The Relationship Between Resilience, Interactive Distance, and College Students' Online Mathematics Learning Engagement: A Longitudinal Study

Introduction

Resilience, a pivotal construct in positive psychology, remains incompletely understood in its facilitation of learners' online engagement. This study aims to investigate the relationship between resilience, transactional distance, and Online Mathematics Learning Engagement (OMLE) among first-year university students.

Methods

Utilizing a cross-lagged path analysis approach, the study surveyed 612 first-year students. Multiple models were constructed and compared to explore the mutual predictive relationships between resilience, transactional distance, and OMLE.

Results

Among the compared models, Model 4 demonstrated the best fit. The model revealed that: (1) resilience at Time 1 and Time 2 positively predicted transactional distance at Time 2 and Time 3; (2) transactional distance at Time 1 and Time 2 positively predicted OMLE at Time 2 and Time 3; (3) resilience at Time 1 significantly predicted OMLE at Time 3; and (4) transactional distance at Time 2 fully mediated the relationship between resilience at Time 1 and OMLE at Time 3. Furthermore, mediational model analysis confirmed that transactional distance played a mediating role in the longitudinal relationship between resilience and OMLE. Using a cross-lagged mediational model with 5000 bootstrap samples, the indirect effect of transactional distance on the relationship between resilience at Time 1 and OMLE at Time 3 was significant and remained stable over time.

Discussion

The findings suggest that resilience, as a positive psychological resource, stimulates students to seek and utilize protective resources in online environments, leading to more active participation in interpersonal communication and classroom interactions. Additionally, resilience helps students overcome emotional and practical difficulties encountered in online learning, thereby enhancing their OMLE. These insights offer valuable implications for educators, highlighting the potential to improve students' online learning engagement by fostering their psychological resilience.

Lack of bidirectional association between C-reactive protein and depressive symptoms in middle-aged and older adults: Results from a nationally representative prospective cohort study

Depression is associated with low quality of life and increased health burdens for middle-aged and older adults in resource-limited settings. Although inflammation plays an etiological role in the development and progression of depression, the directionality of the inflammation-depression relationship is unclear, especially in non-Western populations. To examine this relationship among community-dwelling Chinese middle-aged and older adults, we obtained data from the 2011, 2013, and 2015 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). The participants were aged 45 years or above at baseline in 2011 and completed the follow-up survey in 2013 and 2015. Depressive symptoms were measured using the 10-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD-10), and the C-reactive protein (CRP) level was used to measure individual inflammation levels. Cross-lagged regression analyses examined the inflammation-depression relationship. Cross-group analyses were performed to test for model invariance across the sexes. Pearson's correlations revealed no concurrent correlations between depression and CRP for both 2011 and 2015 (ps > 0.05, ranging 0.07-0.36) studies. Cross-lagged regression path analyses revealed that the paths from baseline CRP to depression in 2013 (ß_std  = -0.01, p = 0.80), from baseline CRP to depression in 2015 (ß_std  = 0.02, p = 0.47), from baseline depression to CRP in 2015 (ß_std  = -0.02, p = 0.40), and from depression at 2013 to CRP in 2015 (ß_std  = 0.03, p = 0.31) were not statistically significant. Additionally, the autoregressive model did not vary across the sexes (△χ ² = 78.75, df = 54, p = 0.02, △ comparative fit index (CFI) <0.01). We failed to find a bidirectional association between the CRP levels and depressive symptoms in our sample.

