Understanding Health, Subjective Aging, and Participation in Social Activities in Later Life: A Regional Finnish Survey

To understand health and well-being in later life, it is vital to consider the meaning of subjective aging. This study aimed to explore how perceived health, self-perceptions of aging, and participation in social activities relate to each other among older persons in the Bothnia region and Åland islands in Finland. Data were analyzed using Spearman's and polychoric correlation and multinomial logistic regression analyses. The perceived good health and the younger physical, psychological, and social dimensions of subjective age were found to be associated with each other and with participation in social activities outside one's home.

Perceiving a Stable Self-Concept Enables the Experience of Meaning in Life

We test the hypothesis that the perception of stability in one's self-concept (i.e., future self-continuity) enables the experience of meaning in life because perceiving a stable sense of self confers a sense of certainty to the self-concept. Study 1 provided initial evidence of the influence of future self-continuity on feelings of meaning in life (MIL) in a nationally representative sample. In Studies 2a and 2b, we manipulated future self-continuity by varying the expectedness of one's future self, demonstrating the causal influence of future self-continuity on self-certainty and feelings of MIL. Study 3 again manipulated future self-continuity, finding an indirect effect on feelings of meaning in life via self-certainty. Our findings thus suggest the experience of meaning in life arises from the perception of a stable sense of self. We discuss the implications for the antecedents and conceptualization of MIL as well as the nature of the self-concept.

Tactile localization promotes infant self-recognition in the mirror-mark test

Mirror self-recognition has been hailed by many as a milestone in the acquisition of self-awareness with respect to phylogenesis and human ontogenesis.1,2,3,4,5,6 Yet there has been considerable controversy over the extent to which species other than humans and their closest primate relatives are capable of mirror self-recognition, and to the mechanisms that give rise to this ability.1,7 One influential view is that mirror self-recognition in humans and their closest primate relatives is a cognitive advance that is a product of primate evolution, stemming from more recently evolved neural structures and networks that develop through experience-independent mechanisms during ontogenesis.1 In contrast, we show that the development of mirror self-recognition in human infants is a perception-action achievement, building on infants' ability to localize and reach to targets on the body. Infants who were given experience reaching to tactile targets on their bodies in the months prior to recognizing themselves in a mirror achieved mirror self-recognition earlier than infants in either a yoked age-matched control group or a longitudinal control group without such experience. Our results demonstrate that self-touch functions as an intermodal gateway through which infants learn how to localize and reach to stimuli on their bodies, including those that can only be seen in a mirror. These findings identify an overlooked role for the routine activity of self-touch in establishing a representation of the body and suggest that the development of human self-awareness is rooted in self-directed action.

Exploring Asymmetries in Self-Concept Change After Discrepant Feedback

Receiving self-relevant feedback that is discrepant from one's self-concept can lead to self-concept change. However, it is currently unclear whether positive or negative feedback has a larger effect on self-concept change. Across four studies (total N = 1,438), we demonstrate that intentions for self-concept change (Study 1) as well as actual self-concept change (Studies 2, 3, and 4) are larger (a) for larger discrepancies between self-concept and feedback and (b) for negative compared to positive discrepancies. Exploring these effects further in Study 4, we find no evidence that the opportunity for improvement influences whether self-concept change is positively or negatively biased. In sum, the present research provides consistent evidence for a negativity bias in self-concept change, investigates a theoretical explanation, and discusses alternative explanatory approaches.

"My body is a cage": A qualitative investigation into the self-discrepancy experiences of young women with metastatic cancer

OBJECTIVES

The current study investigated self-discrepancy experiences of young women with metastatic cancer.

METHODS

Semistructured interviews were conducted. Data were analyzed through interpretative phenomenological analysis.

FINDINGS

Eight female patients with metastatic cancer aged between 27 and 38 years formed the sample. Three superordinate themes emerged: (1) compulsory changes in self-concept with ambivalent evaluations; (2) new ideals not on the agenda of a healthy young woman; and (3) so-called 'minimalist' expectations from others.

DISCUSSION

Findings indicated that diagnosis and treatment of metastatic cancer impose unique developmental challenges for young adult women. Advanced cancer disrupted the tasks and responsibilities of young adulthood, resulting in frustration, grief, isolation, and overcompensation. These findings suggest that a developmental perspective is crucial when working with self-discrepancy experiences of young women with metastatic cancer.

Social Media and Self-Concept Among Postsecondary Students: A Scoping Review

The vast majority of college-aged students use social networking sites (SNS) to foster connectedness and enable networking. In addition, SNS allow individuals to control their online self-presentation. This may lead to incongruence between students' actual selves and their curated online selves, thereby damaging one's self-perception by increasing social comparison orientation. The goal of this article was to investigate the relationship between SNS use and self-concept that has not yet been explored in depth among the postsecondary population. Utilizing Arksey and O'Malley's methodological framework, a scoping review of the published literature was conducted. A total of 41 articles were included in the review. Three overarching themes were extracted from the findings. The first theme found that consistent exposure to the thin ideal and fitspiration posts across various SNS were linked to increased body dissatisfaction. The second theme found that engaging in online academic or ability-based comparisons resulted in a worsened mental state among postsecondary students. The third theme found that one's SNS followers or the number of "likes" received have mixed effects on student self-concept. Through gaining an improved understanding of the SNS stressors that contribute to students' mental health from this review, postsecondary institutions can implement more targeted interventions to bolster student wellbeing.

The role of autism and alexithymia traits in behavioral and neural indicators of self-concept and self-esteem in adolescence

LAY ABSTRACT

Developing a positive view of the self is important for maintaining a good mental health, as feeling negative about the self increases the risk of developing internalizing symptoms such as feelings of depression and anxiety. Even though autistic individuals regularly struggle with these internalizing feelings, and both self-concept and internalizing feelings are known to develop during adolescence, there is a lack of studies investigating the development of positive self-concept and self-esteem in autistic adolescents. Here, we studied academic, physical, and prosocial self-concept as well as self-esteem in adolescent males with and without autism on both the behavioral and neural level. We additionally focused on similarities in one's own and peers' perspectives on the self, and we assessed a potential role of alexithymia (i.e. having trouble identifying and describing one's feelings) in developing a more negative view of the self. Results showed that there were no group differences in self-esteem, self-concept, or underlying neural activation. This shows that autistic adolescent males use the same neural processes when they evaluate their traits. However, regardless of clinical diagnosis, a higher number of autism traits was related to a less positive physical and prosocial self-concept, whereas more difficulty identifying one's feelings was related to lowered self-esteem and less activation in medial prefrontal cortex during self-evaluations. Therefore, in treatment of autistic adolescents with low self-esteem, it is important to take into account and possibly aim to improve alexithymic traits as well.

I don't feel sick: Cognitive and affective processing of self-health associations using the Implicit Association Test

Measuring implicit associations of self-concept with health or illness attributes may offer valuable insight into the mechanisms entailing the perception of one's own health, as explicit measures of self-reported health are usually influenced by social desirability or response bias. In this study, healthy participants performed a modified version of the implicit association test (IAT) investigating implicit associations between the self and either health or illness related representations. Behaviorally, implicit associations dominated for self-health pairing, and their strength was inversely correlated with depressive traits. Neurally, concomitant EEG recording showed significant modulations of the P1, LPP, and N4 components evoked by such pairings, suggesting a facilitation of sensory responses to self-related stimuli and differential emotional processes engaged to integrate health versus illness information into self-related representations. These data offer new clues to better understand the cognitive and affective mechanisms underlying unrealistic optimism and pathological awareness of health conditions in various clinical populations.

Neural and behavioural correlates of adolescents changing academic self-concept

BACKGROUND

Mid-adolescence is an important phase of self-development in various domains including academics as well as for changes in the neural mechanisms underlying the self-concept. Students' academic self-concept (ASC) is affected by educational achievements and social others (such as teachers and peers). To what extent these external influences relate to neural dynamics during adolescents' self- and other-evaluations (i.e. of friends and teachers) which affect ASC over time is currently unclear.

