Cognition and Academic Performance: Mediating Role of Personality Characteristics and Psychology Health

Breakfast Skipping: Influencing Factors and its Impact on Cognitive Function and Academic Performance among Malaysian University Students

Breakfast skipping has been linked to impaired brain function and reduced information processing. While previous studies have focused on its association with academic performance among school children, other important factors, such as cognitive aspects, have received limited attention. Breakfast is the most frequently skipped meal among university students, however, its prevalence and the impact on cognitive performance among university students remain unclear. This study aims to determine the prevalence of breakfast skipping, factors associated with breakfast skipping, and the association of breakfast skipping with cognitive function and academic performance among Malaysian university students. A cross-sectional study was conducted, and 298 foundation and undergraduate students were recruited via convenience sampling. A questionnaire was used to determine sociodemographic, anthropometry data and breakfast consumption habits. Cognitive function was assessed using the location learning test, Digit Symbol Substitution Test and Stroop Test. Academic performance was assessed based on the latest examination grades. Binary logistic regression was performed to determine predictors of breakfast skipping. The prevalence of breakfast skipping among university students was 67.3%. Factors that were significantly associated with breakfast skipping were faculty, parents' education levels, and living status. Students majoring in Arts and Social Sciences were more likely to skip breakfast (AOR = 2.196, 95% CI = 1.310-3.680, p = .003) while lower odds of breakfast skipping were found among students with parents who had higher education levels (AOR = 0.489, 95% CI = 0.245-0.974, p = .042) and students who lived with their parents at home (AOR = 0.513, 95% CI = 0.305-0.861, p = .012). Breakfast skipping was significantly associated with lower academic performance, poorer memory, lower attention and reaction times in executive function. Breakfast skipping has been identified as an urgent public health issue that demands swift intervention strategies from policy makers and university management to promote healthy breakfast habits among university students.

Interplay of polygenic liability with birth-related, somatic, and psychosocial factors in anorexia nervosa risk: a nationwide study

BACKGROUND

Although several types of risk factors for anorexia nervosa (AN) have been identified, including birth-related factors, somatic, and psychosocial risk factors, their interplay with genetic susceptibility remains unclear. Genetic and epidemiological interplay in AN risk were examined using data from Danish nationwide registers. AN polygenic risk score (PRS) and risk factor associations, confounding from AN PRS and/or parental psychiatric history on the association between the risk factors and AN risk, and interactions between AN PRS and each level of target risk factor on AN risk were estimated.

METHODS

Participants were individuals born in Denmark between 1981 and 2008 including nationwide-representative data from the iPSYCH2015, and Danish AN cases from the Anorexia Nervosa Genetics Initiative and Eating Disorder Genetics Initiative cohorts. A total of 7003 individuals with AN and 45 229 individuals without a registered AN diagnosis were included. We included 22 AN risk factors from Danish registers.

RESULTS

Risk factors showing association with PRS for AN included urbanicity, parental ages, genitourinary tract infection, and parental socioeconomic factors. Risk factors showed the expected association to AN risk, and this association was only slightly attenuated when adjusted for parental history of psychiatric disorders or/and for the AN PRS. The interaction analyses revealed a differential effect of AN PRS according to the level of the following risk factors: sex, maternal age, genitourinary tract infection, C-section, parental socioeconomic factors and psychiatric history.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings provide evidence for interactions between AN PRS and certain risk-factors, illustrating potential diverse risk pathways to AN diagnosis.

Formulated Palmitoylethanolamide Supplementation Improves Parameters of Cognitive Function and BDNF Levels in Young, Healthy Adults: A Randomised Cross-Over Trial

BACKGROUND

Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) is an endocannabinoid-like lipid mediator which is naturally produced in the body and found in certain foods. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of a bioavailable formulated form of PEA (Levagen+®) on serum BDNF levels and parameters of cognitive function in healthy adults.

METHODS

A randomised double-blinded placebo-controlled cross-over trial was implemented to measure the effects of a 6-week 700 mg/day course of formulated PEA supplementation versus a placebo. Participants (n = 39) completed pre- and post-assessments of a lab-based cognitive test. Serum samples were collected to measure BDNF concentrations using an immunoassay.

RESULTS

A significant increase in serum BDNF levels was found following PEA supplementation compared with the placebo (p = 0. 0057, d = 0.62). The cognition test battery demonstrated improved memory with PEA supplementation through better first success (p = 0.142, d = 0.54) and fewer errors (p = 0.0287; d = -0.47) on the Paired Associates Learning test.

CONCLUSION

This was the first study to report a direct beneficial effect of Levagen+® PEA supplementation on memory improvement as well as corresponding increases in circulating neurotrophic marker levels. This suggests that formulated PEA holds promise as an innovative and practical intervention for cognitive health enhancement.

The mediating effect of personality on mental workload and perceived professional benefits of nurses in East China

BACKGROUND

Nursing work is a work with high-stress load, and nurses with different personality may have different subjective feelings about their workload. Therefore, it is particularly necessary to comprehend the perceived professional benefits of nurses engaged in nursing work under high-pressure background, especially during the epidemic period. This study explored the relationship between mental workload, personality, and perceived professional benefits of nurses, and offer advices for the intervention of nurses with different personality to improve their perceived professional benefits.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this study, we used a cross-sectional study with a convenient sampling. 473 in-service nurses in Class A tertiary hospitals of Zhejiang Province were recruited by using the NASA Mission Load Index scale of nurses, the brief version of China's Big Five Personality Questionnaire, and the Nurses' perceived professional benefits questionnaire from July 2020 to March 2021. Sample size is 54.91%, and the response rate is 100%. Cronbach's alpha method was used to evaluate the reliability of the instruments. Descriptive statistical analysis was used to describe the socio-demographic data of the subject, and scores for research variables. The Mann-Whitney U-test, and Kruskal-Wallis H rank-sum test were used to compare the scores of perceived professional benefits with different demographic characteristics. Correlation analysis results were presented as the Spearman correlation coefficient. The plug-in v2.16.3 provided by SPSS software was used for linear regression analysis, and the deviation-corrected percentile Bootstrap method was used to examine the mediating role of personality (neuroticism, conscientiousness, agreeableness, openness and extroversion).