Bi-Directionality between Physical Activity within School and Fundamental Movement Skills in School-Aged Students: A Cross-Lagged Study

Background: Evidence has indicated the health importance of fundamental movement skills (FMS) and physical activity (PA) in children and their relationships seems bidirectional. However, their bidirectional relationship has not yet been fully answered in the literature. Aim: This study sought to determine bidirectional relationship between FMS and PA in children using cross-lagged study design. Methods: A total of 183 second-level students (8.8 ± 1.1 years old) from three primary schools in Henan Province, China were selected as subjects. The average number of steps per school day was used as the amount of PA in the school environment; the third edition of the test of gross motor development was used for FMS testing. The baseline data (T1) and tracking data (T2) were collected at the beginning and end of the fall semester, respectively. The two tests were separated by 3 months (11 weeks), and a cross-lag model analysis was performed. Based on the hypothetical model, we tested the cross-lag effect of children’s PA and FMS. Results: The model fit index was χ2/df = 2.861 (p < 0.001, n = 183); goodness of fit index GFI = 0.900; NFI = 0.909; CFI = 0.931 and the 95%CI was between 0.071−0.192. The RMSEA = 0.063, and the standardized residual root mean square SRMR = 0.029. The T1 FMS can be used to predict the number of steps in the T2 teaching days with statistical significance (β = 0.22, 95% CI: 0.07−0.38, p = 0.003). However, the T1 steps cannot be used to predict the T2 FMS (β = 0.05, 95% CI: 0.07−0.13, p = 0.475). Further analysis shows that the main contributor to these relationships are ball skills in the FMS. Conclusions: The relationship between children’s fundamental movement skills and PA is not two-way. Students with higher FMS are expected to reach higher levels of PA after undergoing school PA in a teaching cycle. The PA of the students can be improved by improving their motor skills, which further improves their physical and mental health.

The Construction of Positive Social Psychology During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Exploring the Relationship Between Social Support and Peace of Mind Through a Three-Wave Longitudinal Cross-Lag Study

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has sparked a major global crisis that has infected public social mentality. Drawing on the concept of peace of mind (PoM), a culture-specific positive emotion construct developed in the Chinese cultural context, this study explored the ways to build a positive public social mentality in the time of the pandemic. PoM is indicative of a calm and stable emotional state marked by self-control and spiritual cultivation and is believed to align with the perceptions of subjective well-being in Chinese or eastern cultures. A three-wave cross-lag study using an online questionnaire survey was conducted on 107 employees in Chinese enterprises during the pandemic. The research findings suggest that social support had a significant positive time-cross effect on later PoM, i.e., social support-T1 had a significant predictive effect on PoM-T2 (β = 0.16, SE = 0.09, p < 0.05) and social support-T2 had a significant predictive effect on PoM-T3 (β = 0.38, SE = 0.19, p < 0.05), whereas PoM failed to show a positive time-cross effect on later social support, i.e., the predictive effects of PoM-T1 on social support-T2 (β = 0.04, SE = 0.07, p > 0.05) and of PoM-T2 on social support-T3 (β = 0.13, SE = 0.09, p > 0.05) were not significant. This study provided a dynamic picture of the construction of public social mentality in the time of public health emergencies and also contributed to the research on PoM antecedents.

The Reciprocal Relationship between Frailty and Depressive Symptoms among Older Adults in Rural China: A Cross-Lag Analysis

(1) Objective: This study aimed to investigate the reciprocal relationship between frailty and depressive symptoms using longitudinal data among older adults in China. (2) Methods: Data derived from 2014 and 2017 waves of a longitudinal study of 1367 older adults aged 70–84 years, living in rural areas of Jiangsu Province, China. Cross-lagged panel model and a multiple group model were used to examine the temporal effect of frailty on depressive symptoms and vice versa. (3) Results: Frailty was associated with subsequent increase in depressive symptoms, such that participants with higher levels of frailty increase the risks of depressive symptoms (b = 0.090, p < 0.01). Depressive symptoms were significant predictors of increased frailty (b = −0.262, p <0.001). However, older men and older women had no significant differences in the reciprocal relationship between frailty and depressive symptoms. (4) Conclusions: In conclusion, we find a significant bi-directional relationship between frailty and depressive symptoms. This finding confirms the dyadic model of frailty and depression. Implications for interventions and policy to help frail and depressive older adults are discussed.

