Search

Numerous quantitative studies in science education found that student engagement declined after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, but analyses to identify the factors that drove emotional engagement down are lacking. Emotional engagement is a multidimensional construct composed of interest in an academic discipline, value in an academic course, and anxiety. Here, we use qualitative analysis to examine how and why the emergency shift from face-to-face to online classes during and after the pandemic-induced emergency remote transition impacted student emotional engagement. We coded student responses to open-ended questions using an emotional engagement framework and compared them between March and May 2020. Students' survey responses indicate that their positive attitudes toward science and value in the course declined. In contrast, more students expressed negative values of the course in the post-survey, with students mainly critiquing instructors and learning. This qualitative analysis offers a deeper understanding of students' emotional challenges during this educational upheaval and suggests effective teaching strategies for future crises.

The study delves into the behavioral shifts observed in "digital students" transitioning from distance to onsite learning during the Generation Z era, influenced significantly by the disruptive effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Technological advancements have reshaped students' perspectives, rendering educational and organizational engagements more accessible via platforms like video conferencing. However, the return to onsite learning has prompted a notable culture shock, leading to heightened levels of stress and anxiety among digital students. This research aims to examine the psychological ramifications of stress and anxiety on post-pandemic student attitudes toward extracurricular organizational intention. Employing the depression anxiety stress scale (DASS-42) and conducting multiple linear regression analysis on a sample of 420 respondents, the study reveals a significant negative impact of stress level (-35.6%) on students' intentions to engage in organizational activities. Additionally, anxiety levels contribute to a variation of -6.8%. These findings underscore the intricate relationship between psychological factors and student participation, underscoring the imperative to address stress and anxiety to foster robust involvement in campus organizational endeavors.

Purpose: Given the research gaps identified in a literature review, this study aims to uncover how the intensity of learners' motivational behavior and its predictors vary with grade level. Methodology: A large-scale survey was conducted to examine motivational behavior and its predictors among EFL learners across three education levels and ten grades in Taiwan: primary school (Grades 3 to 6), junior high school (Grades 7 to 9), and senior high school (Grades 10 to 12). A total of 12,441 valid cases were collected from both rural and urban areas in Taiwan. ANOVA and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data. Findings: The results showed a significant effect of grade level on the intensity of motivational behavior. Specifically, learners' intensity of motivational behavior tended to decline with grade level (years of study). The significant predictors of motivational behavior also differed with grade level. Significance: In addition to theoretical and methodological contributions to L2 motivation research, this study can enhance understanding of factors that could enhance learners' motivational behavior and offer implications to assist EFL teachers in developing motivational teaching strategies.

This study aimed to investigate the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) anxiety on multi-dimensional 21st-century skills and lifelong learning among undergraduates. A quantitative method using a correlational research model was used to examine the relationships between AI anxiety, 21st-century skills, and lifelong learning levels, considering various demographic and educational variables. Data were collected from undergraduates in educational faculty programs in Kyrenia, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) during the 2023-2024 academic year. Findings revealed a moderate level of AI anxiety among students, a strong perception of possessing relevant 21st-century skills, and a moderate recognition of the importance of lifelong learning. Significant differences in AI anxiety were observed based on gender, with females reporting higher anxiety levels. Age, country of origin, university, faculty program, class level, GPA, use of AI-based products or services, and daily internet use for professional development also influenced students' 21st-century skills and lifelong learning levels. No significant correlations were found between AI anxiety and the other constructs, while a moderate positive correlation was identified between 21st-century skills and lifelong learning. These findings emphasize the importance of fostering 21st-century skills for lifelong learning and suggest that AI anxiety may not significantly impact students' skill acquisition or learning behaviours.

This study was an exploration of COVID-19 anxiety and its relationship with teacher burnout. The study was a cross-sectional survey research design with a convenience sample drawn from a population of K-12 public school teachers. A non-parametric statistical test, Kruskal-Wallis, showed a statistically significant difference in teacher burnout across the three grade levels: X[superscript 2] (2, N = 61) = 6.20, p = 0.045. Teacher burnout was lowest amongst elementary school teachers (M = 47.00) when compared to middle school (M = 74.00) and high school teachers (M = 71.00). Implications include a need for increased administrative support and decreased stress levels for teachers.

The metaverse which is considered as the digital big bang of humanity and the next evolution of the internet is anticipated to offer a living environment for civilization 5.0 and beyond in various domains including education. Each novice technology that enters our daily lives generates also fear, anxiety, and problems as well as hope, benefit, and attraction. The purpose of this research is to investigate what ethical problems the metaverse may cause in higher education institutions and how healthy metaverse universities can be created within the framework of ethics. Interpretative phenomenological research design was employed in the study and data was collected from the field experts and lecturers in higher education. The study indicated thirteen VR/AR/XR experts' and lecturers' visions on the metaverse-based ethical issues and practical implications that could be applied within the scope of five thematic nodes comprising metaverse awareness, security and data, safety and wellness, social equality and diversity, and accessibility. It is expected that the study will contribute to the design of a healthy and good metaverse in the future of higher education institutions pursuant to ethical values.

