Physical activity is associated with depression and self-esteem levels among Omani female children

Background: While the message springing from exercise; physiological research has eulogized its advantages in general in terms of physical health, the equivalent psychological literature has revealed a more complex relation; hence a scientific argument still existed. Objectives: The purpose of the study was to identify the level of self-esteem and depression of the Omani female due to the need for greater understanding on the relationship between self-esteem, depression and physical activity. Subjects and Methods: Self-esteem and Arab List of child depression validated questionnaires tool were used by 165 Omani females with ages ranging between 10 to 13 years old. The reliability test-retest was established using Cronbach’s alpha to determine the internal consistency or average correlation of items in our survey instrument to gauge its reliability. For the 165 females, the scores were 0.82, and 0.88 indicating an appropriate degree of internal consistency for both instruments respectively. Results: The descriptive statistics indicate that 32% of the study sample never exercised, 41% exercised but at low rates, and 27% of them exercised regularly. ANOVA, post hoc, and Pearson correlation-coefficient were used and indicated that female actively linked with PA ought to mental health improvement, physical self-perception which may lead to high self-esteem and low depression and vice versa. Conclusion: Engagement in regular physical activity can lead to an increased level of self-esteem among teenage Omani girls reducing negative emotions that may haunt in such a critical stage of age and thus prevent of symptoms of depression.