Does the Effect of Sports Participation on Subjective Well-Being Remain Stable During the COVID-19? National Panel Data from China

Abstract

Sports participation has a positive effect on subjective well-being (SWB); however, few studies have examined the stability of this effect. The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak compelled governments to enact lockdown policies to respond to this disaster briefly, causing a huge impact on the residents’ lifestyles. This study used the two data sets, the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) 2018 and CGSS 2021 (N= 14203), and utilized the unexpected shock of COVID-19 to explore whether the impact of sports participation on SWB had been weakened during COVID-19. The results demonstrated that factors such as sports participation, educational levels, and social capital that were more closely related to lifestyle and cultural shaping had a more stable effect on SWB. Factors such as household income and employment status, which were more closely related to material things, had a significantly weaker effect on SWB during the COVID-19 period. The sex difference in SWB disappeared during this period. The disappearance of sex differences in SWB is related to the different attitudes between men and women regarding the decline in income, based on some previous relevant research. Finally, the rationale for the stable performance of sports participation was analysed as follows: different motivations for sports participation would have different effects on SWB and individuals may adjust their motivation for participation according to different situations; therefore, the overall effect of sports participation on SWB will remain the same. The stable effect identified provides some impetus to public policy looking to promote well-being through sport, and provides a new research perspective on sports participation motivation. We appeal to the government to consider increasing residents’ opportunities for sports participation in possible future pandemics and lockdown policies.