This research paper delves into the origins of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) speaking anxiety in Moroccan high school students and offers potential remedies to reduce or prevent its occurrence, with a particular emphasis on encouraging a willingness to speak. The study involved 37 high school teachers who completed a questionnaire regarding their strategies to mitigate speaking anxiety and promote communication willingness among Moroccan EFL high school students. The data was collected and analyzed using SPSS. The findings reveal that anxiety stems from various factors, including linguistic issues (such as limited vocabulary, grammar challenges, and fluency), personal factors (such as learner personality and motivation), and teacher-related factors (including feedback quality and classroom activities). Moreover, the research suggests that teachers should prioritize strategies like providing positive feedback, offering praise, and incorporating collaborative work or task-based learning to reduce students' EFL speaking anxiety. Additionally, teacher participants proposed additional strategies focused on a variety of activities and methods to foster a welcoming classroom atmosphere.

Writing anxiety has been identified as a significant obstacle for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners in China, with previous studies indicating that it can negatively affect writing performance. Despite this, most research on writing anxiety in the Chinese EFL context has focused on the relationship between writing anxiety and writing performance, with limited attention paid to exploring writing anxiety during the writing process and its sources in depth. This study applied a qualitative method to explore Chinese EFL learners' writing anxiety in the writing process. Thematic analysis was used for analyzing data collected through semistructured interviews with 18 Chinese EFL learners. The results revealed seven primary themes, including lack of knowledge about the writing topic, inexperience with the genre, challenges with brainstorming or coming up with ideas, trouble with structuring or arranging information, difficulty with integrating sources, linguistic difficulty, and negative or no feedback from instructors. The findings indicated that writing anxiety accompanies throughout the writing process. EFL learners need strategies to alleviate writing anxiety, including clear instructions on how to approach writing tasks, provision of appropriate resources, individualized feedback, and a supportive learning environment.

Studies show undergraduate students typically view the idea of research negatively, with students reporting feelings of anxiety, difficulty, detachment, and reduced perceptions of relevancy to their own life. Course-based undergraduate experiences (CUREs), where students have an opportunity to engage in authentic research experiences, can reach large number of students in a convenient fashion, thus, are well-positioned to shift student perceptions of research. The purpose of this study is to explore changes in attitudes towards research in a large sample of undergraduate students' after completing one semester of a CURE, either in-person or online due to COVID-19. This study used a within-subjects pre-posttest design. Data collection took place over eight semesters from fall 2019 through spring 2022 at a large metropolitan public university in the southeast region of the United States. Students enrolled in the CURE were asked to complete the Attitude Towards Research scale at the beginning and end of the semester covering the following factors: usefulness of research (F1), anxiety (F2), affect indicating positive feelings about research (F3), life relevancy of research to the students' daily lives (F4), and difficulty of research (F5). Wilcoxon signed rank tests for paired data were conducted and Mann-Whitney U tests assessed whether there were any differences between students who completed the course face-to-face versus online. Across all eight semesters, 1,003 students (74% female, 91% Seniors) provided valid pre-posttest data. Statistically significant improvements were observed across all semesters (online and face-to-face) for research anxiety, positive attitude towards research, research relevance to own life, and research difficulty from the ATR scale (p<0.05). For usefulness of research for profession (F1), statistically significant differences were observed in four out of the eight semesters (p<0.05). Changes in students' attitudes towards research did not differ between course modality (face-to-face versus online) except for F1. The mean change in F1 was different between students taking a face-to-face (mean: 0.22, ±SD 1.02) versus online version (mean: 0.07, ±SD 0.72) of the course (z = 2.35, p = 0.02). Findings from this study demonstrate the potential of a CURE at reducing anxiety, lowering perceived difficulty, enhancing overall impressions, and students' overall attitudes toward research and research-based education. Continued consideration and evaluation of how and what is delivered in CUREs to students is required to advance the pedagogy of research methods.

This study aims to investigate students' speaking anxiety in English classes in the second semester of Universitas Borneo Tarakan. Specifically, this study examines the factors that influence students' speaking anxiety and strategies to minimize it based on what the students have experienced. Thirty-eight students were selected as research subjects using a specialized sampling method. The researchers used a descriptive qualitative method with a phenomenological approach by conducting interviews, questionnaires, and observations with students who have anxiety in speaking English. The results showed two factors, including internal factors, i.e., discouragement (feeling shy), lack of confidence, and fear of making mistakes, and external factors (limited vocabulary and friends/classmates). And there are two strategies shown in this study (preparation and relaxation). The conclusion of this study is that speaking anxiety can occur and hinder students' speaking performance. Therefore, strategies are needed to do so in order to make it easier for students to speak.

