The effect of exercise on self-esteem and happiness of operating room students

Objective: Physical activity increases mental health, enhances feelings of worth, reduces depression, and increases mental strength. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of exercise on self-esteem and happiness of operating room students. Methods: This research is a quasi-experimental study. Participants were 80 undergraduate students in the operating room of Arak University of Medical Sciences who, after obtaining written consent, were selected by convenience sampling method and randomly divided into two experimental and control groups (40 people in each group). The experimental group had 30 minutes of individual walking per day for eight weeks. Self-Esteem and happiness of both groups were measured before and after the intervention using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Questionnaire and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using independent t-test and paired t-test in SPSS v.16 software. Results: The mean scores of self-esteem and happiness before the intervention in the experimental group were 3 ±4.23 and 43.08±19.01, respectively, and in the control group were 3.47±4.30 and 39.40±19.48 and after the intervention in the experimental group were 6 ± 3.85 and 52.16±19.28 and in the control group were 3.97±4.75 and 41.05±18.80. The results showed a significant difference in the experimental group (P <0.05), while in the control group, no significant difference was observed before and after the intervention (P> 0.05). Conclusion: Exercise can play an effective role in increasing students' self-esteem and happiness, thereby promoting their mental health and improving their quality of life. Therefore, it is recommended that sports programs be held at the university in order to promote happiness and increase students' self-esteem..