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Background: Over the past decade, Türkiye has experienced an increasing influx of international students, particularly from various Arab countries. The significant number of Arab international university students has prompted researchers to pay more attention to the experiences of this population in the country. This study examined the adjustment problems experienced by Arab female international university students in Türkiye., Method: The research has a mixed methods design and includes both quantitative and qualitative studies. In the quantitative study, the International Students Adjustment Scale (ISAS) was used with 373 participants to examine the challenges in which dimensions of adjustment (academic, sociocultural, or personal) were more challenging for the study group. In the qualitative study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 Arab female international university students to gain a deeper understanding of their experiences in the domain that is found the issues are more profound., Results: Data from the quantitative study revealed that these students experienced similar challenges in each dimension of adjustment; however, problems in the sociocultural domain were much more profound. In line with the quantitative study, the interview questions of the qualitative study were prepared to explore the sociocultural domain and included the pre-arrival expectations, the post-arrival adjustment challenges, and the coping strategies of the study group. The Results of the qualitative study showed that although their prearrival expectations were almost met, they encountered various problems, ranging from cultural differences in daily activities to discrimination. It was also found that many of them were reluctant to ask for help, and to cope with adjustment problems, they usually used maladaptive or dysfunctional coping strategies such as avoidance and isolation., Discussion: The findings of the quantitative study are in line with the previous studies that the overall adjustment of international students is influenced by different domains that are broadly academic, sociocultural, and personal. Among them, the sociocultural domain is found as the one in the study population that encounters more challenges. The results of the qualitative study support the findings of previous studies related to prearrival expectancies, provide more understanding of adjustment challenges and bring more information about adopted coping strategies., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Nazir and Özçiçek.)

Individuals with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) and plexiform neurofibromas (PNs) have a higher risk for socioemotional problems. The current study aims to identify the socioemotional developmental pattern and its predictors across childhood and adolescence in individuals with NF1 and PNs. Participants included 88 children with NF1 and PNs (aged 6-18 years old, M = 12.05, SD = 3.62, 57% male) in a natural history study. Neuropsychological assessments were administered three times over six years. There are large variabilities in socioemotional development in the study participants. Developmental patterns varied across socioemotional domains, respondent type (parent-report [PR] vs. child-report [CR]), demographic factors, and NF1 disease-related factors. For instance, lower parental education was associated with a greater decline in internalizing problems (PR) but a greater increase in school disconnectedness (CR) over time. Non-White (vs. White) children were more likely to experience increased adaptive skills (PR) but decreased personal adjustment (CR). Children with more visible tumors experienced a greater decrease in school disconnectedness (CR). Children with more NF1 complications experienced a greater decrease in externalizing problems (PR). These findings indicate the necessity of using multi-informants and investigating subdomains of socioemotional functions. They also highlight the importance of developing individualized approaches to patient care and interventions.

Objectives: This study aimed to understand the relationship between resource gains and losses, coping, and the quality of life during the growth phase of the COVID‑19 pandemic., Material and Methods: The Internet-based survey covered 353 individuals who had participated in a psychological support project operated by one of the non-governmental organizations in Lublin, Poland, in the 12 months prior to the outbreak of the pandemic. The questionnaire used in the study contained questions to collect sociodemographic data and psychometric scales to measure resource gains and losses (the Conservation of Resources - Evaluation questionnaire), the quality of life (the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF ), and strategies of coping with the pandemic situation (a modified Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced questionnaire)., Results: A higher global quality of life occurred with higher gains and minor losses, as well as with coping through planning, positive reframing, emotional support seeking, a reduced substance use tendency, low self-blame, avoidance, and disengagement. Moreover, helplessness-based coping strategies were found to mediate both the relationships between resource gains and the quality of life, and between resource losses and the quality of life., Conclusions: Factors that may reduce people's quality of life during the COVID‑19 pandemic are an increase in losses and limited gains, experienced over the 6 months preceding the pandemic, as well as not using active, meaning-oriented, and support-seeking coping strategies, but using avoidance behaviors instead. Coping strategies specific to people experiencing helplessness are a mediating mechanism between losses and limited gains of resources, and the quality of life. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2021;34(2):275-87., (This work is available in Open Access model and licensed under a CC BY-NC 3.0 PL license.)

This article advances the debate about costs and benefits of self-enhancement (the tendency to maintain unrealistically positive self-views) with a comprehensive meta-analytic review (299 samples, N = 126,916). The review considers relations between self-enhancement and personal adjustment (life satisfaction, positive affect, negative affect, depression), and between self-enhancement and interpersonal adjustment (informant reports of domain-general social valuation, agency, communion). Self-enhancement was positively related to personal adjustment, and this relation was robust across sex, age, cohort, and culture. Important from a causal perspective, self-enhancement had a positive longitudinal effect on personal adjustment. The relation between self-enhancement and interpersonal adjustment was nuanced. Self-enhancement was positively related to domain-general social valuation at 0, but not long, acquaintance. Communal self-enhancement was positively linked to informant judgments of communion, whereas agentic self-enhancement was linked positively to agency but negatively to communion. Overall, the results suggest that self-enhancement is beneficial for personal adjustment but a mixed blessing for interpersonal adjustment.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a vocational enablement protocol (VEP) on need for recovery (NFR) after work as compared with usual care for employees with hearing difficulties. In a randomized controlled trial design, 136 employees with hearing impairment were randomly assigned to either the VEP or the control group. VEP is a multidisciplinary program integrating audiological and occupational care for individuals experiencing difficulties in the workplace due to hearing loss. The primary outcome measure was NFR. Secondary outcome measures were communication strategy subscales (e.g., self-acceptance and maladaptive behavior), distress, and self-efficacy. Data were collected using questionnaires at baseline and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months follow-up. No significant difference over the complete follow-up period was found between the intervention and control group for NFR. However, we observed a significant difference for one of the secondary outcomes after 12 months. "Self-acceptance" increased significantly in the VEP group, compared with the controls. The mean difference between the two groups was small, being only 0.24 (95% CI [0.04, 0.44]) on a scale of 1 to 5. The results do not support the use of VEP if the aim is to reduce NFR after work at 12 months follow-up. It may be that NFR does not adequately capture what is covered in the VEP. Although marginal, the effect on self-acceptance was significant. This is encouraging given that positive effects on self-acceptance have rarely been shown for audiological rehabilitation programs. Suggestions for further improvement of the VEP are discussed.