Cyber victimization is a growing global concern, impacting both the physical and mental well-being of individuals. Some empirical studies have declared that cyber victimization is considered as an important factor in the emergence of symptoms of social anxiety. Whereas other studies still show inconsistency regarding the relationship. According to the PRISMA method, the present study used a three-level meta-analysis to obtain reliable estimates of effect sizes and examined a range of moderators. Based on 43 studies, a total of 115 effect sizes and 41,313 participants were retrieved through systematic literature searches. The meta-analysis revealed a statistically significant positive correlation between cyber victimization and social anxiety. Furthermore, significant moderating effects were found in the study. The correlation is stronger between cyber victimization and social anxiety in children compared to adolescents. Additionally, victims exhibited heightened fear of negative evaluation from peers (FNE) among significant social anxiety variables. Notably, effect sizes were significantly larger when social anxiety was assessed using the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SASA), as opposed to the Social Anxiety Scale for Children-Revised (SASC-R). The current findings contribute to a deeper understanding and underscore the importance of personalized interventions aimed at mitigating cyber victimization and preventing social anxiety.

Digital training has significantly transformed the landscape of teacher professional development, introducing various uncertainties. In this context, adaptability can play a crucial role in helping teachers cope with stress and effectively navigate new and changing scenarios. However, existing research on adaptability has not adequately addressed the specific challenges and opportunities presented by digital training, nor has it thoroughly explored the interplay between external factors and individual characteristics. Therefore, this study is based on job demands-resources (JD-R) theory to explore the school-level (school support) and individual-level (perceived value) predictors that influence teachers' digital training adaptability (DTA) and their mechanisms of action through hierarchical linear model. To this end, a questionnaire was administered to 552 teachers from 55 schools who had participated in digital training. The results of multilevel regression analyses show that (1) emotional support and cognitive support have a significant positive effect on teachers' DTA; (2) perceived value plays a mediating role in the relationship among emotional support, cognitive support, and teachers' DTA; and (3) emotional support weakens the relationship between perceived value and teachers' DTA, but cognitive support enhances this relationship. The study discusses these results further to propose feasible recommendations for building a community that improves the support system and adopts evidence-based policy-making to enhance the effectiveness and relevance of training, thereby improving teachers' DTA.

This study aimed to analyze how career adaptability and job control can influence apprentices' perceptions of their work as being decent and stressful. The participants included 530 Swiss apprentices enrolled in a three-year vocational education training (VET) program. Structural equation modeling showed a positive association between career adaptability and job control and a strong negative association between decent work perception and occupational stress. Career adaptability had a specific positive relationship with decent work perception, whereas job control had a significant relationship with both decent work and occupational stress. Finally, results indicate that decent work could be a possible mediator between career adaptability and occupational stress and between job control and occupational stress. The study suggests that some personal resources and specific work conditions, such as physical and psychological safety and working hours that allow leisure and rest, could help apprentices perceive their work environment as positive and manage occupational stress.

Objective: Empathic concern (EC) for others may be related to COVID-19 pandemic responses. Participants and methods: The purpose of this survey study was to examine differences in pandemic responses in 1,778 college students rated as low (LE) versus high (HE) on the EC subscale of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Results: HE participants reported greater concerns in numerous pandemic-related domains, including acquiring COVID-19; access to COVID-19 treatment; number of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths reported; staying employed; and being isolated for long periods of time. Generalized anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and perceived stress scores were significantly higher for individuals in the HE group compared to the LE group. The HE group reported being significantly more adherent to health and safety recommendations than the LE group. Conclusions: Empathic concern for others is important for promoting college student prosocial behavior but is associated with anxiety and depression symptomatology during times of traumatic stress.

Objective: To examine the impact of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV2 (COVID-19) pandemic on Residents Assistants (RA) at a public university in the Midwest. Participants: Sixty-seven RAs that had been offered an RA position for the '20-'21 academic year. Methods: An online cross-sectional survey measuring socio-demographics, stress, and well-being was fielded. MANCOVA models evaluated the impact of COVID-19 on well-being of Current RAs and compared to the non-current RA groups. Results: Sixty-seven RAs provided valid data. Overall, 47% of RAs had moderate-severe anxiety and 86.3% had moderate-high level of stress. Current RAs perceiving a great impact of COVID on life had significantly more stress, anxiety, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress than those who did not. RAs who started then quit experienced significantly higher secondary trauma compared to Current RAs. Conclusions: Further research is needed to better understand the experiences and of RAs and to develop policies and programs to support RAs.

In an increasingly data-driven world, statistical literacy is a necessity yet statistical learning is often inhibited by statistics anxiety. Using the Auzmendi Scale to Measure Attitude toward Statistics (ASMAS), this study examines how statistics anxiety in university students is related to other dimensions of their attitudes toward statistics and how statistics anxiety and other dimensions change following introductory statistics instruction. Based on data collected from Spain, Canada, and Australia, this study finds that anxiety is negatively related to security--confidence, pleasantness, and motivation. The structure of these relationships is consistent across countries and disciplines and remains in place after statistics instruction. Further, by the end of an introductory statistics course, students report higher security--confidence and pleasantness but lower anxiety. Results thus suggest where efforts to improve students' experience with statistics might need to be directed, and the paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of these results for statistics instruction.