AIMS

The current study aimed to address the question of to what extent the developing ASC is influenced by developmental changes in self- and other-evaluations (friends, teachers) and their underlying neural mechanisms as well as academic achievement.

METHODS

In this interdisciplinary longitudinal fMRI study, forty-seven 13-year-olds (at T1) were instructed to indicate whether positive and negative trait adjectives described themselves (self-evaluations), their teachers, or peers (other-evaluations) at two time points. We investigated how adolescents' academic self-concept is influenced by changes in their academic achievement and self- and other-evaluations (teachers and peers) 1.5-years later.

RESULTS

Behaviourally, both, academic achievement and positive teacher evaluations were important to prevent the observed decline in ASC during mid-adolescence. Our fMRI results showed that cortical midline structures were linked to self-evaluation, whereas the precuneus and occipital regions were related to friends- and teacher-evaluation. Here, ASC was predicted by activity changes in the precuneus during friends-evaluations for students with better academic achievement.

CONCLUSION

Our findings indicate that academic achievement and positive teacher-evaluations could prevent the decline in ASC observed in mid-adolescents and that the neural correlates of evaluating close others within the precuneus present an important link to ASC. The current study highlights the importance of educational neuroscience studies to understand the changing ASC during adolescence.

Analyzing and computing humans by means of the brain using Brain-Computer Interfaces - understanding the user - previous evidence, self-relevance and the user's self-concept as potential superordinate human factors of relevance

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are well-known instances of how technology can convert a user's brain activity taken from non-invasive electroencephalography (EEG) into computer commands for the purpose of computer-assisted communication and interaction. However, not all users are attaining the accuracy required to use a BCI consistently, despite advancements in technology. Accordingly, previous research suggests that human factors could be responsible for the variance in BCI performance among users. Therefore, the user's internal mental states and traits including motivation, affect or cognition, personality traits, or the user's satisfaction, beliefs or trust in the technology have been investigated. Going a step further, this manuscript aims to discuss which human factors could be potential superordinate factors that influence BCI performance, implicitly, explicitly as well as inter- and intraindividually. Based on the results of previous studies that used comparable protocols to examine the motivational, affective, cognitive state or personality traits of healthy and vulnerable EEG-BCI users within and across well-investigated BCIs (P300-BCIs or SMR-BCIs, respectively), it is proposed that the self-relevance of tasks and stimuli and the user's self-concept provide a huge potential for BCI applications. As potential key human factors self-relevance and the user's self-concept (self-referential knowledge and beliefs about one's self) guide information processing and modulate the user's motivation, attention, or feelings of ownership, agency, and autonomy. Changes in the self-relevance of tasks and stimuli as well as self-referential processing related to one's self (self-concept) trigger changes in neurophysiological activity in specific brain networks relevant to BCI. Accordingly, concrete examples will be provided to discuss how past and future research could incorporate self-relevance and the user's self-concept in the BCI setting - including paradigms, user instructions, and training sessions.

'Commanded to be ill, accused of being well' a lived-experience-led, qualitative investigation of service user perspectives on the impact of emotionally unstable personality disorder diagnosis on self-concept

BACKGROUND

Emotionally unstable personality disorder (EUPD) is a mental disorder impairing health and functioning and increasing suicide risk and it is a stigmatised condition among healthcare professionals. EUPD diagnosis may significantly affect self-concept, yet no previous investigation has explicitly examined this.

AIMS

To explore service user perspectives on (a) the impact of EUPD diagnosis on self-concept and (b) mediators of positive and negative impacts.

METHODS

Service user-led, qualitative semi-structured interviews with n = 10 participants with EUPD.

RESULTS

Perceived impacts of diagnosis on self-concept were, broadly, negative. Factors mediating between positive and negative impacts included: exposure to online stigma and public understanding, the responses of relatives, friends, intimate partners and trusted communities, and the attitudes and behaviours of healthcare staff. There were indications that recent guideline and practice developments (guidelines recommending alternatives to inpatient admissions for people with EUPD and "recovery-focused" approaches to self-harm) may have worsened inpatient staff attitudes and led to more rejecting service user experiences.

CONCLUSION

Mitigating negative impacts of EUPD diagnosis on self-concept may require addressing hateful, online content related to EUPD; revisiting use of the personality disorder label; improving medical communication around diagnosis and improving practice and policy in the management of EUPD in inpatient settings.

Does Role Identity Mediate the Influence of Motivational Regulations on Physical Activity Behavior Among People 55 Years or Older?

The objective of this study was to estimate the extent to which motivational regulations influence physical activity behavior through role identity among people 55 years or older. Participants (N = 409; Mage = 66.29 years [SD = 7.06]) completed online questionnaires to measure motivational regulations, role identity, and the frequency of physical activity in a typical week and in the past month. Mediation analysis using ordinary least squares path analysis revealed that autonomous forms of motivational regulation (positively) and controlled forms of motivational regulation (negatively) influenced role identity, which then positively influenced physical activity behavior. Bootstrap confidence intervals (95%) for the indirect effects (a × b) based on 5,000 bootstrap samples were entirely above or below zero. These findings point to future experimental evaluations of interventions aiming at both increasing and decreasing autonomous and controlled motivational regulations, respectively, to promote physical activity behavior through role identity.

Intrapersonal dynamics of closeness versus distance: Qualities of the self-concept distinguish destructive overdependence, dysfunctional detachment, and healthy dependency

INTRODUCTION

People vary in the degree to which they affiliate with others; exaggerated efforts maintain interpersonal closeness versus distance are codified in longstanding categorical models of personality pathology, and in contemporary dimensional frameworks as well.

OBJECTIVE

To examine associations between destructive overdependence (DO), dysfuntional detachment (DD), and healthy dependency (HD) and qualities of the self-concept.

METHOD

A mixed-sex sample of 229 adults completed the Relationship Profile Test to assess DO, DD, and HD, and the Object Relations Inventory (ORI) to assess qualities of the self-concept.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

Analyses indicated that (1) the ORI Strong dimension was uniquely predictive of DO (inversely related); (2) ORI Warm and Nurturing were unique predictors of DD (both inversely related); and (3) ORI Nurturing and Successful were unique predictors of HD. This study illuminates key intrapersonal features of these three personality styles.

Assessment of multidimensional self-concept in the area of physical education: validation of a scale

Introduction

Self-concept is a person's perception of him/herself and how he/she performs in different situations. This aspect must be developed during the formative stages and Physical Education is a fundamental area due to its enormous methodological possibilities.

Aim

Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate the factor structure and reliability of an instrument that allows to analyze the multidimensional self-concept of high school students in the context of Physical Education.

Method

The sample consisted of 1,155 secondary school students from public schools in the Autonomous Community of Extremadura, Spain. After the exploratory and confirmatory analyses, a structure composed of 30 items divided into 5 factors was.

Results

This design showed excellent goodness-of-fit indices as well as good internal reliability indicators (Cronbach's Alpha = 0.76 - 0.88).

Conclusion

Therefore, this scale can be considered as a tool to assess the self-concept of high school students in a quick and easy way.

Effects of Perceived Parent-Child Relationships and Self-Concept on Creative Personality among Middle School Students

This study investigated the impact of perceived parent-child relationships on creative personality in middle school students according to self-concept, focusing on environmental (parent-child relationships) and individual (self-concept) factors that can influence these students' creative personalities. To this end, this study verified the moderation effect using sixth-year data (third year of middle school students) from the Seoul Longitudinal Educational Study 2010 Panel, utilizing SPSS 26.0 and the PROCESS macro. The results revealed that the self-concept of middle school students moderated the influence of parent-child relationships on creative personality. Specifically, it was found that as the level of self-concept increased above the average the positive relationship between parent-child relationships and creative personality strengthened. Based on the study's findings, theoretical and practical suggestions for creating a home and educational environment to promote creativity during adolescence were discussed.

