Abstract
BACKGROUND: Physical education in schools improves students' health, physical strength, and lifelong physical engagement. Therefore, participation must be encouraged. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between emotional responses and participation satisfaction, word-of-mouth (WOM) praise, and WOM activity in students participating in school sports. Few studies have considered WOM praise and activity separately. This study addresses this gap in the literature. METHODS: In 2023, a survey of total of 345 students in Gyeonggi-do, Korea, was conducted using convenience sampling. Data processing included factor analysis to verify validity and reliability, correlation analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling to test the hypotheses. RESULTS: The results confirmed a relationship between the emotional responses of students and satisfaction with participation. The emotional responses (ventilation [P<0.001], sense of dominance [P<0.001]) significantly affected participation satisfaction, and the latter had a possible causal relationship with WOM praise (P<0.001) and activity (P<0.001). CONCLUSION: The emotional responses of school sports participants were related to participation satisfaction, WOM praise, and WOM activity. Participation satisfaction significantly affected WOM praise and WOM activity. Therefore, to contribute to students' lifelong health, school sports programs should be developed and implemented to induce positive emotional responses, ensure students' participation in school sports, and improve their future quality of life.