Using a qualitative case study method, we examined how students talked, acted, and felt in structured inquiry in attempt to understand how students' epistemic emotions interact with their engagement in practices. Participants were four 5th graders, and data included audio recordings of the students' talk in structured inquiry for learning a biology-related unit, the teacher's field notes, and interviews with the students. The data were analysed qualitatively with foci placed on the variations in the students' epistemic emotions and their interactions with practices. It was revealed that the students felt a variety of positive and negative epistemic emotions and shaped their practices in response to these emotions. More specifically, the students' epistemic curiosity and joy facilitated their continuous focus on inquiry tasks and taking a positive attitude towards inquiry. In addition, epistemic confusion and anxiety helped students felt helped them find alternative ways to perform their inquiry and prepare a better presentation of their learning. It was concluded that epistemic emotions and practices interacted with each other to shape students' words and behaviours as they learned science. Additionally, it was also suggested that epistemic emotions can positively contribute to the development of students' conceptual understanding of science.

The relationship between peer support and academic engagement has been widely explored. However, scarce research examined this relationship for college students, and little was known about the underlying mechanism under this relationship. This study aimed to examine the effect of peer support on academic via the mediation of academic motivation and the moderator of academic anxiety. This model was examined among 4581 Chinese college students (mean age = 20.22, SD = 0.92) who completed the measurement of peer support, academic motivation, academic engagement and academic anxiety. The results revealed that for Chinese college students, peer support significantly positively predicted academic engagement (r = 0.755, p < 0.001) and academic motivation could mediate the relationship between peer support and academic engagement ([beta] = 0.036, 95% CI [0.493, 0.638]). Moreover, as a moderator, academic anxiety weakened the correlation between peer support and academic motivation ([beta] = -0.048 95% CI [-0.062, -0.033]). The current research highlights the mechanisms underlying the relationship between peer support and academic engagement, which played a vital role in facilitating college students' academic engagement.

Objective: This study investigated differences in stress, anxiety, and social support between collegiate student-athletes and nonathletes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants: College students enrolled at a NCAA Division III private liberal arts college in the Midwest. Methods: Participants (n = 58) completed a series of surveys each month for 4 months that included the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire, Perceived Stress Scale Questionnaire, and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support Questionnaire. Results: There were significant main effects of time for stress and social support across the 4 months (p < 0.05), but not for anxiety. There was a significant difference in anxiety levels between athletes and nonathletes (p < 0.01), but not for social support or stress (p > 0.05). Conclusions: Nonathletes maintained support networks, or found alternate outlets of support, in addition to coping with anxiety and stress levels when compared to athletes.

Objective: Drinking more and drinking to cope increase undergraduates' likelihood of experiencing alcohol-related problems (ARP; e.g., driving intoxicated). In accordance with stress-coping models of addiction, anxiety about COVID-19 may motivate undergraduates to drink to cope, leading them to experience more ARP. However, this hypothesis has not been tested. Participants and methods: During fall 2020, 358 undergraduate drinkers (M[subscript age] = 21.18; 69.80% cis-women; 62.30% White) provided data regarding COVID-anxiety, alcohol consumption, drinking to cope, and ARP during an annual student survey. Results: Mediation analysis controlling for alcohol consumption revealed greater COVID-anxiety predicted higher levels of drinking to cope; in turn, higher levels of drinking to cope were associated with more ARP. Additionally, the positive relationship between greater COVID-anxiety and experiencing more ARP was explained entirely by higher levels of drinking to cope. Conclusion: During the pandemic and beyond, university prevention and intervention initiatives should target coping motives for alcohol use to help students avoid ARP.

Objective: To increase our knowledge related to student wellness programs, the current studies examined interest in wellness and wellness programs among university students and piloted a newly developed wellness program targeting students in higher education. Participants/Methods: In Study 1, 93 undergraduate students answered questions related to their wellness and mental health (e.g. psychological wellbeing, satisfaction with life, optimism, and stress) and to wellness programs (e.g. interest, barriers, duration, and topics). In Study 2, 13 undergraduate and graduate students participated in a 9-week pilot wellness program focused on specific wellness topics (e.g. relaxation, yoga, gratitude and self-compassion, and emotion regulation). Results/Conclusions: Study 1 results support a strong interest in wellness and wellness programs among undergraduate students. Study 2 results suggest that students who participated in an on-campus wellness program reported higher levels of overall psychological wellbeing and optimism and lower levels of mental health issues relative to baseline.

