J. Hum. Ins. 2022; 6(3): 01-06 |1 Journal of Humanities Insights 6(2): 32-39, 2022 Research Paper Effects of Physical Activity on Wellbeing among Children with ADHD: A Mediation by Self-Esteem Fourogh Shafaeian Fard a* , Tayebeh Baniasadi b , Tina Soltan Ahmadi c , Pouya Biyabani d , Sedigheh Khajeaflaton Mofrad e a M.A Student, Iran. b Visiting Scholar, Indiana University, School of Public Health, Department of Kinesiology, USA. c Department of Physical Education, Gorgan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Gorgan, Iran. d Department of Physical Education, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. e Department of Physical Education, Farhangian University, Gorgan, Iran. Received: 18 June 2022 Accepted: 14 August 2022 Published: 06 September 2022 Abstract It has been shown that physical activity positively affects wellbeing of children and adolescents. However, this issue has rarely been investigated among special groups such as ADHD. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of physical activity level on physical and psychological wellbeing of children with ADHD with the mediating role of self-esteem. Children aged 9 to 11 years old attended in special school for children with ADHD participated in this study. Physical activity, wellbeing, and self-esteem were measured by using standard questionnaires. Structural equation modelling was used to analyze data. On average, level of children’ physical activity, wellbeing, and self-esteem were lower than the average. Physical activity positively affected physical and psychological wellbeing as well as self-esteem among children with ADHD. Moreover, self-esteem can be considered as a plausible mechanism for the relationship between physical activity and wellbeing. These findings, together, indicate that physical activity and wellbeing are critical concerns for children with ADHD. Accordingly, it is necessary to adopt appropriate strategies to increase the level of physical activity among children with ADHD. Keywords: ADHD, physical activity, wellbeing, self-esteem. How to cite the article: F. Shafaeian Fard, T. Baniasadi, T. Soltan Ahmadi, P. Biyabani, S. Khajeaflaton Mofrad, Effects of Physical Activity on Wellbeing among Children with ADHD: A Mediation by Self-Esteem, J. Hum. Ins. 2022; 6(3): 01-06. DOI: 10.22034/JHI.2022.330605.1056 ©2022 The Authors. This is an open access article under the CC By license 1. Introduction Physical activity is defined as any voluntary bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure (World Health Organization, 2020). It has been shown that regular physical activity has immediate and long-term health benefits. It can improve health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. In addition, * Corresponding Author: Forough.arc.eng@gmail.com regular physical activity can improve mental health and quality of life (Basterfield et al. 2021; Lahart et al. 2019; Schwartz et al. 2019; Tremblay et al. 2011; Wafa et al. 2016; Zhang et al. 2021). Thus, to maintain health and reduce risk of health problems, World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommends that all people should engage in at least 60 minutes of daily moderate-to-vigorous-intensity (MVPA) physical activity across the week (World Health Journal of Humanities Insights 6(3): 01-06, 2022