Effects of Exercise Intervention on Sleep Quality and Emotional Problems in College Students With Depressive Symptoms

NCT07738809 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 2026A137
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 80
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This exploratory randomized controlled trial aims to investigate the immediate and long-term effects of exercise on sleep quality, emotional problems, executive function, and neurophysiological characteristics in college students with depressive symptoms. The study consists of two sequential phases: an acute exercise experiment followed by an 8-week exercise intervention. Participants will be randomly assigned to either an exercise intervention group or a control group. Psychological questionnaires, behavioral tasks, resting-state electroencephalography (EEG), brain functional connectivity, and event-related potentials (ERP) will be assessed to evaluate behavioral and neurophysiological changes before and after exercise. The study will further examine whether the immediate response to acute exercise predicts the effectiveness of the long-term intervention.

Conditions

Depressive Symptoms; Sleep Disturbance

Keywords

Exercise; College Students; Depressive Symptoms; Sleep Quality; Electroencephalography; Brain Functional Connectivity; Event-Related Potentials; Executive Function; Randomized Controlled Trial

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Depressive symptoms measured by the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II)

  Depressive symptoms will be assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). Changes in depressive symptom severity following acute and long-term archery exercise interventions will be evaluated.

  Baseline, immediately after the acute exercise session, and after completion of the 8-week intervention.

• Sleep quality measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI)

  Sleep quality will be assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Changes in sleep quality after acute and long-term archery exercise interventions will be evaluated.

  Baseline, immediately after the acute exercise session, and after completion of the 8-week intervention.

• Resting-state EEG functional connectivity

  Resting-state EEG functional connectivity will be analyzed using phase synchronization metrics to evaluate neural changes associated with archery exercise interventions.

  Baseline, immediately after the acute exercise session, and after completion of the 8-week intervention.

Study Arms (2)

Archery Exercise Group

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants assigned to this group will first complete one supervised session of low-to-moderate intensity archery exercise and will subsequently participate in an 8-week regular archery exercise program. The acute exercise session consists of a 5-minute warm-up, 20 minutes of archery exercise, and a 5-minute cool-down. The 8-week intervention will be conducted three times per week, with at least 48 hours between sessions. Exercise intensity will be maintained at 50%-75% of age-predicted maximum heart rate and monitored using heart rate and ratings of perceived exertion. Psychological questionnaires, behavioral tasks, resting-state EEG, and task-related ERP assessments will be completed before and after the acute session and before and after the 8-week intervention.

Behavioral: Archery Exercise

Control Group

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants assigned to this group will complete an equal-duration seated rest or non-exercise control activity during the acute experiment. During the subsequent 8-week period, participants will maintain their usual lifestyle and attend the laboratory three times per week at the same scheduled times as the exercise group to complete 30 minutes of seated rest or another non-exercise control activity. Psychological questionnaires, behavioral tasks, resting-state EEG, and task-related ERP assessments will be completed at the same assessment time points as those in the archery exercise group.

Behavioral: Non-exercise Control

Interventions

Archery Exercise BEHAVIORAL

Participants perform a standardized archery exercise program consisting of an acute exercise session followed by an 8-week supervised training program. The acute session includes a 5-minute warm-up, 20 minutes of archery exercise, and a 5-minute cool-down. The long-term intervention is conducted three times per week for 8 weeks at moderate exercise intensity.

Archery Exercise Group

Non-exercise Control BEHAVIORAL

Participants continue their usual daily activities without participating in the archery exercise intervention.

Control Group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 23 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Aged 18-23 years.
• Right-handed.
• Non-physical education major.
• No history of psychiatric disorders and no current or previous use of psychotropic medications, hypnotics, or other medications affecting the central nervous system.
• No history of traumatic brain injury or chronic physical diseases.
• No contraindications to physical exercise.
• Participants with a Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) score \>13 will be classified as having depressive symptoms, whereas participants with a BDI-II score ≤13 will be classified as having no depressive symptoms.

You may not qualify if:

• Vigorous physical exercise, alcohol consumption, caffeine intake, or other stimulating behaviors within 24 hours before testing.
• Withdrawal from the study before completion of EEG recording or behavioral task assessments.
• Participants will be excluded from the final analysis if they fail to complete the required questionnaires or if the collected data do not meet predefined quality control criteria.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Capital University of Physical Education and Sports, China: lead

Study Sites (1)

Shanghai University of Sport

Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, China

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Depression; Parasomnias; Motor Activity; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior; Sleep Wake Disorders; Nervous System Diseases; Mental Disorders; Sleep Disorders, Intrinsic; Dyssomnias

Study Officials

• Yongguo Zhu, Professor

  Capital University of Physical Education and Sports

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Yongguo Zhu, Professor

CONTACT

+86 13811265116; zhuyongguo@cupes.edu.cn

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 28, 2026
• First Posted: July 31, 2026
• Study Start: August 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): November 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 30, 2026
• Last Updated: July 31, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

CN (1)