Objective: Limited research exists on the simultaneous effects of family functioning, social competence, and social support on the well-being and depression, anxiety, and stress of college students and the power of these effects. We examined these predictors in two models to determine each variable's impact on students' mental health. Participants: From October 2018 to November 2018, 726 students from 18 institutions of varying sizes across the United States participated in an online survey. Methods: Stratified random sampling with institution size and setting as the strata; descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression to test study hypotheses. Results: Variables predicted mental well-being and symptoms across both models, with social competence being the largest predictor, followed by perceived social support and family functioning. Conclusions: Practitioners should consider the impact of social influences on student mental health and design interventions to strengthen social competence and support.

Objective: We examined the role of personal identity vis-à-vis COVID-related outcomes among college students from seven U.S. campuses during spring/summer 2021. Participants: The present sample consisted of 1,688 students (74.5% female, age range 18-29). The sample was ethnically diverse, and 57.3% were first-generation students. Procedures: Students completed an online survey assessing personal identity synthesis and confusion, COVID-related worries, general internalizing symptoms, positive adaptation, and general well-being. Results: Personal identity synthesis was negatively related to COVID-related worries and general internalizing symptoms, and positively related to positive adaptation, both directly and indirectly through life satisfaction and psychological well-being. Personal identity confusion evidenced an opposing set of direct and indirect associations with outcome variables. Conclusions: Personal identity may potentially be protective against pandemic-related distress among college students, in part through its association with well-being. Reducing identity confusion and promoting identity synthesis are essential among college students during this and future pandemics.

This study aims to identify the associations between teacher mental health and student mental health. Cross-sectional data were collected from 127,877 students aged 9-20 years and 2,759 teachers across 31 provinces in China. The mental health of students and teachers were assessed by well-being (life satisfaction and positive mental health), and psychological distress (depression and anxiety). Controlling for demographic variables, multilevel regression analyses suggest that higher teacher positive mental health was linked to higher student positive mental health and lower student depression; higher teacher depression were correlated with higher student depression; and teacher life satisfaction and anxiety were not correlated with any indicators of student mental health. The study highlights the significant association between teacher mental health and student mental health.

The Calm Cat Program was developed in response to the need for intervention approaches that target internalizing symptoms, are developmentally appropriate for early elementary students, and are feasible for school-based implementation by staff without specialized training. The Calm Cat Program is a brief Tier 2 intervention combining behavioral skills training and mentor-based coaching. In this initial study, the Calm Cat Program was evaluated in a cluster-randomized controlled trial of 72 student participants in nine elementary schools. Over a 5-week period, school counselors implemented small-group skills training sessions, and classroom teachers provided daily coaching on targeted relaxation skills. Overall, program participation was associated with small- to medium-sized gains in relaxation skill knowledge and reductions in self-reported anxiety symptoms. In addition, both staff implementers and student participants reported generally positive perceptions of the program's usability. Additional research is needed to ensure the program's efficiency and effectiveness as an early intervention approach within multitiered frameworks.

Self-development is a crucial aspect of language teaching as it fosters various dimensions of language teacher cognition, affect, and identity, ultimately contributing to better learning outcomes. Most studies on language teacher self-development have examined language teachers' cognitive, affective, and identity-related reactions to particular programmes, often exploring variables in isolation. They have also rarely investigated the self-development practices teachers undertake to support their language teaching ability (LTA). This article reports the findings from a quantitative study on the self-development practices implemented by 113 foreign language teachers of English, French, German, and Spanish in tertiary education to sustain and augment their LTA. Adopting a complex dynamic systems approach, the study employed an online questionnaire to ascertain how variables such as participants' anxiety, beliefs about the status enjoyed by their taught languages among the university administration, colleagues, and society, multilingualism, study and teaching abroad experiences, education level, and interaction mindsets influenced their LTA-related self-development practices. The findings revealed that only participants' interaction mindsets statistically significantly predicted such practices. The article discusses the implications of these results for teacher educators, researchers, and educational institutions, and provides recommendations for the way forward.

Including routine client feedback can increase the effectiveness of mental health interventions for children, especially when implemented as intended. Rate of implementation, or dose, of such feedback interventions has been shown to moderate results in some studies. Variation in implementation and use of client feedback may also contribute to the mixed results observed within the feedback literature. This study evaluates dose-response associations of client feedback using a novel Measurement Feedback System (MFS) within an indicated group intervention. The primary aim was to determine whether the rate of MFS implementation predicts symptom reduction in anxiety and depression among school-aged children. The secondary aim was to assess whether the rate of MFS implementation influences children's satisfaction with the group intervention or their dropout rates. Data were collected via a randomized factorial study (clinicaltrials.gov NCT04263558) across 58 primary schools in Norway. Children aged 8 to 12 years (N = 701) participated in a group-based, transdiagnostic intervention targeting elevated symptoms of anxiety or depression. Half of the child groups also received the feedback intervention using the MittEcho MFS. Group leaders (N = 83), recruited locally, facilitated the interventions. The MFS dose was measured using the Implementation Index, which combines the use of MFS by both children and providers (group leaders) into a single dose variable. Results showed no significant additional effect of dose of MFS on change in depression or anxiety scores, on user satisfaction with the intervention or on intervention dropout. The discussion addresses potential reasons for these non-significant findings and implications for MFS implementation in preventive, group-based interventions in school settings.

