The Role of Recreation Specialization and Self-Efficacy on Life Satisfaction: The Mediating Effect of Flow Experience

Haibo Tian, Wenting Zhou, Yajun Qiu and Zheng Zou
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Haibo Tian: School of Teacher Education, Shaoxing University, No. 508 Huan Cheng Xi Road, Yuecheng District, Shaoxing 312000, China
Wenting Zhou: Department of Physical Education, Zijingang Campus, College of Education, Zhejiang University, No. 388 Yu Hang Tang Road, Hangzhou 310058, China
Yajun Qiu: Department of Physical Education, Zijingang Campus, College of Education, Zhejiang University, No. 388 Yu Hang Tang Road, Hangzhou 310058, China
Zheng Zou: Department of Physical Education, Shenyang Polytechnic College, No. 32 Lao Dong Road, Shenyang 110045, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 6, 1-10

Abstract: Previous studies confirmed that leisure sport participation could contribute to people’s life satisfaction. However, little is known about the predictors of life satisfaction in the context of long-distance running. A model was proposed in this study to examine the relationship between recreation specialization, self-efficacy, flow experience, and life satisfaction. An online questionnaire was distributed to long-distance runners in China, and a total of 404 valid questionnaires were obtained for data analysis in this study. Results indicated that recreation specialization and self-efficacy had a direct and positive effect on runners’ flow experience; recreation specialization, self-efficacy, and flow experience were positively associated with runners’ life satisfaction. Furthermore, flow experience partially mediated the relationship between self-efficacy and life satisfaction, while it fully mediated the role of recreation specialization in life satisfaction. The findings shed some new insights for understanding the influence of leisure sport engagement on people’s life satisfaction.

Keywords: self-efficacy; recreation specialization; flow experience; life satisfaction; mediating effect (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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