Mass media pressure on psychological and healthy well‑being. An explanatory model as a function of physical activity

Abstract

Objectives The present research aims to identify and establish the relationships between media pressure, psychological wellbeing, age, physical activity and adherence to the Mediterranean diet. This objective is broken down into (a) developing an explanatory model of media pressure, psychological well-being, age, physical activity and adherence to the Mediterranean diet and (b) testing the structural model by means of a multi-group analysis according to physical activity level. Material and methods To this end, a quantitative, non-experimental (ex post facto), comparative and cross-sectional study was carried out on a sample of 634 participants (35.18 ± 9.68). The instruments used were an ad hoc questionnaire, the Spanish version of Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-4 (SATAQ-4), the Psychological Well-Being Scales (PWBS) and the Prevention with Mediterranean Diet (PREDIMED). Conclusions The data reveal that meeting the WHO physical activity criteria improves the relationships between media pressure, psychological well-being and healthy well-being.