Research Findings: Measuring toddlers' cortisol levels both in childcare and at home and their relation to child- and childcare-related factors may help to identify stress-inducing childcare practices and children who are more vulnerable to stress in childcare. Accordingly, toddlers' (n = 320, 51.2% female, mean age = 26.8 months) cortisol levels in childcare and at home and their relation to childcare quality and child- and family-related factors were investigated using linear mixed model analyses. Mid-morning to mid-afternoon cortisol levels increased in childcare and decreased at home. Younger children had higher overall cortisol levels. Children attending groups with a higher caregiver-child ratio had slightly higher cortisol levels in childcare and slightly lower cortisol levels at home. Toddlers attending disorganized groups were considerably more stressed in childcare. Practice or Policy: The present study underlines the importance of sufficient caregiver availability and stable routines in toddler classrooms.

Most research on the mental health of fathers with children on the autism spectrum has been cross-sectional. Little is currently known about the trajectories of fathers' mental health across their parenting journey. Using longitudinal latent class analysis, this study aimed to: (1) report on the estimates of fathers' psychological distress across six timepoints, from when their children were aged 4-14 years; (2) identify classes of fathers as defined by their trajectory of distress over time; and (3) identify early psychosocial risk factors associated with the identified trajectories of psychological distress. Participants were 281 fathers of children on the autism spectrum who participated in the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. Longitudinal latent profile analysis across the six timepoints of data identified a two-class model best fit the data, with profiles reflecting minimal distress (n = 236, 84%) and elevated and increasing distress (n = 45, 16%). Regression analysis revealed ongoing medical conditions and heightened interparental conflict as significant predictors to sustained psychological distress. Findings highlight that psychological distress persists for a substantial portion of fathers throughout their child's development. Strengthening fathers' physical health and enhancing the couple relationship are potential avenues for positively impacting fathers' long-term mental health.

We develop a spreadsheet-based game to illustrate fundamental statistical concepts in the first class of an undergraduate Statistics course to motivate students about the topics that they will learn in upcoming classes. This game has been implemented by Google Forms and Google Sheets and can be played in both online and in-person classes of small and large sizes. Statistics is one of the most anxiety-inducing courses for undergraduate students, especially if mathematics is not the focus of their program. Negative anecdotes about the course, mathematics anxiety, and not knowing what the course is exactly about and how practical it can be are among the reasons that contribute to statistics anxiety. The first class provides a good opportunity for an instructor to mitigate these negative impressions and to set a positive attitude toward the course. A pre- and post-game group discussion that we have conducted systematically for six years suggests that the game addresses the students' negative impression about the course and helps them gain a clearer understanding of the tools and skills they will learn in Statistics. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.

Oral care-related challenges are well documented in the autistic community. This review examined interventions designed to improve oral health in autistic individuals across the lifespan. Through a systematic process, 36 studies were identified which focused on improving home-based oral care skills and routines, and reducing fear, anxiety, and/or negative behaviors in the dental clinic. Studies incorporated preparatory interventions to support home-based hygiene activities or improve an approaching dental encounter (n = 29), most often using visual aids, and/or strategies to manage behavioral difficulties exhibited in the dental office (n = 17). Some studies used both approaches (n = 10), combining visual aids prior to a visit with behavior management in the dental office. Using an evidence-based rubric, methodological quality of most articles was only "adequate" (n = 8) or "weak" (n = 23). Findings provide preliminary support for preparatory home-based visual interventions to improve toothbrushing and/or ready patients for dental visits, and distraction or sensory-reducing interventions to improve experiences in the dental clinic. Only one study purposefully recruited autistic adults and no studies included intervention elements tailored to race/ethnicity, culture, and/or socioeconomic status. This review highlights the need for high-quality studies investigating the impact of oral care-related interventions for autistic individuals and identifies a gap in interventions for autistic adults and those from minoritized populations.

While research acknowledged the challenges faced by students during the COVID-19 pandemic, a critical gap existed in understanding the specific experiences of low-income Latinx youth. This study explored how these students navigated the transition to remote learning through a culturally responsive critical literacy program that incorporated their cultural backgrounds and lived experiences into the learning process. Findings from nine rural Latinx youth revealed a lack of motivation and anxieties surrounding both the remote learning format and the economic hardships their families faced due to the pandemic. Despite these challenges, strong community and family support (bridging & bonding) emerged as a crucial factor in fostering resilience. This research underscores the importance of culturally responsive pedagogy (CRP) that validates Latinx culture and knowledge. It argues against standardized curricula, advocating for a re-envisioned CRP that integrates community-driven initiatives and prioritizes language considerations. Implications for practice are provided.