Transdiagnostic clustering of self-schema from self-referential judgements identifies subtypes of healthy personality and depression

Introduction

The heterogeneity of depressive and anxiety disorders complicates clinical management as it may account for differences in trajectory and treatment response. Self-schemas, which can be determined by Self-Referential Judgements (SRJs), are heterogeneous yet stable. SRJs have been used to characterize personality in the general population and shown to be prognostic in depressive and anxiety disorders.

Methods

In this study, we used SRJs from a Self-Referential Encoding Task (SRET) to identify clusters from a clinical sample of 119 patients recruited from the Institute of Mental Health presenting with depressive or anxiety symptoms and a non-clinical sample of 115 healthy adults. The generated clusters were examined in terms of most endorsed words, cross-sample correspondence, association with depressive symptoms and the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire and diagnostic category.

Results

We identify a 5-cluster solution in each sample and a 7-cluster solution in the combined sample. When perturbed, metrics such as optimum cluster number, criterion value, likelihood, DBI and CHI remained stable and cluster centers appeared stable when using BIC or ICL as criteria. Top endorsed words in clusters were meaningful across theoretical frameworks from personality, psychodynamic concepts of relatedness and self-definition, and valence in self-referential processing. The clinical clusters were labeled "Neurotic" (C1), "Extraverted" (C2), "Anxious to please" (C3), "Self-critical" (C4), "Conscientious" (C5). The non-clinical clusters were labeled "Self-confident" (N1), "Low endorsement" (N2), "Non-neurotic" (N3), "Neurotic" (N4), "High endorsement" (N5). The combined clusters were labeled "Self-confident" (NC1), "Externalising" (NC2), "Neurotic" (NC3), "Secure" (NC4), "Low endorsement" (NC5), "High endorsement" (NC6), "Self-critical" (NC7). Cluster differences were observed in endorsement of positive and negative words, latency biases, recall biases, depressive symptoms, frequency of depressive disorders and self-criticism.

Discussion

Overall, clusters endorsing more negative words tended to endorse fewer positive words, showed more negative biases in reaction time and negative recall bias, reported more severe depressive symptoms and a higher frequency of depressive disorders and more self-criticism in the clinical population. SRJ-based clustering represents a novel transdiagnostic framework for subgrouping patients with depressive and anxiety symptoms that may support the future translation of the science of self-referential processing, personality and psychodynamic concepts of self-definition to clinical applications.

Future Self-Continuity Predicts Health-Promoting Behaviors of Chinese Rural College Students: Evidence from Mental Imagery Intervention

The purpose of this research is to investigate the prediction effect of future self-continuity (FSC) on health-promoting behaviors (Health Responsibility, Physical Activity, and Nutritional Habits) and the impact of urban-rural differences in Chinese college students, further verifying the effect of mental imagery practice on enhancing FSC and promoting health-promoting behaviors among students from rural areas. Study 1 used the Future Self-Continuity Questionnaire and a sub-scale of the Health Promotion Lifestyle Profile-II to examine the relationship between FSC and health-promoting behaviors among 788 college students (430 from rural areas and others from urban areas). Study 2 was designed to examine the impact of intervention on FSC and health-promoting behaviors among Chinese rural students. The intervention activities lasting 4 wk. 162 freshmen were randomly divided into intervention or control groups to practice the mental imagery about the future self or meditation in the present once a week. FSC and health-promoting behaviors were tested for 3 times. The results demonstrated that: (1) Rural students had lower scores in FSC and health-promoting behaviors than urban students; (2) Urban-rural differences of students moderated the effect of FSC on health-promoting behaviors; (3) The mental imagery practiced increased FSC; and (4) FSC played a complete mediating role in the effect of condition (intervention or not) on health-promoting behaviors for rural college students. Overall, these findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between FSC and health-promoting behaviors, and suggest that mental imagery practice can increase Chinese rural college students' health-promoting behaviors by enhancing their FSC.

I hope my partner can make me change: expected relational self-changes and relational outcomes

The Two-Dimensional Model of Relational Self-change (TDM) suggests four types of self-change that may be elicited by romantic relationships: self-expansion, self-adulteration, self-pruning, and self-contraction. Previous research has shown that these four types of relational self-change were associated with relational outcomes. Prior research has also shown that positive illusions and expectations in romantic relationships can lead to positive relational outcomes. The current study used a longitudinal design to investigate how the four types of expected relational self-change affect future relationship satisfaction and commitment. Results indicated that participants had higher expected self-changes than their actual self-changes after three months, but their expected self-changes and actual self-changes were correlated. At Time 1 of their relationship, participants' relationship satisfaction and commitment were related to their expected self-changes. However, controlling for Time 1 relationship satisfaction and commitment, expected self-changes predicted commitment, but not relationship satisfaction, three months later.

Neural activity during negative self-evaluation is associated with negative self-concept and depressive symptoms in adolescent girls

Self-concept becomes reliant on social comparison, potentially leading to excessive self-focused attention, persistently negative self-concept and increased risk for depression during early adolescence. Studies have implicated neural activation in cortical midline brain structures in self-related information processing, yet it remains unclear how this activation may underlie subjective self-concept and links to depression in adolescence. We examined these associations by assessing neural activity during negative vs. positive self-referential processing in 39 11-to-13-year-old girls. During a functional neuroimaging task, girls reported on their perceptions of self-concept by rating how true they believed positive and negative personality traits were about them. Girls reported on depressive symptoms at the scan and 6 months later. Activation in the dorsomedial and ventrolateral prefrontal cortexes (dMPFC; VLPFC), and visual association area was significantly associated with subjective self-concept and/or depressive symptoms at the scan or 6 months later. Exploratory models showed higher activation in the dMPFC to Self-negative > Self-positive was indirectly associated with concurrent depressive symptoms through more negative self-concept. Higher activation in the visual association area to Self-positive > Self-negative was associated with lower depressive symptoms at follow-up through more positive self-concept. Findings highlight how differential neural processing of negative versus positive self-relevant information maps onto perceptions of self-concept and adolescent depression.

Playfulness from children's perspectives: development and validation of the Children's Playfulness Scale as a self-report instrument for children from 3 years of age

Children's playfulness refers to children's enjoyment, motivation, and engagement in play and has been predominantly assessed from an adult perspective. To assess children's perspectives on their own playfulness, we adapted and modified the Children's Playfulness Scale (CPS) for children from 3 years and used a two-level response format with a total of four answer options. We tested the self-report scale with 564 children between 3 and 8 years of age who attended childcare center or kindergarten. Results indicated that the adapted version of the CPS identified the five distinct domains of playfulness: social spontaneity, cognitive spontaneity, physical spontaneity, sense of humor, and manifest joy; furthermore, results showed invariance across multiple groups for gender, age, and language skills. A highly significant positive correlation was found between children's self-reported playfulness and children's self-reported social self-concept (r = 0.54, p < 0.001), which demonstrates convergent validity. No association was found with teacher proxy report of children's playfulness (r = 0.03, p = 0.92). Overall, our study confirmed first indications of the validity of the modified CPS as a reliable instrument for assessing children's self-reported playfulness. This enables children as young as 3 years old to be assessed on their own playfulness, which is a valuable supplement to the adult perspective.

