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People who are socioeconomically better off tend to report higher levels of well-being, with inconsistent roles ascribed to objective socioeconomic status (SES), subjective SES (SSES), and personal relative deprivation (PRD)—depending on the predictors, facets of well-being, and countries under study. We tested a comprehensive model of social status indicators as determinants of subjective well-being by a) including PRD, SSES, income, and education as predictors, b) assessing subjective well-being as well as interdependent happiness (happiness in relation to significant others), c) testing the model in Japan, Germany, and the US—countries with comparable societal structure (e.g., educated, industrialized, rich, democratic) but diverging cultural dimensions, and d) testing an explanatory variable: feeling excluded from society. Cross-culturally (N = 2,155), PRD and SSES independently and strongly predicted well-being, while income and education exhibited negligible direct effects. SSES emerged as the predominant predictor in Japan compared to the US and Germany, whereas PRD was the predominant predictor in the US compared to Germany and, to a lesser extent, Japan. This was largely accounted for by culture-specific links of social status with perceived social exclusion—the extent to which people feel unable to keep up with society as a whole. Perceived social exclusion was more strongly linked to SSES in Japan compared to Germany and the US, and more strongly linked to PRD in the US than in Germany. The role of perceived social exclusion as an explanatory variable in the relationship between social status and subjective well-being merits further investigation within and between countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Itobiad: Journal of the Human & Social Science Researches / İnsan ve Toplum Bilimleri Araştırmaları Dergisi is the property of Itobiad: Journal of the Human & Social Science Researches and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Otosclerosis can severely impact quality of life, but no questionnaire is available in French. The present study aimed to adapt and validate a French version of the SPOT-25. A controlled prospective study was conducted between September 2021 and April 2022. The translation used the "forward-backward" technique and statistical validation was performed in non-operated adult otosclerosis patients (cases) and a control group. Assessment Internal consistency, discrimination performance and test-retest reliability were assessed on global score, subscores and items. Fifty-one cases and 58 control subjects filled out the test questionnaire and 35 of the 51 cases, also filled out the retest. Internal consistency on Cronbach alpha was 0.95 for the cases. Median total SPOT-25 score was 44 (range, 10–78) for cases and 2 (range, 0–33) for controls (p= P < 0.0001). Test-retest reliability on intraclass correlation coefficient was excellent (ICC = 0.92; [95% CI, 0.84–0.96]). Individual items all showed satisfactory performance. The French version of SPOT-25 was short and easy to use, with satisfactory performance in assessing quality of life in otosclerosis patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of sense of belonging within an educational context has been well-documented. Previous studies on belongingness using OECD-PISA data showed that the degree to which students feel a sense of belongingness to their school varies across countries. The current study extents the prior findings by analyzing the relationship between the sense of belonging and perceived competitiveness and cooperation in schools using the 2018 PISA cycle, including data from 76 countries. Perceived cooperation across all countries and aggregated on the country level was significantly and positively correlated with belongingness. Belongingness regressed on perceived competitiveness and perceived cooperativity results in both variables being significant predictors in the expected directions. Together, the two climate variables explained 18.8% of the variance on belongingness between countries. Thus, there is robust cross-cultural evidence that sense of belongingness is negatively affected by a competitive and positively by a cooperative classroom climate.

The paper focuses on the problem of structuring of non-verbal communication in the context of studying the process of intercultural contacts. The relevance of the proposed approach to the classification of non-verbal communication means is determined by its complex feature. The authors substantiate the fact that an effective classification should take into account the achievements of several scientific disciplines having the fundamental value to the understanding of the current problem: psychology, psychophysiology, human ethology and linguistics. Also, it is necessary to take into consideration the polycode character of intercultural communication. Based on the previously published classifications, the current state of scientific knowledge on this problem, the experience of a theoretical study of this problem, and practical and didactic applications, the author propose a two- level typological model which is specially designed to compare the non-verbal behaviours of different cultures representatives. Logically, this model comprises the following categories of non-verbal communication means: paraverbal means; kinesic means; sensory perception means of communication; spatial and temporal means. To define the categories and their sub-categories the authors exemplify the means of communication with the context of interactions between representatives of the Czech and Russian cultures. The authors concluded that non-verbal means of communication should be structured taking into account the specific purpose of the study.

