A Longitudinal Study on Body Image, Psychosocial Factors, and Regular Exercise Behavior among Students of Two Junior High Schools in Taipei City

[[abstract]]This study investigated the influence of individual variables, body image, and psychosocial factors on regular exercise behavior using a longitudinal design. Two hundred and eight grade 8 students of 6 classes in 2 Taipei middle schools were randomly selected. In two consecutive years, 185 valid samples provided valid data with a self-administered questionnaire. Data were analyzed with logistic regression. Overall, the results indicated that： 1、63.8％ of the subjects did regular exercise when they were eighth graders. 58.4% of the subjects did regular exercise when they were ninth graders. Male’s regular exercise rate was higher then female’s. 2、The levels of seven dimensions of body image were positive. Among these seven dimensions, health orientation was the highest, and appearance evaluation was the lowest. 3、The perceived benefits for exercise and sport enjoyment were high. The perceived barriers for exercise were in average level but self-efficacy and social support for exercise were low. 4、Past exercise behavior, appearance evaluation, physical evaluation, self-efficacy, and peer support would influence regular exercise behavior of the ninth graders. It was suggested that develop regular exercise behavior in an early age, establish positive body image and social support for exercise to promote regular exercise behavior of middle school students.