Measuring the General and Specific Domains of Self-Esteem: The Short-form of the State Self-Esteem Scale

Self-esteem is a crucial human nature feature for understanding the social dimensions of individuals' self-concept. One of its characteristics is peoples' malleability to adapt to social contexts, that is, the state self-esteem (SSE). Individuals express SES in three different factors: performance; social success; and physical appearance. Along with three studies, we present evidence of validity of the Short-Form of State Self-Esteem Scale (SSES-S) that measures contextual fluctuations in individuals' self-esteem. In Study 1 (N = 300), we found that the structure of the SSES-S was organized into three correlated factors that exhibited convergent-discriminant validity with measures of trait self-esteem and human values. In Study 2 (N = 281), confirmatory factor analysis indicated that a bifactor measurement model better fit the description of the factorial structure of the SSES-S, which also showed incremental validity concerning trait self-esteem for predicting one criterion. In Study 3 (N = 160), we experimentally manipulated contextual information about self-achievement and showed that the SSES-S is sensitive enough to detect transient fluctuations in self-esteem, especially in the achievement factor. We discussed the limitations and scope of the SSES-S, as its specific focus on measuring undergraduate students' state self-esteem and its implications distinguishing the general and particular domains of this construct.

Associations between participation and personal factors in community-dwelling adults post-stroke

PURPOSE

To examine associations between post-stroke participation and personal factors, including demographic characteristics, self- and threat appraisals, and personality variables.

METHODS

An exploratory cross-sectional study with purpose-designed survey was completed online or via mail. The survey was comprised of demographic and health-related questions and multiple questionnaires, including the Stroke Impact Scale Version 3.0 (SISv3) (participation/perceived recovery), Community Integration Questionnaire (CIQ) (participation), Head Injury Semantic Differential III (pre- vs post-stroke self-concept/self-discrepancy), Appraisal of Threat and Avoidance Questionnaire (threat appraisal), Life Orientation Test - Revised (optimism) and Relationships Questionnaire (adult attachment style) that measured variables of interest. Sixty-two participants, aged 24-96 years who had experienced a stroke (one or multiple events) and had returned to community living, completed the survey. Associations were examined using correlations, and univariate and multiple linear regression analyses.

RESULTS

Regression analysis showed that greater participation, measured using the CIQ, was associated with younger age, female gender, lower self-discrepancy and higher perceived recovery, explaining 69% of the variability in CIQ participation. Further, greater participation on the SISv3 was associated with lower self-discrepancy and higher perceived recovery, explaining 64% of the variability in SISv3 participation.

CONCLUSIONS

Results indicate that personal factors, particularly self-appraisals like self-concept/self-discrepancy, in combination with perceived recovery may be important in explaining a large portion of variance in post-stroke participation. Specifically, findings highlight the interrelatedness of self-concept change, perceived recovery and post-stroke participation. Further longitudinal research is needed to clarify the directionality of these associations throughout the hospital-to-home transition.

Mediation of self-concept and moderation of teacher support between SES and reading achievement: Evidence from China and the United States

BACKGROUND

Socioeconomic status (SES) is important in students' reading development. The mechanism of how they are linked, however, is underexplored.

AIMS

This research aimed to explore whether reading self-concept mediates the link between SES and reading achievement and whether teacher support moderates the direct and indirect link between SES and reading achievement.

SAMPLES

Using PISA 2018 database, we selected 17,346 15-year-olds from 537 schools in B-S-J-Z (China) and the United States (U.S.).

METHODS

Multilevel linear models were calculated to explore the potential mediation of self-concept and the potential moderation of teacher support between SES and reading achievement.

RESULTS

Results reveal that reading self-concept mediated the link between SES and reading achievement at student level both in China and the United States, and teacher support moderated the link between SES and reading self-concept both at student level and school level only in China, but not in the United States.

CONCLUSION

Our research highlights the importance of self-concept and teacher support in improving students' reading achievement, especially for students of low SES, which has important theoretical significance and practical enlightenment for reading instruction.

Cognitive abilities and medical students' practice of physical exams: A quasi-experimental study

BACKGROUND

To highlight the importance of clinical simulations and simulated laboratories for student training, especially in physical examination teaching.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the gains obtained by medical students in their cognitive and practical performance of physical examinations (abdominal, cardiological, and pulmonary), as well as satisfaction and self-confidence in what they have learned, after concentrated practice developed in a skills and simulation laboratory.

DESIGN AND SETTING

A quantitative and quasi-experimental study in which 48 students were evaluated at the Faculdade de Odontologia de Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil.

METHODS

A quantitative and descriptive study was conducted with regularly enrolled 2nd year medical students over 18 years of age who had content prior to data collection regarding anamnesis and physical examination remotely taught in a Moodle virtual learning environment. For data collection, the participants were subjected to a concentrated period of skill training (abdominal, cardiological, and pulmonary). Every day after the skill training session, they were subjected to a practical evaluation and completed a theoretical test before and after the practical activities. At the end of all activities, they answered the instrument to assess the simulated practices (self-confidence and satisfaction).

RESULTS

Among the 49 students evaluated, positive and significant theoretical and practical gains were identified in all three components (abdominal, cardiological, and pulmonary) (P = 0.000), as well as in the general evaluation (Theoretical 1 and Theoretical 2) (P = 0.000), satisfaction, and self-confidence (P = 0.000).

CONCLUSION

Concentrated laboratory practice resulted in positive improvements in students' physical examination skills.

Comparison between self-concept, self-perception, physical exercise and lifestyle variations from 1st to 4th grade students of nursing in Tenerife, Spain

The aim of this study was to describe and compare the self-concept, self-perception, physical exercise, and lifestyle of students from 1st to 4th year of the Nursing university studies. Descriptive observational cross-sectional study with analytical components. The study sample consisted of 1st and 4th year undergraduate Nursing students. Five questionnaires were used: a sociodemographic survey, the RSES, the GHQ-12, the PAQ-A and the HBSC. The sample consisted of 197 subjects. 44.2% had a low self-concept and a perception of self-value that improved as they progressed academically, while confidence decreased. The PAQ-A showed that 65.5% performed moderate physical activity and 15.7% were sedentary, 58.9% reported a fair lifestyle and 20.8% of the subjects reported an inadequate diet. In the GHQ-12, the perception of self-value subscale showed an improvement with respect to the academic year. The SOC-13 data showed fair coping with traumatic situations, which worsened in the 4th year, being 88.9% in males and 84.6% in females. The study identified low self-concept, an adequate self-perception, moderate physical activity with a tendency towards sedentary lifestyles, and a fair lifestyle. It is significant that adolescents do not perceive the poor figures they obtain in self-concept, physical exercise, diet, sleep, and violence as reflected in their health. It is known that the changes adopted in adolescence will be perpetuated in adulthood. Therefore, influencing this population group, and even more so, if they are potential future health professionals, is deemed necessary.

Factors Related to Professional Self-Concept of Nursing Students and Nurses: A Systematic Review

Background

Some nurses leave their job because of working conditions, which will affect nurse turnover. Patients perceive that those nurses are distrustful, and feel unsatisfied, with patients' complaints about nursing service. This study explored factors about the professional self-concept of nursing students and nurses.

Materials and Methods

A systematic review of cross-sectional studies followed PRISMA guidelines. PubMed, Ovid, Web of Science, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) were used from 1982 to August 2020 with the terms "factors" AND "nurse" AND "professional" AND "self-concept." A total of 19 out of 4,349 articles were used for analysis. Joanna Brings Institute critical appraisal tools for the analytical cross-sectional studies were used in this study, and narrative synthesis was used to analyze data.

Results

Professional self-concept of clinical nurses is influenced by including organizational or job factors, and individual and emotional factors. Job factors consist of organizational support, professional ethic, clinical ladder system, nursing experience, position, and time. Besides, sex, age, marital status, education, health status, healthy lifestyle, and experience were categorized as individual factors. Emotional factors were as follows: interpersonal relationships, spiritual growth, management stress, and self-description. Meanwhile, student nurses are influenced by including personal (degree of study and sex), emotions (emotional intelligence, and interest in the nursing profession), and external factors (nursing courses, peer-mentoring experience, and academic burnout).

