Beyond a one-size-fits-all approach: the asymmetrical roles of personality and social support in promoting outdoor physical activity.
Recognizing outdoor exercise enjoyment as a vital protective factor for public mental health, this study constructed a moderated mediation model to examine the associations between personality traits (specifically extraversion and neuroticism) and outdoor exercise enjoyment. The investigation focused on the dual mediating roles of basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration. Furthermore, it explored the boundary conditions of social support to determine how environmental factors interact with individual dispositions.
A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 527 outdoor exercise participants in first-tier cities in China. Moderated mediation models were examined for both extraversion and neuroticism to enjoyment through basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration, as well as to determine the moderation of social support on this relationship.
Evidence to support an asymmetrical dual mediation mechanism was confirmed; extraversion largely supported enjoyment through psychological need satisfaction, while neuroticism detracted from enjoyment primarily through psychological need frustration. Social support demonstrated complicated moderation patterns; social support strengthened the positive social association of extraversion with psychological need satisfaction (a gain dynamic), yet, in the neuroticism group we observed a paradox. Specifically, while high social support did buffer against the detriment of neuroticism on psychological need satisfaction, it increased the positive association of neuroticism and psychological need frustration.
Social support is not an absolute remedy, but is conditional on personality traits and can be a stressor under certain conditions. By delineating these boundaries within the Person-Environment Fit framework, this study highlights the necessity for differentiated intervention strategies. We propose different intervention approaches: strengthening social connections for extraverted individuals, and providing non-judgmental non-invasive support for neurotic individuals to break the frustration link, thereby informing targeted public mental health services and mitigating psychological distress.
A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 527 outdoor exercise participants in first-tier cities in China. Moderated mediation models were examined for both extraversion and neuroticism to enjoyment through basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration, as well as to determine the moderation of social support on this relationship.
Evidence to support an asymmetrical dual mediation mechanism was confirmed; extraversion largely supported enjoyment through psychological need satisfaction, while neuroticism detracted from enjoyment primarily through psychological need frustration. Social support demonstrated complicated moderation patterns; social support strengthened the positive social association of extraversion with psychological need satisfaction (a gain dynamic), yet, in the neuroticism group we observed a paradox. Specifically, while high social support did buffer against the detriment of neuroticism on psychological need satisfaction, it increased the positive association of neuroticism and psychological need frustration.
Social support is not an absolute remedy, but is conditional on personality traits and can be a stressor under certain conditions. By delineating these boundaries within the Person-Environment Fit framework, this study highlights the necessity for differentiated intervention strategies. We propose different intervention approaches: strengthening social connections for extraverted individuals, and providing non-judgmental non-invasive support for neurotic individuals to break the frustration link, thereby informing targeted public mental health services and mitigating psychological distress.