THE STUDY OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY BEHAVIOR OF STUDENTS OF THAILAND NATIONAL SPORTS UNIVERSITY CHIANG MAI CAMPUS

Abstract

The study, Physical Activity Behavioral Study of Thailand National Sports University (Chiang Mai Campus) undergraduates. It was the quantitative and qualitative research, aimed to study physical behavior in daily lives and obtain guidelines and suggestions for physical activity that would lead to a healthier behavior among the Thailand National Sports University Chiang Mai Campus undergraduates. The sample group comprised of 400 undergraduates (1^st year to 4^th year) of Thailand National Sports University (Chiang Mai Campus) of the Academic Year 2023 from three faculties, based on Taro Yamane’s formula (1973). The research tools were the questionnaire and interview form with Content Validity during 0.67-1.00 and Reliability as 0.97. The statistics for data analysis was Frequency, Percentage, Mean, Standard Deviation and Content Analysis

The study found that the physical behavior of the undergraduates in four aspects had an average rating, with a total average of 3.16. The highest-scoring aspect was sedentary behavior (sitting or lying down) with a high rating and average score of 3.62. A guideline for healthy physical behavior was lecturing the undergraduates, including into the university policy, arranging the university environment and facilities, and using social network/social media for exercise groups.

Suggestions were 1) insert physical activity sessions between lectures to exercise every 1-2 hours; 2) limit on the cell phone use of undergraduates to less than 2 hours a day; 3) promote appropriate workout programs of at least 60 minutes a day; 4) the university should examine factors in sedentary behavior of the undergraduates to plan physical activity sessions.