Conclusions

Thus, individual factors and emotions have a vital role in constructing clinical nurses' professional self-concept as student nurses. Improving individual and emotional/personal aspects will positively increase professional self-concept.

Specific autobiographical memories are a resource for identity strength among mature but not emerging adults

Four studies, three pre-planned on Open Science Framework, with 2296 participants explored the potential role of recollecting autobiographical memories in enhancing the sense of identity. Among emerging adults (college students under age 25), recollecting important autobiographical memories did not strengthen sense of identity. Autobiographical memories failed to strengthen identity among emerging adults despite inducing low self-clarity first; despite attempts to prime self-consistent memories by having emerging adults report their stable self-aspects first; and despite attempts to inspire self-event connections by asking emerging adults to explain how the memories exemplified something enduring about the self. Among mature adults (age 25 and older), recollecting important autobiographical memories strengthened sense of identity. Identity was strengthened regardless of whether mature adults were asked to explain how the memories exemplified something enduring about the self. Differences in types of memories or motivation did not account for the differential effects of recollecting autobiographical memories in identity. In short, mature adults appear to readily use autobiographical memories as a resource for identity in a way that emerging adults have not yet mastered.

Parental Phubbing and Child Social-Emotional Adjustment: A Meta-Analysis of Studies Conducted in China

Introduction

Parental phubbing refers to the act of parents using mobile phones in the presence of their children instead of engaging with them. With increasing smartphone use in many households, parental phubbing is a potential threat to children's healthy development. This meta-analysis synthesized the existing evidence on the impact of parental phubbing on children's social-emotional development to examine the effect sizes and identify the moderators.

Methods

Following the PRISMA guidelines, we conducted a systematic search across multiple electronic databases (Web of Science, EBSCO, ProQuest, Springer, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure) from 2012 to May 2023. Our search included both English and Chinese literature, encompassing published journal articles as well as thesis. To assess the risk of bias, we utilized the Quality Assessment Tool for Observational Cohort and Cross-Sectional Studies. Publication bias was evaluated using funnel plot interpretation and Egger's regression intercept.

Results

Our comprehensive search identified 42 studies with 56,275 children and 59 effect sizes. A random-effects meta-analysis revealed that parental phubbing was positively associated with children's internalizing problems (r = 0.270; 95% CI [0.234, 0.304]) and externalizing problems (r = 0.210; 95% CI [0.154, 0.264]), while negatively correlated with children's self-concept (r = -0.206; 95% CI [-0.244, -0.168]) and social-emotional competence (r = -0.162; 95% CI [-0.207, -0.120]). Furthermore, the parental phubbing group moderated the association between parental phubbing and internalizing problems, when both parents engage in phubbing, there is a stronger association with children's externalizing problems compared to when only one parent is engaging in phubbing.

Discussion

The findings of this meta-analysis provide strong evidence supporting the detrimental effects of parental phubbing on child social-emotional adjustment. Consequently, parents, researchers, and the government must collaborate to mitigate parental phubbing and promote the healthy development of children's social-emotional abilities.

Identity Work in Athletes: A Systematic Review of the Literature

The identity work process allows athletes to achieve a continuous development, revision, and maintenance of themselves. It provides insight into their self-perceptions and particularly intensifies during critical life events. While this process has been widely acknowledged, scant attention has been given to explicitly identifying the specific activities (i.e., identity work modes) involved in athletic identity work and integrating an overarching framework to inform coherent and continuous identities. Thus, we conducted a systematic review of the athletic identity literature to assess how this perspective is represented. Following the PRISMA guidelines, we reviewed 54 articles and analyzed the overall characteristics, bibliographical networks, and accumulated empirical findings. Through this process, we were able to identify the impact of having a strong athletic identity on key variables within and outside of sport. Based on the findings, we examined how identity work modes are depicted and discussed in the literature. Further discussion on how athletic identity literature can contribute to the broader body of knowledge is outlined.

Self-concept and Narrative Identity in Youth at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis

BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESIS

Disturbances of the narrative self and personal identity accompany the onset of psychotic disorders in late adolescence and early adulthood (a formative developmental stage for self-concept and personal narratives). However, these issues have primarily been studied retrospectively after illness onset, limiting any inferences about their developmental course.

STUDY DESIGN

Youth at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR) (n = 49) and matched healthy comparison youth (n = 52) completed a life story interview (including self-defining memory, turning point, life challenge, and psychotic-like experience) and questionnaires assessing self-esteem, self-beliefs, self-concept clarity, and ruminative/reflective self-focus. Trained raters coded interviews for narrative identity themes of emotional tone, agency, temporal coherence, context coherence, self-event connections, and meaning-making (intraclass correlations >0.75). Statistical analyses tested group differences and relationships between self-concept, narrative identity, symptoms, and functioning.

STUDY RESULTS

CHR participants reported more negative self-esteem and self-beliefs, poorer self-concept clarity, and more ruminative self-focus, all of which related to negative symptoms. CHR participants narrated their life stories with themes of negative emotion and passivity (ie, lack of personal agency), which related to positive and negative symptoms. Reflective self-focus and autobiographical reasoning were unaffected and correlated. Autobiographical reasoning was uniquely associated with preserved role functioning.

CONCLUSIONS

This group of youth at CHR exhibited some, but not all, changes to self-concept and narrative identity seen in psychotic disorders. A core theme of negativity, uncertainty, and passivity ran through their semantic and narrative self-representations. Preserved self-reflection and autobiographical reasoning suggest sources of resilience and potential footholds for cognitive-behavioral and metacognitive interventions.

Effects of physical exercise on non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents: the chain mediating role of perceived social support and self-concept

Objective

To study the effect of physical exercise on non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents and to verify the chain mediating role of perceived social support and self-concept. Methods: A survey study was conducted on 1,426 adolescents in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. A chain mediation model was used to verify whether perceived social support and self-concept played a mediating role.

Results

Physical exercise was significantly negatively associated with non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents (β = -0.53, p < 0.01) and significantly positively associated with perceived social support and self-concept (β = 0.52, 0.54, p < 0.01), and perceived social support and self-concept were significantly negatively associated with non-suicidal self-injury (β = -0.59, p < 0.01; β = -0.64, p < 0.01), and perceived social support was able to significantly and positively associate self-concept (β = 0.76, p < 0.01).

Conclusion

Perceived social support and self-concept play a chain mediating role in the effect of physical exercise on non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents, and it is recommended that the development of perceived social support and self-concept be emphasized during adolescents' development, which has the potential to reduce the incidence of non-suicidal self-injurious behaviors in adolescents.

Living with stroke during the first year after onset: an instrumental case study exploring the processes that influence adjustment

PURPOSE

The purpose of the study was to explore the experiences of an individual navigating life in the first year after stroke, with attention to the influence of health professionals on adjustment.

METHOD

In-depth interviews were completed at regular intervals with an individual in rural Australia. This longitudinal approach supported the exploration of views over time. Interview transcripts were coded and analysed using strategies consistent with constructivist grounded theory methods. Findings are presented as an instrumental case study.

RESULTS

The experience of stroke was one of adjustment to a new reality and of an altered and evolving concept of self: captured within the themes of fragmentation, loss, and reconstruction. Self-efficacy emerged as a driver in the adjustment process. Interactions with health professionals influenced adjustment and impacted on conceptualisations of self and self-efficacy.

CONCLUSIONS

Adjustment to stroke necessitated a reconceptualization of self. Relationships and interactions with others emerged as potential facilitators. For health professionals working with people after stroke, knowledge of the adjustment process and attention to practices that affirm personhood and enhance self-efficacy have the potential to facilitate long term outcomes. Processes linked to adjustment are represented visually to guide conceptual understandings and facilitative actions.

IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONAll interactions with health professionals, including casual or ad hoc interactions, have the potential to influence adjustment after stroke.Health professionals who interact in ways that recognise personhood may have an especially positive influence on processes linked to adjustment.Giving time to listen to personal narratives and reflections may assist with sense-making and support the process of reconceptualising self after stroke.Through bidirectional sharing of experience and ideas, health professionals can facilitate the experience of self-efficacy.

"Oh it's changed, it's changed 10-fold": understanding the experience of self-concept change from the perspectives of people with multiple sclerosis

PURPOSE

The relevance of self-concept change in the process of psychosocial adjustment following multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis has become more apparent in recent years. The current study aimed to investigate the experience of self-concept change as described by an MS sample.

METHODS

Sixteen people (aged 26-67 years, 62.5% female) who had been living with MS for an average of 12 years, participated in a single online semi-structured interview. All interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim.

RESULTS

Thematic analysis guided by phenomenology produced three superordinate themes: 1) Changing life (salient external events that were related to changing views of self), 2) Changing self (the experience of self-concept change), and 3) Changing thoughts (the internal thought processes that served as the filter between changing life circumstances and changing self-views). Overall, external events appeared to facilitate a process of internally driven revaluations and redefinitions of self-concept both globally and within specific self domains.

CONCLUSION

Self-concept change due to MS emerges as a complex internal process, often arising from external challenges and changes in everyday life. These novel findings illustrate the need to better support people with MS to make sense of changes to their self-concept, particularly during key transitions across the illness.Implications for RehabilitationSelf-concept change following MS diagnosis and throughout the disease course has wide-ranging impacts on psychological adjustment.Several key external events contribute to changing the self-views of people living with MS.While external events prompt change, key internal processes likely facilitate the redefinition of self-concept.Targeted support during key transitional periods to assist pwMS to productively renegotiate and manage these changes to their self-concept is needed.

The impact of theatre on social competencies: a meta-analytic evaluation

BACKGROUND

There has been agrowing interest in using artistic interventions as a method of developing interpersonal competence. This paper presents a meta-analysis evaluating the impact of theatre interventions on social competencies.

METHODS

Twenty-one primary studies totaling 4064 participants were included, presenting evidence available since 1983. Included studies were assessed in terms of quality, heterogeneity, and publication bias.

RESULTS

Our findings indicated that active theatre participation significantly improved participants' empathic abilities, social communication, tolerance, and social interactions, with the largest pooled effect size for social communication (0.698) and the smallest for tolerance (0.156). Our findings did not corroborate the impact of theatre on self-concept.

CONCLUSIONS

This paper shows that theatre interventions have a positive impact on social competencies. The paper makes a methodological contribution by showing that randomized and non-randomized studies yielded comparably valid results.

Evaluation of the Impact of Orthodontic Treatment on Patients' Self-Esteem: A Systematic Review

Malocclusion may affect interpersonal relationships, self-esteem (SE), and psychological well-being, weakening patients' psychological and social activities. Several studies investigated the effect of orthodontic treatment on these social and psychological aspects, such as SE. However, the direct relationship between SE and orthodontic treatment has not yet been confirmed. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the existing evidence in the literature concerning the influences of orthodontic treatment on patients' SE systematically and critically. An electronic search in the following databases was done in September 2022: PubMed®, Web of Science™, Scopus®, Embase®, GoogleTM Scholar, Cochrane Library databases, Trip, and OpenGrey. Then, the reference list of each candidate study was checked for any potentially linked papers that the electronic search might not have turned up. Inclusion criteria were set according to the population/intervention/comparison/outcome/study design (PICOS) framework. For the data collection and analysis, two reviewers extracted data separately. The risk of bias 2 (RoB-2) and the risk of bias in non-randomized studies (ROBINS-I) tools were used to assess the risk of bias for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs, respectively. The grading of recommendations assessment, development and evaluation (GRADE) approach was employed to evaluate the quality of the evidence for each finding. Sixteen studies (five RCTs, seven cohorts, and four cross-sectional) were included in this review. Unfortunately, the results could not be pooled into a meta-analysis. Only six studies have reported an increase in SE after orthodontic treatment (P<0.05 in these studies). No agreement between the included studies was observed regarding the influence of fixed orthodontic treatment, gender, or age on SE. The quality of evidence supporting these findings ranged from very low to low. There is low evidence indicating that fixed orthodontic treatment can improve patients' SE. In addition, unclear data are available about the influence of patients' gender and age on SE after orthodontic treatment. Therefore, high-quality RCTs are required to develop stronger evidence about this issue.

The effects of using the nurse self-concept mobile application on the retention of nursing students

BACKGROUND

The high dropout rate among nursing students has become a global concern as it leads to a shortage of nurses on the one hand and a negative impact on the professional motivation of nursing students on the other. The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of using the Nurse Self-Concept Mobile Application (NSCMA) on the retention of nursing students.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The present study is an experimental work of research with a longitudinal design conducted from April to December 2021. The study population was second-year nursing students in a nursing school in the south of Iran who were randomly divided into an experimental (n = 49) and a control group (n = 50). The assessment was based on a pretest-posttest design and a one-month follow-up. The collected data were analyzed in SPSS v. 21 using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and analytical statistics (repeated measures). The P value was set <0.05.

RESULTS

The means of the students' ages and grades were 21.31 ± 2.43 and 15.30 ± 2.13, respectively. The results showed a statistically significant increase in the experimental group's intent-to-stay mean scores as measured in three stages (P = 0.029), indicating that the intervention enhanced the nursing students' inclination to stay in nursing programs. However, the changes in the control group's mean scores were not statistically significant (P = 0.132).

CONCLUSION

The Nurse Self-Concept Mobile Application proved effective in enhancing nursing students' inclination to complete their education and follow a career as a nurse. Thus, it is essential that nursing students' education include programs designed to enhance the students' self-concept, especially in the first few years of their education. Also, nursing schools should use this software to encourage students to stay in the nursing major.

The Significance of Digital Citizenship and Gender in the Relationship between Social Media Usage Time and Self-Esteem among Adolescents: A Secondary Analysis

This study examined the significance of digital citizenship and gender in the relationship between social media usage time and self-esteem among adolescents. This cross-sectional study was a secondary analysis using national data on 506 Korean adolescents acquired from the 2020 Korea Media Panel Survey. The data were analyzed using SPSS 23.0 and SPSS PROCESS macro. We found that the moderated moderating effects of digital citizenship and gender on the relationship between social media usage time and self-esteem were significant. Both boys and girls had higher self-esteem in groups with higher digital citizenship than in groups with lower digital citizenship. The relationship between social media usage time and self-esteem for boys was positive in the high digital citizenship group and negative in the low digital citizenship group. Conversely, for girls, the relationship between social media usage time and self-esteem was positive in the low digital citizenship group and negative in the high digital citizenship group. It is important to take a differentiated approach that considers the relationship between digital citizenship and gender to promote healthy digital media use and positive self-esteem.

Digital Reflections: Narcissism, Stress, Social Media Addiction, and Nomophobia

The present study aimed to examine the link between narcissism, stress, and problematic digital behaviors. We used a cross-sectional approach that explored the indirect effects of nomophobia and social media addiction on the link between narcissism and chronic nonspecific arousal (i.e., stress symptoms). Our sample included 559 adults aged 18 to 45 (M = 27.14, SD = 8.43). Results suggested that narcissism was positively related to nomophobia and social media addiction. Also, nomophobia and social media addiction were positively related to stress. Further analyses suggested that nomophobia and social media addiction mediated the association of narcissism with stress symptoms. We discuss our findings considering their implications for adults' psychological health considering the current digital context.

Correlations between motor competencies, physical activity and self-concept in children with intellectual disabilities in inclusive education

BACKGROUND

Reciprocal relationships exist between motor competencies, physical activity and self-concept.