This study aimed to identify associations and predictors of willingness to communicate (WTC) of adult foreign language (FL) learners and whether they are contingent upon the FL being learned. To this end, our research investigated learner variables associated with WTC in adult FL learners of English and of French in an under-researched field of WTC studies in Spain. More specifically, the following variables were studied: gender, age, level of multilingualism, perceived relative standing in the class, language proficiency, teacher's use of the FL in class, out-of-class foreign language use (OCFLU) and the two emotions of foreign language enjoyment (FLE) and foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA). Of the 9 independent variables examined, FLCA and language proficiency were found to be predictors of the WTC of both English and French language learners; additionally, enjoyment was found to be a predictor of WTC of learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) and OCFLU, of learners of French as a foreign language (FFL). Our findings indicate that the construct of WTC needs to be further studied as research may produce dissimilar results depending on the instructional setting, population and foreign language. Pedagogical implications for language teaching practices seeking to enhance adult FL learners' WTC were also drawn from the study results.

Compared to the general population, university students experience unique demands and stressors that impact psychosocial distress. High levels of psychosocial distress can affect students academically, socially, and professionally. Strategies students use to cope with stress on their own, particularly problem- and emotion-focused strategies, can decrease distress levels. While individual coping strategies can lower distress, it remains unclear which strategies are most effective among students and whether distinct profiles of strategies and their effectiveness exist. This study aimed to explore how Australian university students use individual coping strategies to manage stress using Latent Profile Analysis. 376 students completed an online survey of coping strategies, psychosocial distress, and general wellbeing, between November and December 2022 (Mean age = 25.76; 68.62% female). Psychosocial distress levels were characterised by anxiety, depression, perceived stress, social isolation, and emotional support. Four coping profiles were extracted: no effective/no coping, problem-focused coping, emotion-focused coping, and emotion-focused religion-dominant coping. Students endorsing problem-focused coping had significantly lower levels of psychosocial distress compared to the no effective/no coping and emotion-focused religion-dominant coping profiles, but showed no difference compared to emotion-focused coping. The no effective/no coping profile was associated with the highest levels of psychosocial distress. This underscores the importance of supporting students to endorse primarily problem-focused coping strategies, as well as emotion-focused coping strategies and educating students on how to effectively employ strategies, especially those not endorsing any effective strategies. These results may inform university support services and training for educators working directly with students on how to educate students about coping with stress.

English holds a dominant position in the L2 context, particularly for programs aimed at developing composite English skills. Despite this, the influence of individual differences on listening comprehension within the business English framework remains underexplored. Therefore, this study investigates the structural relationships among second language (L2) listening anxiety, L2 listening self-efficacy, and English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) listening comprehension, considering metacognitive awareness as a potential mediating factor. Data were collected through questionnaires from 342 Chinese undergraduates enrolled in business English programs. Using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with a bootstrapping approach, the results demonstrated that both L2 listening anxiety and self-efficacy exert direct and indirect effects on EFL listening comprehension, mediated by metacognitive awareness. These results offer valuable insights for theoretical understanding and practical approaches to enhancing L2 listening competencies in business English settings.

Parenting stress experienced by parents of autistic children is well-documented. Recent evidence suggests that self-compassion may be a protective factor against parenting stress. However, it's not clear how self-compassion contributes to better parenting outcomes. This study examined the associations among self-compassion, mental health (ill-being and well-being indicators), and parenting experience (parenting stress and parenting competence) in 178 parents of autistic children and 178 parents of non-autistic children. Results indicated that parents of autistic children had lower levels of self-compassion compared to parents of non-autistic children. In both groups of parents, self-compassion was linked to lower levels of ill-being and high levels of well-being, and directly related to higher levels of parenting competence. In parents of non-autistic children, both ill-being and well-being acted as mediators in the relationships between self-compassion and parenting outcomes. However, in parents of autistic children, only well-being (but not ill-being) mediated the relationships between self-compassion and parenting outcomes. These findings underscore the importance of promoting self-compassion and well-being to enhance parenting experiences for parents of autistic children.

The emergence of moral emotions such as guilt is central in moral and prosocial development. Guilt is an important psychological factor, which motivates prosocial behaviour and is credited for multiple social functions. Importantly, it remains unclear what determines the extent to which children show guilt. The current study examined two factors that have been proposed to support the emergence of guilt: children's moral self-concept (MSC) and Theory of Mind (ToM). To this end, guilt-related behaviour and the two potentially explanatory factors were assessed in 5-6-year-old children (Mean age: 5.43 years, N = 133, 51% female). Most relevant, MSC predicted children's guilt-related behaviour. Children's ToM was not predictive for guilt-related behaviour. These findings support theoretical approaches proposing that the emergence of guilt is based on children's developing self-concept.

This study aimed to validate the Croatian version of the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire 10-item version (ACE-10) in a sample of 293 emerging adults (mean age 22 years old; 56.9% women). ACE-10 is a self-report retrospective questionnaire that assesses abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction. Measures of depression, anxiety, stress, and resilience were included to assess concurrent validity. The results confirmed the expected two-factor structure, displaying robust psychometric properties and concurrent validity. The ACE-10 proves reliable, making it well-suited for examining adverse childhood experiences in Croatian samples.

