JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

eHealth literacy was used to evaluate skills in finding, accessing, and using health information online to enhance one’s level of knowledge, competence, and behavior toward a healthy lifestyle. Previous studies have shown that promoting eHealth literacy can facilitate individuals’ health behaviors, such as physical activity (PA). Physical literacy (PL) involves the capacity to cultivate long-term habits of PA, considering multiple dimensions of the individual as a whole. Especially, college students are becoming less physically active with low PL. However, few studies have explored how eHealth literacy is related to PL among college students, and it is unclear whether PA mediates the effect of eHealth literacy and PL.

Objective:

To examine the relationship between eHealth literacy, physical literacy, and physical activity among Chinese college students.

Methods:

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1210 college students from three Chinese universities in February 2022. Perceived physical literacy instruments (PPLs), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), and the Chinese version of the eHealth Literacy Scale (C-eHEALS) were used. The relationship between eHealth literacy, PA, and PL was examined using Pearson's product-moment correlation and multiple linear regression. Mediation models were utilized to investigate the relationship between the three concepts.

Results:

The study was conducted with a response rate of 93%. In the mediation model, the direct effect of eHealth literacy on PL was 0.78 (β = 0.75, SE=0.02, p < .001), which was found to be statistically significant. Moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) represents 2.16% of the total effect, indicating a partial mediating effect of MVPA on the relationship between eHealth literacy and PL. Moreover, compared to medical students, sports science students have higher eHealth literacy (t181=2.33, p <.05), and better PL (t181=4.89, p <.001). In terms of MVPA (t636=4.94, p <.001) and PL (t636=3.18, p <.001), male college students performed better than females; however, there was no significant difference in eHealth literacy (t636=1.23, p >.05).

Conclusions:

This study showed that MVPA was a mediating factor for college students’ eHealth literacy and PL. It is reasonable to assume that students who lack eHealth literacy or those with limited PA are more likely to not be physically literate. Thus, eHealth literacy can play a significant role in PL and PA when implementing PL-related interventions. Additionally, this study demonstrated that medical students performed worse in eHealth literacy, PL, and PA. PA was more prevalent among male college students, and they also possessed greater PL than women. Thus, it would be beneficial for medical students and female students to have more tailored health education programs at the university to improve their eHealth literacy and PA. Clinical Trial: No.EDU2022-069