Paniz Abadi, Rebecca Bassett-Gunter, Larkin Lamarche, Karl Erickson

University students frequently experience high levels of stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Yet despite its potential positive effects on mental health, physical activity involvement remains low, especially for individuals whose mental health conditions exacerbate problems, including low motivation, exhaustion, and time constraints. The proposed Movement Mentors for Mental Health program seeks to connect students seeking mental health support with trained peer mentors, who provide low-pressure support for physical activity participation. Since program effectiveness depends on alignment with mentee students’ needs and experiences, this study focuses on gathering potential mentees’ perspectives to influence program design. Guided by the COM-B behaviour-change model (Capability, Opportunity, Motivation → Behaviour), this study explores how students view movement as a mental health strategy, their readiness to participate in the program, and what internal and external factors shape participation. Undergraduate students referred by university counselling services will participate in semi-structured one-on-one interviews conducted via Zoom. With permission, interviews will be audio recorded, securely stored, transcribed using AI-assisted tools, and manually verified. Recurring patterns pertaining to (1) perceptions of movement-based support, (2) motivation and confidence, (3) obstacles and facilitators, and (4) peer mentorship will be identified using thematic analysis. As a work-in-progress, preliminary results will be presented. In addition to broader contributions to participatory health-promotion research and feasibility trials, anticipated contributions include student-informed insights into feasibility, acceptability, and readiness that will directly guide program structure and mentor training.