AIMS

Using a structural equation model, this study examined whether these relationships also appear in children with intellectual disabilities, how they can be validly measured, and if there are differences between children with and without intellectual disabilities.

MATERIALS & METHODS

Data from a cross-sectional research project involving 121 children with intellectual disabilities and 1721 without intellectual disabilities were analysed.

RESULTS

The results demonstrate that reciprocal relationships also apply to children with intellectual disabilities and can be elucidated if inverse items are omitted.

DISCUSSION

Children with intellectual disabilities have less developed motor competencies and are less physically active but have a higher general self-concept compared to children without intellectual disabilities. The sport-related ability self-concept of both groups is comparable.

CONCLUSIONS

The results are broadly consistent with extant research and illustrate that the development of motor competencies, physical activity and self-concept in children with intellectual disabilities must be encouraged.

The Influence of Perceived Security in Childhood on Adult Self-Concept: The Mediating Role of Resilience and Self-Esteem

Secure attachment, developed through consistent relationships with attachment figures in childhood, is a crucial factor in fostering healthy interpersonal relationships and a positive self-perception. Part of the positive parenting approach and the theory of affect is taken as a basis to assess how perceived security, as an indicator of secure attachment, predicts adult self-concept through the mediating effects of resilience and positive self-esteem. A quantitative, cross-sectional, and nonprobabilistic study was conducted with 383 participants. We unveiled significant positive associations between perceived security, self-concept, resilience, and positive self-esteem. Path analysis demonstrated that resilience and positive self-esteem sequentially mediate the relationship between perceived security during childhood and adult self-concept. Findings suggest that the ability to cope with adversity and personal acceptance underlie the impact of perceived security on self-concept. It is recommended to promote family intervention programs framed within positive parenting that focus on fostering secure attachment given its influence on adult life. It is also deemed essential to incorporate the promotion of resilience and self-esteem into programs aimed at youths, and adult role models can enhance their self-perception and resilience in the face of potential effects stemming from insecure parenting practices.

Research on the influence of family capital on academic achievement of first-generation college students in China

Objective

The objective of this study is to explore the influence of family capital (including family economic capital, family cultural capital and family social capital) on the academic achievement (including ability development, academic performance and self-concept) of first-generation college students.

Methods

The questionnaires are based on the CFPS (China Family Panel Studies) database and tailored to the specific circumstances. Data was collected from 1524 first-generation college students from five universities in Liaoning Province. SPSS 23.0 and AMOS 24.0 were used to analyze the data.

Results

Family economic capital significantly predicted ability development (standardized regression coefficient = 0.198, P < 0.001) and academic performance (standardized regression coefficient = 0.220, P < 0.001); Family cultural capital significantly predicted ability development (standardized regression coefficient = .114, P < 0.001), academic performance (standardized regression coefficient = 0.217, P < 0.001) and self-concept (standardized regression coefficient = 0.160, P < 0.001); Family social capital significantly predicted academic performance (standardized regression coefficient=0.084, P < 0.01) and self-concept (standardized regression coefficient = 0.156, P < 0.001).

Conclusion

Family capital can significantly affect the academic achievement of first-generation college students. To bridge the gap of academic achievement caused by family capital for first-generation college students and promote class mobility, special attention should be paid to the internal actions of students in higher education fields, the connection between different fields should be strengthened, and humanistic care for disadvantaged groups should be implemented.

The Dynamics of Mastery Motivation and Its Relationship with Self-Concept in Music Education

Musical education hinges on students' mastery motivation and self-concept, which are crucial for effective musical learning. Despite the acknowledgement of their individual importance, the relationship between these factors within music education remains unexplored. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the dynamics of mastery motivation (MM) and its relationship with self-concept (SC) in the context of music education. A survey was administered to 139 Hungarian grade 7 students, employing a musical MM questionnaire, a musical SC inquiry, and the collection of demographic information collection. We employed descriptive statistics (IBM SPSS 23), a Rasch analysis (WINSTEPS), and correlational and regression analyses (R programming and SmartPLS4) for data analysis. The findings demonstrated that the utilized instruments were reliable and valid in measuring students' MM and SC in music education. This study revealed a strong positive correlation (r = 0.778) between students' MM and SC, with moderate to strong inter-relationships among various subfactors. Furthermore, comparisons unveiled significant disparities in musical MM across school levels, with higher MM and SC observed among female students. Furthermore, gender, a musical family background, and awareness of musical lesson usefulness were predictive factors for both students' MM and SC within music education. This study provides valuable insights for professionals and policy makers to enhance music education, nurturing students' musical growth effectively. By understanding the relationship between MM and SC and considering predictive factors, stakeholders can develop strategies that optimize the impact of music education on students' musical development.

Parental Attachment, Self-Esteem, Social Problem-Solving, Intimate Partner Violence Victimization in Emerging Adulthood

Emerging adults can experience conflicts with their dating partner, leading to intimate partner violence (IPV). In order to understand the vulnerability factors involved in IPV victimization, the current study explored a serial multiple mediation model to determine the links between parental attachment (to the father and mother), self-esteem, and social problem solving (SPS) on the three forms of IPV (psychological, physical and sexual). Based on an online survey, 756 emerging adults (84.8% women, mean age = 23.52) completed self-report questionnaires related to parental attachment, self-esteem, SPS (avoidance and impulsive/carelessness style), and IPV during the past year. The study design was cross-sectional and data were analyzed through partial least structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique. The findings did not support serial multiple mediation model, as the indirect effects of the two specific mediation models were not significant. However, the total indirect effects were significant, indicating a cascade effect chain of events between the variables; insecure parental attachment was related to lower self-esteem, which was associated with poor SPS skills (especially impulsive/carelessness style), which in turn was associated with both psychological and physical violence victimization. The implications of the findings for promoting the life skills of emerging adults, such as problem solving or self-esteem, to enable them to handle their relationship conflicts are discussed.

Bullying and Self-Concept, Factors Affecting the Mental Health of School Adolescents

Bullying is an aggressive and repetitive behavior, where one person or several people physically, socially, or emotionally harm a vulnerable person and provokean imbalance of power in a school setting. Several factors such as age, sex, school performance, psychological factors, and ethnicity have been associated with bullying and more are being sought. Thus, the objectives of this study were as follows: (1) analyze the differences in bullying (victimization and aggression) and self-concept (academic, social, emotional, family, and physical) with respect to sex, school location, and educational level among Spanish adolescents; (2) explore the associations of bullying and self-concept with these sociodemographic dimensions. A cross-sectional study was designed with a total of 1155 participants (between 12 and 18 years old); there were 48.8% boys and 51.2% girls, where 75.9% studied compulsory secondary education (CSE) and 24.1% Baccalaureate, and 31.9% were students from rural schools and 68.1% were from urban schools. Medium and inverse correlations were shown between victimization and self-concept at the general level, for both sexes, both types of school, and both educational stages. For the aggression dimension, the correlations with self-concept were inverse at the general level (low), in girls (low), in rural students (medium), and in compulsory secondary education students (medium). For academic self-concept and family self-concept, the associations were medium and inverse with bullying in all variables. For emotional self-concept the correlation with bullying was direct and medium in all variables; in physical self-concept, the correlations with bullying were inverse in almost all variables except in boys. Self-concept may be a protective factor for bullying and interventions should aim at adolescents building a positive multidimensional self-concept that prevents and protects them from bullying either as aggressor or victim.

The Estimation of Physical Distances Between Oneself and a Social Robot: Am I as Far From the Robot as It is from Me?

