Development and Evaluation of the PEAK Program: a Health Behaviour Change Intervention to Support University Students’ Mental and Cognitive Health through Physical Exercise

Many university students struggle with their mental health and thinking skills. Engaging in exercise can improve these difficulties, yet most students don’t exercise enough. This thesis investigated the barriers and facilitators to students’ engagement in exercise using behaviour change theories. These findings were used to develop the “PEAK Mood Mind and Marks program”, an exercise-based program to support students’ wellbeing and thinking skills. Co-design consultations with university students and leadership revealed a strong appetite for exercise-based programs to proactively support students wellbeing. An evaluation of PEAK demonstrated the program improved students’ mental health and thinking skills and identified areas to improve students' engagement in the program. These findings inform future efforts to create effective, engaging, and scalable exercise programs to improve the health and academic performance of students.