The Mediating Role of Psychological Resilience in the Effect of Academic Stress on Attitudes Toward Sport Among University Students

<title>Abstract</title> <p>Background University students may experience academic stress due to academic performance expectations, course workload, examination pressure, and uncertainty about the future. The association between academic stress and students' health-related lifestyle orientations can be examined through attitudes toward sport. Psychological resilience, defined by the capacity to maintain functioning and recover under stressful conditions, may serve as an explanatory variable in this association. This study tested the mediating role of psychological resilience in the effect of academic stress on attitudes toward sport among university students. Methods This cross-sectional correlational study included 391 university students selected through convenience sampling. Data were collected using a personal information form, the Educational Stress Scale, the Sport-Oriented Attitude Scale, and the Brief Resilience Scale. Descriptive statistics, Cronbach's alpha coefficients, Pearson correlation analysis, linear regression, and bootstrap-based mediation analysis were used. The mediation model was examined using IBM SPSS Statistics 27 and PROCESS macro 5.0 Model 4, and the indirect effect was calculated with 5,000 bootstrap samples. Results Academic stress, psychological resilience score, and attitude toward sport were positively and significantly correlated. Academic stress significantly predicted psychological resilience score (B = 0.164, β = 0.434, p &lt; 0.001). The total effect of academic stress on attitude toward sport was significant (B = 0.660, β = 0.371, p &lt; 0.001). When psychological resilience score was added to the model, both the direct effect of academic stress (B = 0.389, β = 0.219, p &lt; 0.001) and the effect of psychological resilience score (B = 1.649, β = 0.351, p &lt; 0.001) remained significant. The indirect effect was significant (B = 0.271, BootSE = 0.059, 95% BootCI [0.161, 0.390]). Conclusions Psychological resilience score partially mediated the association between academic stress and attitude toward sport. No causal inference was made because of the cross-sectional design. Examining academic stress and psychological resilience together may provide applicable evidence for student support programs aimed at attitudes toward sport among university students.</p>