Research on the perception of interpersonal distance has shown the existence of an asymmetry effect which depends on the reference point of the estimation: the distance from oneself to others can be perceived as longer or shorter than the distance from others to oneself. The mechanism underlying this asymmetric effect is related to the object's cognitive salience. The self often functions as a habitual reference point and therefore one's own salience may be higher than that of other objects. In this case, an egocentric asymmetry effect appears with a perceived shorter distance from others to oneself. However, if others are more salient than oneself, then the reverse can happen (allocentric asymmetry effect). The present work investigates if asymmetry in self-other(s) distance perception changes when the other is a social robot. An experiment was conducted with 174 participants who were asked to estimate the distance between themselves and both robotic and human assistants on a schematic map of a hospital emergency room (between-subjects design). With robust ANOVA, the results showed that the participants felt closer to the human assistant than to the robot, notably when the person served as the estimation reference point. Perceived distances to the social robot were not significantly distorted. If a rather allocentric effect with the human assistant might reflect an affiliation goal on the part of the participants, the absence of effect with the social robot forces us to reconsider its humanization. This could nevertheless reflect a purely mechanical and utilitarian conception of it.

Cross-Bite and Oral-Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) in Preadolescents Aged 11 to 14 Years Old: A Pilot Case-Control Study

INTRODUCTION

Malocclusions have a negative impact on oral-health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Posterior cross-bite is one of the most prevalent malocclusions in the preadolescent population. This study investigated the influence of posterior cross-bites (unilateral or bilateral) on OHRQoL in an 11- to 14-year-old population.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A pilot case-control study was carried out at the Dental Clinic of the University of Salamanca between 2021 and 2023. A consecutive sample of 120 preadolescent patients aged 11 to 14 years old was recruited. Three groups were analyzed: a control group (no posterior cross-bite) (n = 40), a group with unilateral posterior cross-bite (n = 40), and a group with bilateral posterior cross-bite (n = 40). To analyze the OHRQoL, the Spanish version of the Child Perception Questionnaire (CPQ-Esp11-14) was used.

RESULTS

The mean age of the sample was 12.2 years old (±0.96 years). The group of patients with a bilateral posterior cross-bite was shown to have higher scores in all dimensions of the CPQ-Esp11-14, as well as a higher total score. Sex only influenced the oral symptom dimension of the CPQ-Esp11-14 questionnaire; in this dimension, the girls described a greater impact. Age did not influence OHRQoL.

CONCLUSION

The presence of a posterior cross-bite had a negative impact on OHRQoL in the preadolescent population that was studied.

Effectiveness of a Judo Intervention Programme on the Psychosocial Area in Secondary School Education Students

Currently, many combat sports are pedagogically conceived as uneducational and unreliable for the development of young people. The present research aims to investigate the influence of a Judo intervention programme on the motivational climate towards sport, aggressive behaviour, emotional intelligence, and self-concept in secondary school students and to establish the relationships between them. This objective was broken down into (a) developing an explanatory model of the variables mentioned above and (b) testing the model equations through a multi-group analysis in terms of pre-test and post-test. The present study conducted a pre-post-test quasi-experimental design with a single experimental group. The sample consisted of a total of 139 adolescents (12.67 ± 1.066), 50.4% of whom were male (n = 70) and 49.6% female (n = 69). The results show that the intervention decreased all types of aggression and increased levels of emotional intelligence. An increase in social, physical and academic self-concept and decreases in the family and emotional areas were also observed. Finally, for the motivational climate, a tendency towards the ego climate to the detriment of the task climate was observed. It is concluded that the Judo intervention programme is effective in decreasing aggressive behaviour and effective in increasing levels of emotional intelligence and self-concept.

Mediterranean diet adherence on self-concept and anxiety as a function of weekly physical activity: an explanatory model in higher education

Introduction

Scientific literature has now demonstrated the benefits of an active lifestyle for people's psychological health. Based on the above statement, the aim was to (a) evaluate and adjust a structural equation model containing the variables anxiety, self-concept, and Mediterranean diet adherence and (b) contrast the proposed theoretical model by studying the differences between the variables according to the level of weekly physical activity in a sample of 558 university students.

Methods

A non-experimental, exploratory, cross-sectional investigation has been proposed. Instruments such as the PREDIMED Questionnaire, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and the Form 5 Self-Concept Questionnaire were used to collect data.

Results and discussion

The results illustrate that students showing low adherence to the Mediterranean diet had higher levels of anxiety (M = 0.95) than those showing a high degree of adherence (M = 0.75). It is also observed that young people with a high degree of adherence to the Mediterranean diet report higher scores in the different dimensions of self-concept compared to young people with a low degree of adherence. In conclusion, it is affirmed that young people who show a high degree of adherence to this dietary pattern show lower levels of anxiety and greater recognition of the different areas of their self-concept.

Assessing Self-Concept in Children (Aged 5-7) with Functional Dyslalia

Language not only plays a powerful role in human life, as it is also a crucial factor in our minds. It shapes our personality, memory and even the way in which we see the world, as well as playing a fundamental role in the building of self-concept and self-esteem. Having a good self-concept, that is, knowing one's own qualities and strengths, will, in turn, promote good self-esteem. The aim of this research was to analyze self-concept in 50 children (aged 5-7) with functional dyslalia in the city of Granada (Spain). A quantitative approach was taken, with a non-experimental design; it was descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational. The Perception of Child Self-concept Scale (PCS), a Spanish scale, was used. In general, the children who were interviewed showed a medium level of self-concept. It is noteworthy that differences were found in the average scores on the scale according to the sex of the children, with girls showing a higher level of self-concept than boys. Participants scored higher on Factor 1, family attachment, followed by Factor 3, feelings, with the values of both these factors decreasing with age. On the other hand, lower average scores were found for Factor 2, environment, and Factor 4, autonomy. It was found that self-concept was higher in young children (five-year-old children) as well as in those who studied in rural areas. Finally, guidelines for improvement were provided. Self-concept is a fundamental aspect of personality, but it is not innate; it develops and evolves.

Transcultural adaptation, content, and internal structure validity evidence of the perceived efficacy and goal setting system - 2 edition for Brazilian children

Aim

The aim was to investigate the validity of evidence of the Perceived Efficacy and Goal Setting System second edition for Brazilian children.

Methods

258 children participated, both sexes (n = 133 girls; 51.6%), 5 to 9 years old (total sample Mage = 7.1, SD = 1.4), from four regions of Brazil. The Perceived Efficacy and Goal Setting System – second edition, was used.

Results

Experts showed agreement about the high clarity and practical pertinence of the items (content validity coefficient from 98.4 to 100%; Gwet’s agreement coefficient from 0.85 to 1.00, p &lt; 0.001). Confirmatory factorial analysis showed adequate adjustment indexes (RMSEA [0.048, 90% C.I. = 0.043 to 0.053], SRMR [0.243], CFI [0.91], RNI [0.91], TLI [0.91], ꭓ2/df [1.962]). The multigroup analysis showed configural, metric and scalar invariance of two models for gender (CFI = 0.97; RMSEA, [90%C.I.] = 0.05 [0.03 to 0.07]; metric: ΔRMSEA = 0.001; scalar: ΔRMSEA = −0.004) and age band (5–7 years-old and 8–9 years-old; CFI = 0.94; RMSEA, [90%C.I.] = 0.05 [0.03 to 0.07]; metric: ΔRMSEA = 0.002; scalar: ΔRMSEA = 0.010). The Heterotrait-Monotrait ratio test showed adequate discriminant validity among three dimensions (self-care and productivity [value = 0.76]; self-care and leisure [value = 0.57], productivity and leisure [value = 0.76]). Alpha for polychoric correlations showed an adequate internal consistency for all items and total scale (all α values &gt;0.70). Composite reliability (Self-care = 0.8; Productivity = 0.81; Leisure = 0.8) reinforce evidence about reliability. Percentage agreement showed adequate item-level test-retest reliability (values between 76 and 92%).

Conclusion

This scale showed adequate content and internal structure validity evidence to assess the perceived self-efficacy for Brazilian children.