RESULTS

Age, length of service in nursing, and record of formal schooling can affect nurses' perceived professional benefits. Mental workload, and perceived professional benefits were all above the median value. The mental workload was negatively correlated with perceived professional benefits (r= -0.129, P < 0.01), positively correlated with neuroticism (r = 0.242, P < 0.01), negatively correlated with agreeableness, openness, extroversion (r=-0.229~-0.221, P < 0.01), and negatively correlated with conscientiousness, but the differences were not significant. Nurses' perceived professional benefits were negatively correlated neuroticism (r=-0.109, P < 0.05), but positively associated with conscientiousness, agreeableness, openness, and extroversion (r = 0.098 ~ 0.326, P < 0.05). The mental workload can directly affect the perceived professional benefits in the direct effects, and can also affect the it through the mediating effect of agreeableness, extroversion, neuroticism, and openness.

CONCLUSIONS

Age, length of service in nursing, and record of formal schooling could affect nurses' perceived professional benefits, and personality played a partial mediating role in the influence of mental workload on the perceived professional benefits. The results of this study can provide strategies for nurses' human resource management. According to different demographic factors, and personality, various measures should be taken to guide nurses to evaluate the mental workload correctly, reduce their emotional pressure, increase job resources, and improve their perceived professional benefits.

The Effects of Physical Activity on Academic Performance in School-Aged Children: A Systematic Review

Schools offer a unique environment to influence children's physical activity (PA) levels positively. This study aims to systematically review the evidence surrounding how PA affects academic performance by analysing how the frequency, intensity, time, and type of PA mediate academic performance outcomes. This review was conducted using the PRISMA framework. Keyword searches were conducted in Science Direct, PubMed, and SPORTDiscus. Children that were obese, typically developing, typical weight, disabled, with a developmental disability, from a low socio-economic background, or an ethnic minority were included. A total of 19 studies were included, with a total of 6788 participants, a mean age of 9.3 years (50.2% boys, and 49.8% girls). Overall, 63.2% were nondisabled, while 36.8% were diagnosed with a disability. Two authors met, reviewed papers with regard to the inclusion criteria, and agreed on outputs to be included. Evidence suggests that associations between PA and academic performance were primarily positive or nonsignificant. PA levels of 90 min plus per week were associated with improved academic performance, as was PA performed at moderate to vigorous intensity. The optimal duration of PA was 30-60 min per session, whilst various sports induced positive academic effects. Importantly, findings support that PA does not have a deleterious effect on academic performance but can enhance it.

Effects on Children's Physical and Mental Well-Being of a Physical-Activity-Based School Intervention Program: A Randomized Study

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of physically active breaks of a total duration of 10 min a day, introduced during curricular lessons, together with a 10 min physical activity intervention during the daily school recess period on obesity prevention, fitness, cognitive function, and psychological well-being in school-aged children. A sample of 310 children (139 boys vs. 171 girls), aged between 8 and 10 years (9.82 ± 0.51), was selected. Our strategy was implemented over a 6-month period and the participants were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (n = 157) or the non-intervention (control) group (n =153). In the intervention group, a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in body mass index, waist circumference, waist-height ratio, and relative body fat mass was achieved after the intervention (T1) compared to the values measured before intervention (T0); in the control group, no differences emerged between T0 and T1 for any of the parameters considered. We found a significant increase in the intervention group in standing long jump, Ruffier, and sit and reach test scores (p < 0.001 for all). At T0, cognitive test scores did not differ between the girls and boys or between the intervention and control groups; instead at T1, significant differences were observed in the two groups regarding the total number of responses and the concentration performance scores (p < 0.001). Consistently, in the intervention group, well-being levels significantly increased between T0 and T1 (p < 0.001). Finally, the intervention had significant effects on the children regardless of gender. We may therefore conclude that schools should create more opportunities for teachers and students to introduce intervention strategies to promote regular PA during school recess.

Cognitive Abilities and Academic Achievement as Intercultural Competence Predictors in Russian School Students

The development of intercultural competence (ICC) is important for the modern personality in an unstable and diverse world, but there is a lack of research on this phenomenon in the context of age, gender and intellectual differences. The purpose of the present exploratory study is to identify relations between ICC, cognitive abilities and academic achievements among Russian school students. The sample included 106 (55% female) students in the 9th grade of Moscow secondary school. ICC was measured with the author’s modification of The Intercultural Sensitivity Scale by Khuhlaev and Chibisova, developed on the basis of the Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity by Bennett. Cognitive abilities were determined with the School Test of Intellectual Development by Akimova et al. Academic achievements were evaluated using GPA. The findings of our research show that: (1) higher academic achievements and cognitive abilities usually characterize schoolchildren, who are not inclined to absolutize cultural differences and do not consider them to be barriers to intercultural interaction; (2) the most significant predictors of ICC features from the studied cognitive abilities are analogy and generalization, but generalization has opposite impacts in male and female students. This fact should be taken into account in the context of ICC developments, especially in male school students prone to ethnocentrism.