Associations among Physical Fitness, Self-Regulatory Fatigue, Social Support, and Self-Acceptance in College Students

Background Self-acceptance is an important indicator of college students’ mental health and psychosocial adaptation. This study examined how social support, self-regulatory fatigue, and physical fitness are associated with self-acceptance. Methods A total of 932 college students were assessed using the Self-Acceptance Questionnaire, the Chinese Self-Regulatory Fatigue Scale, the College Students Social Support Rating Scale, and standardized physical fitness test scores. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, psychological network analysis, multiple regression, and exploratory serial mediation analysis were conducted. Results Self-regulatory fatigue negatively predicted self-acceptance (β = -0.595, p < .001), whereas social support positively predicted self-acceptance (β = 0.135, p < .001). Long-distance running performance was a weak but significant positive predictor (β = 0.057, p = .032). The regression model explained 44.8% of the variance in self-acceptance. Network analysis identified emotional fatigue and social support dimensions as central nodes, while self-acceptance and cognitive fatigue showed important bridge roles. Exploratory mediation analysis showed that social support was directly associated with self-acceptance and indirectly associated with self-acceptance mainly through self-regulatory fatigue. The serial pathway through self-regulatory fatigue and long-distance running performance was statistically significant but very small. Conclusion College students’ self-acceptance is jointly associated with social support, self-regulatory fatigue, and endurance-related physical fitness. Interventions should integrate social support enhancement, fatigue regulation, and physical fitness promotion.