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In order to address HIV infection among college students, a comprehensive measure is needed that can be used with samples from culturally diverse populations. Therefore, this paper assessed the reliability and validity of an HIV/AIDS questionnaire that measures fours dimensions of HIV/AIDS awareness-factual knowledge, prejudice, personal risk, and misconceptions about HIV transmission, and will enable cross-cultural research. The International AIDS Questionnaire-Chinese Version (IIQ-C) was developed and validated by Davis, Tang, Chan, and Noel (1999) for use with Chinese populations. In this study, the validity and reliability of the International AIDS Questionnaire-English Version (IQA-E) was assessed on a sample of English-speaking college students from the United States (N = 200) and Australia (N = 74). The results of the CFA supported the four-factor model, and the normative data show patterns similar to previous research. The total IAQ-E had a high internal consistency (Cronhach's alpha = 0.88). The Cronbach's alphas for the sub-scales were 0.87 (myths), 0.81 (attitudes), 0.66 (personal risk), and 0.40 (facts). A 2-week test-retest reliability study on a sub-sample of 32 students revealed a Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient of 0.882 (p < 0.001). This instrument provides a valid and reliable comprehensive measure of HIV/AIDS for use with English-speaking samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Musicians have been described as a 'high-risk' group for experiencing musculoskeletal symptoms (MSSs), yet few studies have tested this assumption. We aimed to determine whether the prevalence and profile of MSS outcomes differed between university music students and a reference group (science students). A survey was conducted of university music and science students. Reported MSS outcomes among the two groups were compared using regression analyses. The majority of participants in both groups reported experiencing MSSs in the last 12 months and 7 days. Music students reported a higher prevalence of wrist/hand MSSs compared with science students. Compared with symptomatic science students, music students reported a higher emotional impact of MSSs. We recommend prioritizing research into interventions for music students that address MSSs in the wrist/hand region, and the emotional impact of MSSs. Addressing these MSS outcomes could reduce the MSS burden for musicians during and beyond their studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the validation of the Chinese versions of the Suicidal Ideation Attributes Scale (SIDAS), the short form of Stigma of Suicide Scale (SOSS), and the short form of Literacy of Suicide Scale (LOSS) among 57 Chinese and English bilinguals and 224 Chinese university students. All the translated scales showed high correlations with the original versions. The translated SIDAS and refined SOSS demonstrated robust factor structures, good internal consistency, and convergent validity. Chinese students with self-reported depression symptoms tended to have higher glorification of suicide and lower suicide literacy. These brief scales fill an important gap in evaluating suicide outcomes in Chinese-speaking societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Outward appearance is one of the means by which age is determined, and fear of looking old may stem from fears about social identity and death. This study explored how social identity theory and terror management theory may help to explain the dread of looking old. University students from the United States, England, and Australia (N = 1,042) completed a questionnaire regarding their attitudes about aging and older adults. Results indicated that sex, age, beliefs about personal aging, and death anxiety explained 30.4% of the variance for participants’ dread of looking old. Theoretical hypotheses were supported by our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Aims:Workforce entry is a key transition period. It offers an ideal, but under-utilised opportunity to implement intervention strategies to prevent mental health and substance use problems among young people. A brief psychological wellbeing and substance use intervention targeting a high-risk group – apprentice chefs – was undertaken to explore this opportunity.Method:A RCT design (N = 71) was used. The intervention group received two face-to-face sessions, and controls received five related information sheets during the first 2 weeks of training, with 4-month follow-up.Results:These apprentices were a high-risk group for alcohol and other drug harm and poor psychological wellbeing. At T1, 70% of the participants had AUDIT scores indicating problem drinking; 28% had used cannabis and 18% had used amphetamines in the last 12 months; and 24% had high K10 scores. At T2, the intervention group had significantly reduced risky alcohol use (p = 0.008), improved psychological distress (p = 0.045) and ability to talk with supervisors about work issues (p = 0.001) and cope with work stress (p = 0.001) and verbal abuse (p = 0.005), compared to the control group.Conclusions:Brief tailored interventions, delivered in an occupational training environment, have potential to reduce substance use risk and enhance young workers’ psychological wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Binge eating (BE) among female university students is rising in prevalence and few studies have considered the role of social cognitive processes in decisions to engage in BE. This study adopted a theory of planned behavior (TPB) belief-based approach to examine the beliefs that underpin female university students' intentions to BE. Participants (N = 250) completed self-report questionnaires assessing BE intentions and the TPB behavioral (advantages and disadvantages of BE), normative (important others approving/disapproving of BE), and control (barriers toward and motivators for BE) belief measures. For analyses, participants were grouped based on a median split of the overall intention score into those with higher and lower intentions to binge eat. Differences in the TPB beliefs about BE between these two groups were then assessed. Female students with higher intentions to binge eat differed significantly in their endorsement of the likely beliefs related to BE, compared to female students with lower intentions to binge eat. The results suggest that interventions to decrease BE in the female student population should reduce the associated advantages (e.g., stress relief and feelings of comfort), enhance perceptions of disapproval for BE from important others (e.g., partner and friends), provide education about the health implications to strengthen the perceived barriers discouraging BE, and suggest healthy alternatives to overcome the factors (e.g., being alone and boredom) motivating BE. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The importance of preservice university teacher training about child sexual abuse and its mandatory reporting intervention is addressed in educational literature, although very little is known about student teachers’ learning interests and preferences in this area. In this article, student teachers refer to students in university who are training to become teachers whose training includes teaching experiences in schools. This study examines the content about child sexual abuse and its intervention that student teachers believe they should learn. Results based on quantitative analyses show the relative importance of gender in determining responses to questions about university training and, to a lesser extent, the importance of a previous acquaintance with victims of sexual abuse, previous employment, and the length of the university course. Results based on qualitative data show that content knowledge preferred by elementary/primary and secondary school student teachers includes the teacher's role in mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse and signs, experiences, and responses to student disclosure. Student teachers prefer content examples of school professionals’ responses and procedures after disclosure and prefer direct learning content from intervening school professionals. These outcomes could usefully guide teachers and educators who design intervention curricula on child sexual abuse for preservice teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two studies were conducted with the aim of closing the intention–behaviour gap for sunscreen use and sun protection behaviours by examining the influence of self-regulatory capacity on the prediction of sunscreen use (Study 1) and self-regulatory capacity and habit on sun protection behaviours (Study 2). Design Studies were conducted online. Participants completed questionnaires and cognitive measures and then reported behaviour one week later. Main Outcome Measures Questionnaires measuring intention and cognitive tasks measuring self-regulatory capacity were administered to 209 university students. One week later, participants reported behaviour. In Study 2, questionnaires measuring intentions, and habit and cognitive tasks measuring self-regulatory capacity were administered to 178 university students who reported behaviour one week later. Results Intention accounted for 7.1% of variance in sunscreen use, no measures of self-regulation accounted for variance in behaviour or moderated the intention–behaviour gap (Study 1). Intention, self-regulatory capacity and habit accounted for 56.1% of variance in sun protection behaviours (Study 2). Intention, self-regulatory ability and habit predicted behaviour, while habit moderated the intention–behaviour gap. Conclusion Interventions aimed at increasing sun protection behaviours should take into account level of intention, self-regulatory capacity and habit. Individuals may benefit from habit formation strategies and self-regulation training. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The high prevalence of stress and psychological distress in university students highlights the need for adequate support services to enable students to achieve their goals. This study aimed to describe counselling services available to university students in Australia and New Zealand and to benchmark them against international services. Participants were five Australian and three New Zealand Counselling Services. Results showed that counselling services are using a variety of formats and e-technologies to deliver services to students, but are hampered by limited resources compared with their international counterparts. These include very high counsellor student ratios, lower average number of consultations per student, and lower mental health qualifications of counsellors. This has even greater implications in the context of higher education reform in Australia that may further widen the gap between needs of students and available counselling services. Inadequate counselling support can negatively impact on students, universities, and the community through lost potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a need to improve methods used to assess students' clinical skills in postgraduate clinical psychology training, but research into the use of new competency-based assessments are sparse. The current study examines the potential application of the objective structured clinical examination ( OSCE) to clinical psychology training. Commonly used in medical training, the OSCE requires students to demonstrate clinical skills across a number of standardised stations with trained actors playing the part of patients. A pilot OSCE was conducted with nine students from a psychology doctoral program. Participants completed a brief student feedback questionnaire and attended a focus group after the OSCE. They also completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory before and after the OSCE. The results showed that students viewed the OSCE as a valid, realistic, and fair assessment method. They reported high levels of anxiety during the OSCE but noted that the OSCE was a positive learning experience. These results suggest that OSCEs should be considered in clinical psychology training programs for the assessment of clinical competence. Further evaluations of the validity and reliability of the clinical psychology OSCE using a larger sample size are required. Other limitations and implications of the study are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]