Mobile phone dependency and adolescent exercise participation: a CB-SEM and fsQCA study on the roles of self-control, time management, and health awareness.

Objective: The study examined how mobile phone dependency (MPD) is linked to adolescents' engagement in structured exercise and whether this association operates through three theoretically derived mechanisms-self-control (SC), time management (TM), and health awareness (HA). A complementary configurational analysis explored alternative combinations of these factors that lead to high or low exercise participation.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to 1,404 Chinese students in Grades 5-9 (49.6% girls; 51% rural). Standardized scales assessed MPD, SC, TM, HA, and adolescent exercise participation (AEP). Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) estimated direct and mediated effects; bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals tested indirect paths. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) identified sufficient configurations of conditions for high and non-high AEP and assessed robustness across calibration thresholds.

Results: The SEM model exhibited excellent fit ( /df = 2.723, CFI = 0.979, TLI = 0.975, SRMR = 0.036, RMSEA = 0.035, 90% CI [0.031, 0.039]). MPD showed a significant total effect on AEP ( = -0.61,  < 0.001), of which 83.5% was transmitted through the three hypothesized mediators. Among single mediators, HA accounted for the largest share of the indirect effect ( = -0.15), followed by SC ( = -0.12) and TM ( = -0.03). Three two-step and one three-step chained paths were also significant ( < 0.01). FsQCA revealed three sufficient configurations for high AEP: (a) low MPD + high SC + high HA, (b) low MPD + high TM + high HA, and (c) high SC + high TM + high HA irrespective of MPD. One configuration-high MPD combined with low SC, TM, and HA-was sufficient for non-high AEP. All solutions were robust to parameter changes.

Conclusion: Mobile phone dependency undermines adolescent exercise primarily by eroding self-regulatory capacity, disrupting time structure, and diminishing health motivation. Nonetheless, strong personal resources can offset the risks of heavy phone use. Interventions should therefore adopt a dual focus: curbing excessive smartphone use while simultaneously enhancing self-control, time-management skills, and health awareness to sustain youths' exercise involvement.