population. Accordingly, students who engage less in sports activities select unhealthy lifestyles and harmful diets, affecting their academic performance. Besides, no comprehensive models are available to illustrate the influential factors on the participation of students in physical activities.

Material and methods: Thus, the present research examined the factors affecting the engagement of male students in physical activities in the academic context of Saudi Arabia. For this purpose, 643 students were examined to collect the required data. The partial least squares method was used to analyze data.

Results: The results of the study showed that all related variables could explain around 54% of the variance in participation in sport. These variables included financial support, human resources, sports policies, sports programs, social culture, sports facilities, as well as sports tools. The results, therefore, represent an acceptable and high predictive poser, while also indicating sports programs and financial support as the significant and influencing factors on the participation in sports activities. It can also reflect the motivation and tendency of university students to engage in physical activities and have higher participation levels when different sports programs are available to satisfy them.

Conclusions: Based on the results, sports programs and financial support were the most significant factors influencing participation in sports. University management and policymakers can use the proposed model along with the influential factors to gain a better understanding of the drivers resulting in participation in sports.