Physical Activity and Self-Determination towards Exercise among Esports Athletes

Esports is competitive video gaming, performed within teams or individually, across multiple genres. Players are required to be sedentary for extended periods and require a high-level of cognitive skills for successful competitive performance. There are conflicting findings within the physical activity research in the esports industry. The aim of this research is to explore self-reported physical activity through accelerometer-assessed physical activity, to gain a better insight into the physical activity behaviours of international e’athletes. Participants (n = 796) across multiple popular esports games, holding any in-game rank, competing at any level, were recruited. The survey consisted of demographic details, esports experience, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Long Form (IPAQ-LF), and Behavioural Regulations towards Exercise Questionnaire (BREQ-3). Within a convenience sample, local intervarsity e’athletes (n = 18) were recruited to wear a wrist-worn accelerometer to measure physical activity for 7-days and then complete the survey. Results from the accelerometers were compared to the survey results to explore physical activity reporting within this population. When comparing IPAQ-LF to accelerometer data, players significantly over-report moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and weekly MET-min− 1 (p = .018, r = .63 and p ≤ .001, r = .92). The BREQ-3 showed that e’athletes categorised as high physical activity displayed significantly higher levels of intrinsic motivation, when compared to players categorised as low and moderate physical activity. E’athletes significantly over report physical activity time when measured through the IPAQ-LF, suggesting previous surveys may overestimate physical activity and further research is needed. Given the exponential growth of the industry and the level of physical inactivity, esports may contribute to global physical inactivity levels. Despite in-game rank not influencing physical activity time or motivation, higher levels of intrinsic motivation were associated with increased physical activity among e’athletes. This suggests the importance of fostering intrinsic motivation to promote sustained engagement in physical activity within esports communities. The study reveals concerning levels of sedentary behaviour among e’athletes, with implications for their overall health and well-being. Addressing sedentary behaviour and promoting light physical activity are crucial for mitigating associated health risks within the esports population. The study highlights significant disparities between self-reported physical activity data and accelerometer-assessed data among e’athletes, indicating potential over-estimation of physical activity levels when self-reported.