Group exercise and feeling part of a group identity provide multiple benefits that enhance both physical activity participation and overall well-being. Strong social identification with an exercise group is linked to greater exercise participation, higher satisfaction with exercise, stronger group cohesion, and improved life satisfaction (Stevens et al., 2018). Identity leadership by instructors fosters group identification and comfort, which in turn increases class attendance and effort during exercise (Steffens et al., 2019; Stevens et al., 2018; Stevens et al., 2020). Group membership also offers various forms of social support—emotional, informational, validation, instrumental, and companionship—that strengthen exercise identity and promote more physical activity, especially among women (Golaszewski et al., 2021). Beyond physical benefits, belonging to multiple social groups reduces anxiety and depression over time by providing psychological resources through social identities (Jetten et al., 2022; Grenier & Broucke, 2025; Sani et al., 2015). Overall, the sense of belonging to a group during exercise encourages sustained participation, better mental health, and healthier behaviors through shared norms and mutual support.
Golaszewski, N., LaCroix, A., Hooker, S., & Bartholomew, J. (2021). Group exercise membership is associated with forms of social support, exercise identity, and amount of physical activity. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 20, 630 - 643. https://doi.org/10.1080/1612197x.2021.1891121
Grenier, C., & Broucke, S. (2025). Multiple group identifications and physical activity: influence of norms. The European Journal of Public Health, 35. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckaf161.916
Jetten, J., Haslam, C., Von Hippel, C., Bentley, S., Cruwys, T., Steffens, N., & Haslam, S. (2022). "Let's get physical or social": The role of physical activity versus social group memberships in predicting depression and anxiety over time.. Journal of affective disorders. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2022.03.027
Sani, F., Madhok, V., Norbury, M., Dugard, P., & Wakefield, J. (2015). Greater number of group identifications is associated with healthier behaviour: Evidence from a Scottish community sample.. British journal of health psychology, 20 3, 466-81. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12119
Steffens, N., Slade, E., Stevens, M., Haslam, S., & Rees, T. (2019). Putting the ‘we’ into workout: The association of identity leadership with exercise class attendance and effort, and the mediating role of group identification and comfort. Psychology of Sport and Exercise. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2019.101544
Stevens, M., Rees, T., & Polman, R. (2018). Social identification, exercise participation, and positive exercise experiences: Evidence from parkrun. Journal of Sports Sciences, 37, 221 - 228. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2018.1489360
Stevens, M., Rees, T., Coffee, P., Haslam, S., Steffens, N., & Polman, R. (2018). Leaders promote attendance in sport and exercise sessions by fostering social identity. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 28, 2100 - 2108. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.13217
Stevens, M., Rees, T., Coffee, P., Steffens, N., Haslam, S., & Polman, R. (2020). Leading us to be active: A two-wave test of relationships between identity leadership, group identification, and attendance.. Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology, 9, 128-142. https://doi.org/10.1037/spy0000164