The reciprocal associations between caregiver burden, and mental health in primary caregivers of cancer patients: A longitudinal study: Family functioning, caregiver burden, and mental health Wenjun Yu et al

OBJECTIVE

The vital role played by primary caregivers in caring for cancer patients is well-recognized, but the caregiver burden and impact on family functioning to caregivers' mental health is poorly understood. This study examined the prospective and reciprocal relationships between family functioning, caregiver burden, and mental health. We aimed to determine whether inferior family functioning and heavy caregiver burden act as risk factors for mental health, as consequences of mental health, or both.

METHODS

Participants were 187 primary caregivers of cancer patients. They completed questionnaires with standardized measures assessing family functioning, caregiver burden, and mental health. A quantitative longitudinal design and a cross-lag model were used to test the reciprocal relationships between variables at three time points with 6-month intervals during the first year of early-stage cancer diagnosis and treatment.

RESULTS

Family functioning did not predict participants' future mental health, but their mental health state predicted future caregiver burden and family functioning. Caregiver burden also predicted participants' future mental health. There was a dynamic reciprocal relationship between caregiver burden and mental health over time.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of this study emphasize the adverse effects of caregiver burden and may contribute to shedding light on the distinct mechanisms that underlie the relationships between caregiver burden, family functioning, and mental health. Our findings indicate the necessity of developing interventions to reduce the burden of caregiving and to facilitate family functioning. They will provide direction for family-centered nursing to meet primary caregivers' mental health needs in the care of cancer patients.

A longitudinal study testing the role of psychache in the association between emotional abuse and suicidal ideation

OBJECTIVE

Research suggests that emotional abuse is associated with adolescent suicidal ideation. But how they are related is still unclear. The present study tested the temporal relationship between emotional abuse and suicidal ideation, with psychache as the potential mediator. We also examined the reciprocal relationship between psychache and suicidal ideation.

METHOD

A number of 2,259 Chinese high school students (53.8% females, mean age = 15.11, SD = 1.57) in Hong Kong completed questionnaires assessing emotional abuse, psychache, and suicidal ideation three times at 6-month intervals.

RESULTS

The results supported the mediating effect of psychache in the path from emotional abuse to suicidal ideation. In addition, psychache and suicidal ideation were related reciprocally over time.

CONCLUSION

The findings of this study may help researchers and practitioners understand the pathways by which emotional abuse impacts adolescent suicidal ideation. Implications for preventions and interventions of suicidal ideation were discussed.

Do Both Intrinsic and Identified Motivations Have Long-Term Effects?

This research examined the possible long-term effects of autonomous motivation on educational outcomes in the large scale High School Longitudinal Study 2009 (HSLS:09) data. We used a three-wave cross-lagged model to examine the longitudinal effects of intrinsic and identified motivation on 18,132 students in the mathematics domain and 16,684 students in the science domain. The results showed that intrinsic motivation was a long-term and effective enhancement agent on the subsequent academic performance, self-efficacy, identity, and course effort. In contrast, identified motivation might be sensitive to the contexts and was thus vulnerable to change in the long-term effects. Though identified motivation has positive effects on some immediate educational outcomes and is often regarded as "helpful" motivation, its positive effect is probably short-lived and might not last long in real life educational settings.

Perceived Parental Control, Self-Criticism, and Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Among Adolescents: Testing the Reciprocal Relationships by a Three-Wave Cross-Lag Model

This study examined the prospective and reciprocal relationships among perceived parental control, self-criticism, and nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). We also examined the mediating effect of self-criticism in the relationship between perceived parental control and NSSI. We aimed to find out whether perceived parental control and self-criticism acted as risk factors for NSSI, or consequences of NSSI, or both. A group of 3,600 Chinese adolescents (mean age = 14.63 years, 56.6% female) completed questionnaires, with measures assessing NSSI, self-criticism, and parental control. A cross-lag model was used to test the reciprocal relationships among variables at 3 time points with 6-month intervals. Perceived parental control and self-criticism did not reliably predict later NSSI, but NSSI predicted later perceived parental control and self-criticism. Findings of this study emphasize the adverse effects of NSSI, and shed light on the intervention efforts of this behavior.