From scrolling to swinging: a chain mediation model of psychological needs, social media use, participation motivation, and behavioral intention in Chinese college pickleball players.

The present study explores the internal mechanism by which psychological needs are associated with college students' intention to play pickleball, focusing on the mediating roles of social media use and participation motivation. By integrating three theories-Self-Determination Theory (SDT), the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), and Uses and Gratifications Theory (UGT)-this paper aims to construct and test a chain mediation model. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey, based on stratified convenience sampling, was conducted among 1,992 college students from 12 universities in six provinces of China. The questionnaire contained four subscales: psychological needs (12 items), social media use (5 items), participation motivation (18 items), and behavioral intention (10 items). The hypothesized paths were tested with structural equation modeling (maximum-likelihood estimation) and bootstrap mediation analysis (5,000 resamples). In the simultaneous structural model, psychological needs were positively associated with behavioral intention (β = 0.205, p < 0.001), social media use (β = 0.596, p < 0.001), and participation motivation (β = 0.782, p < 0.001); social media use (β = 0.419, p < 0.001) and participation motivation (β = 0.355, p < 0.001) were also significant direct predictors of behavioral intention. Both mediators carried significant indirect effects, and the sequential chain path accounted for 5.2% of the total effect. The model explained 76.2% of the variance in behavioral intention. All nine hypotheses were empirically supported. Because diagnostic tests indicated substantial common-method variance, these associations should be interpreted with that qualification in mind. This research advances an integrated theoretical framework linking psychological needs, digital engagement, and sport participation intention, and provides practical implications for sports marketers, campus administrators, and policy makers seeking to promote emerging leisure sports through social media.