Abstract
<jats:p>Background and Purpose Tennis skill acquisition in university students is influenced not only by technical practice but also by psychological and social factors that may enhance learning efficiency. However, experimental evidence examining the causal effects of exercise motivation, social support, and self-confidence on tennis performance remains limited, particularly in Southeast Asian higher education settings. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the independent and combined effects of these three factors on tennis skill acquisition among Indonesian university students. Materials and Methods A randomized pretest–posttest experimental design was employed involving 80 undergraduate students (aged 18–24 years) recruited from universities in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Participants were randomly assigned to five groups: control, motivation intervention, social support intervention, self-confidence intervention, and combined intervention. All groups completed standardized tennis training three times weekly for eight weeks. Tennis skill acquisition was assessed using a composite battery consisting of forehand accuracy, backhand consistency, serve accuracy, footwork agility, and rally control. Psychological variables were measured using validated questionnaires. Data were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA, Bonferroni post hoc tests, and multiple regression analysis (p < 0.05). Results All groups demonstrated significant improvement over time (time effect: F = 74.61, p < 0.001). Significant between-group differences were also observed (group effect: F = 5.87, p = 0.001), with a significant time × group interaction (F = 6.94, p < 0.001). The combined intervention group showed the greatest numerical improvement (+28.77%), followed by the self-confidence (+23.32%), motivation (+19.25%), social support (+13.71%), and control groups (+7.59%). Post hoc analysis indicated that the combined group significantly outperformed the control and social support groups, while the self-confidence group also performed significantly better than the control group. Regression analysis revealed that changes in self-confidence (β = 0.37, p = 0.001) and motivation (β = 0.24, p = 0.033) significantly predicted final tennis skill scores, whereas social support was not an independent predictor (β = 0.11, p = 0.231). Conclusions Psychological interventions meaningfully enhance tennis skill acquisition beyond standard technical training among Indonesian university students. Self-confidence appears to be the strongest contributor to performance improvement, followed by exercise motivation. Although social support showed weaker direct effects, integrated multicomponent interventions yielded the highest overall gains. University tennis programs should therefore incorporate psychological skill development alongside technical instruction to optimize student learning outcomes.</jats:p>