The use of internet language enhances creative performance

Determinants of Cognitive Performance in Children and Adolescents: A Populational Longitudinal Study

We evaluated the determinants of cognitive performance in children and adolescents. This is a longitudinal study, secondary analysis of the Physical Activity and Nutrition in Children (PANIC) study. We assessed 502 children (51.6% girls) at middle childhood (range: 6.6 to 9.0 years), at late childhood, 437 children (51.0% girls, range: 8.8 to 11.2 years), and in 277 adolescents (54.5% girls, range: 15.0 to 17.4 years). Raven's progressive matrices tests estimated the participants' cognitive performance (outcome variable) at all time points. In total, we evaluated 29 factors from various dimensions (prenatal, neonatal, child fitness, lifestyle and anthropometrics). None of the neonatal and anthropometric parameters were associated with cognitive performance. Preeclampsia (prenatal) and listening to music, writing, arts and craft and watching TV (lifestyle) were negatively associated with cognitive performance. Shuttle run and box and block tests (fitness), and playing music, reading and time at the computer (lifestyle) were positive determinants of cognitive performance in children and adolescents. Fitness and lifestyle factors during childhood and adolescence diminished the importance of prenatal factors on cognitive performance and lifestyle factors were especially relevant in regard to cognitive performance. Reading was positively associated with cognitive performance, regardless of age and time dedicated, and should be promoted.

Effects of Internet Language Related to COVID-19 on Mental Health in College Students: The Mediating Effect of Cognitive Flexibility

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Internet language (INL) has influenced daily life extensively. However, the process by which INL influences people's psychology and behavior is unclear. This study explored the effects of INL on mental health (anxiety and depression). A pilot study was conducted to develop a qualified scale for INL related to COVID-19 (CINL) in college students using an online questionnaire. The CINL scale was found to have two dimensions: frequency and comprehension, as well as good reliability and validity. A formal study explored the mediating effect of cognitive flexibility on the relationship between CINL and mental health. The results showed that CINL positively predicted mental health when it was mediated by cognitive flexibility. These results not only provide a new perspective on understanding the effects of cyber behavior on human mental health from a positive perspective, but also provide practitioners with new insights for interventions on college students' mental health.

Does Net-Speak Experience Interfere With the Processing of Standard Words? Evidence From Net-Speak Word Recognition and Semantic Decisions

The relationship between Chinese net-speak use and traditional literacy has rarely been discussed in the literature. In this study, we conducted two experiments to explore the effects of net-speak experience on word recognition and semantic decisions. A sample of senior middle school students was divided into a high-experience group and a low-experience group according to the students’ net-speak experience, and the Go/No-Go task (Experiment 1) was adopted to investigate the differences between the two groups in the recognition of pure net-speak words and standard words. The results showed that the response time (RT) of participants was longer for pure net-speak word recognition than for standard word recognition. In addition, for both types of words, the recognition RT of participants in the high-experience group was shorter than that of participants in the low-experience group, but the accuracy (ACC) of pure net-speak word recognition was higher. Taking dual semantic net-speak words with both net-speak meaning and traditional meaning as priming stimuli and standard words related to the two meanings as targets, a semantic decision task (Experiment 2) was used to explore the differences between the two groups in judgments of the semantic relationship between the target words and priming words. The results showed that the decision ACC of participants in the high-experience group for both kinds of meaning-related words was significantly higher than that of participants in the low-experience group. The decision RT of participants in the high-experience group was slightly shorter for net-speak meaning-related words than traditional meaning-related words. The decision RT and ACC of participants in the low-experience group for both kinds of meaning-related words were equivalent. This shows that for Chinese teenagers, net-speak use may not disturb the processing of standard words; on the contrary, it may enhance processing.