Background: Concussions are a prevalent health concern, affecting millions of individuals in the United States yearly. Concussion symptomology overlaps with other conditions making diagnosis and management particularly challenging, particularly among individuals with ADHD. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects a significant portion of the adult population. Objective: To enhance our understanding of symptom resolution and identify factors that could influence concussion care management, the purpose of the current study was to examine the recovery trajectory of adults diagnosed with both ADHD and concussion compared to the trajectory of adults who have experienced a concussion but do not have an ADHD diagnosis. Methods: The study included a retrospective chart review of patients treated for concussion at a concussion specialty clinic. Results: The findings of the study revealed no significant differences in history of concussion or recovery time between patients with and without ADHD. It was observed that patients with ADHD had a higher prevalence of anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions. Conclusions: The findings of the current study underscore the need for additional research to guide the care of patients diagnosed with both ADHD and concussion.

The study explores whether physical activity (PA) in early adolescence limits the risk of internalizing and externalizing problems in youth with difficult temperaments, from low-income families, or exposed to impaired family functioning. Participants (N = 1312; 53% girls) were drawn from the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development (QLSCD). Results revealed that difficult temperament was associated with subsequent symptoms of anxiety among youth with low PA levels. Impaired family functioning was associated with higher levels of subsequent physical aggressivity among youth with high levels of PA. These results highlight the complex role of PA in different aspects of adjustment and the importance of the quality of PA contexts in young adolescents exposed to family adversity.

Online parenting interventions hold promise for increasing access to behavioral support for families with low income and who reside in rural areas. The current study evaluates the efficacy of a mobile app-based parenting support program, the Family Check-Up Online (FCU-O) with telehealth coaching support, for parents of children 1.5-5 years old at risk of experiencing parenting challenges. We tested effects of the FCU-O on parent wellbeing (parenting self-efficacy and symptoms of depression and anxiety) and parent-reported parenting skills (support for positive behavior, limit-setting, and proactive parenting) at the 3-month follow-up in a randomized controlled trial (FCU-O versus control). We also tested relationships between parents' baseline characteristics and their engagement with the app and telehealth coaching. Eligibility criteria included endorsing depressive symptoms or current or past substance misuse. Participants (N = 356) were predominantly White (72%) and low-income, with 43% of families residing in a rural area. Approximately one-third-of participants reported clinically significant symptoms of anxiety or depression and one-third-endorsed a lifetime history of opioid misuse. Intent to treat analyses tested effects of the FCU-O on parent wellbeing and parenting skills. The FCU-O was associated with improvements to parents' support for positive behavior, limit-setting, and proactive parenting skills, as well as parenting self-efficacy and depressive symptoms. Parents' initial symptoms of depression and anxiety significantly predicted greater telehealth coach engagement; low levels of initial self-reported skills positive behavior support and limit-setting significantly predicted greater app engagement. Results provide support for the FCU-O as a preventive parenting intervention for parents experiencing mental health challenges, with implications for reducing barriers to accessing parenting support for underserved families.

Certified dietary managers (CDMs) lead their food services team by ensuring food quality, safety, and palatability while applying nutrition principles to food purchasing, storage, preparation, and service. Despite labor shortages and forecasted growth in both healthcare and food services management jobs, approximately 30% of credentialing exam candidates forego their exam within the first year after completing a didactic career technical education program approved by the Association of Nutrition and Foodservice Professionals. Moreover, very few return to pursue their exam after the first year. This study explored, through the lens of the theory of planned behavior, the perceived obstacles contributing to CDM program graduates' reluctance to sit for the national board certification. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive and convenience sample of eight participants from various regions of the United States to gain insight into internal and external factors contributing to their exam hesitancy. Thematic analysis yielded several themes, including a lack of control over internal and external barriers to taking the exam. Participants reported facing family and work constraints exacerbated by the pandemic and the lack of financial resources to meet exam preparation and registration costs. They expressed feelings of exam-related anxiety, being ill-prepared, unsupported by their programs and employers and discouraged by the observed stressful working conditions of current CDMs. This study helps establish a foundation for remedial action by stakeholders, educational program leaders, and CDM employers in support of certification candidates. Findings raise questions about the prevalence of credentialing exam barriers in other disciplines and pave the way for future investigations about exam hesitancy.

The effects of COVID-19 have resulted in peritraumatic stress experiences within various groups, including teachers. With this study we aimed to determine the prevalence of peritraumatic stress and the factors associated with each level of PTSD among teachers in South Africa. A cross-sectional study was conducted in South Africa among teachers using an online survey. A sample consisted of a total of 1,008 primary and secondary teachers responded to the COVID-19 peritraumatic distress index and the occupation-specific survey. Descriptive and multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to analyse the data. There was evidence of high levels of distress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic among teaching professionals in South Africa. Therefore, there is a need to create mental health awareness among teaching professionals and to create systems that support the uptake of psychological services among the members of this population.