(1) Background: Children with greater physical activity (PA) may show a higher physical fitness (PF) and motor competence (MC) compared to peers with less PA. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), PF, and MC in 8- to 9-year old children in Germany and China. MVPA was differentiated into five PA settings: family sport, club training, school sport, leisure sport, and outside play. (2) Methods: This longitudinal study comprised N = 577 children (n = 311 girls, n = 266 boys) who were studied over a one-year period. Each child's PF and MC was determined using sports motor tests. The children's PAs were measured using a questionnaire. (3) Results: The children's PA was positively associated with PF and MC. The MVPA-settings: family sport, leisure sport, outside play, school, and club sport, explained between 18 and 23 percent of the variance in selected PF and MC characteristics in a multivariate linear regression analysis. (4) Conclusions: An increase in the children's MVPA might be an appropriate aim in the school sport in Germany as well as in the club sport system in China. Furthermore, family sport should be enhanced in Germany and outside play activities in China, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growing energy consumption together with the problem of increasing CO2 emissions are widely viewed as critical factors for achieving global sustainability. The Green Building Council has estimated that 39% of CO2 emissions come from buildings and that this percentage is increasing. While much of home energy consumption is related to heating and cooling there is little research on how consumers manage the temperature in their homes. This study examines residential consumer perceptions regarding thermal comfort with the objective of gaining insights on how to reduce energy consumption for heating or cooling homes. Thus, we would gain insights for achieving a more sustainable approach for energy consumption while considering ecological, economic, and social aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Tekst i Dyskurs is the property of University of Warsaw and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Estudio comparativo e intercultural acerca de la percepción de investigadores paraguayos y mexicanos, en ciencias naturales y sociales, sobre la adhesión a cuatro acuerdos científicos (inteligibilidad del objeto, actitud crítica, aptitud metodológica y difusión abierta de resultados), al realizar sus investigaciones. Participaron 183 científicos de Paraguay y 185 de México. Respondieron la Encuesta Sociología de la Investigación Científica (De la Lama, Del Castillo, y De la Lama, 2013) Versión Modificada Capítulo Paraguay (Coppari, 2015) que midió los acuerdos científicos propuestos de forma espontánea o por recordación asistida. Los investigadores de ambos países reconocen, en su mayoría, los cuatro acuerdos, con independencia de las ciencias en que trabajan. No existen diferencias significativas, excepto en la regla 2, donde 95.6% de los científicos paraguayos considera la actitud crítica como una regla, frente a 88.1% de los científicos mexicanos. Se destaca el quehacer científico consensuado de científicos sociales y naturales en América Latina, en un contexto de gran controversia, complejidad y diversidad de las ciencias de nuestro tiempo. The purpose of the research is to determine the influence of self- A comparative and intercultural study between Mexico and Paraguay, on the perception of researchers in the Natural and Social sciences about their adherence to four scientific agreements (intelligibility of the world, critical attitude, methodological competence and open dissemination of results) when doing research. The sample was conformed by 183 scientists from Paraguay and 185 from Mexico, whom took the Sociologic Survey about Scientific Research (De la Lama, Del Castillo & De la Lama, 2013) Modified Version Chapter Paraguay (Coppari, 2015), which measured scientists proposed agreements, spontaneously or through assisted recall. Researchers from both countries recognize, in most cases, all four agreements, regardless of the sciences in which they work. There are no significant differences between both groups, except in rule number 2, where 95.6% of Paraguayan scientists and just 88.1% of Mexican scientists considered critical attitude as a ruler. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The flow of communication structures across various media formats can be traced back to the printing press culture of early modern Europe, where three distinct media features appeared: disagreement, sensationalism, and self-reference. These features continue to characterize health communication in today’s online media (Bogen 2011; 2013). This study investigates whether these media structures also characterize contemporary health communication in non-Western countries like China, which are undergoing a modernization process. By taking European structures of healthcare communication as a point of reference, I will analyze how Chinese healthcare communication differs from its European counterpart. This paper takes SARS (the first globally emerging infectious disease of the 21st century) as a case study. While the SARS discourse illustrates the existence of these communication structures in the Chinese media and indicates some convergence between East and West, it is clear that these media structures have been adapted to a specifically Chinese cultural program of modernization. Moreover, I will identify ‘non-European’ structures that can be explained by China’s specific cultural background, and explore the processes of transfer and demarcation that occur when media structures are adapted across cultures.

(1) Background: Children with greater physical activity (PA) may show a higher physical fitness (PF) and motor competence (MC) compared to peers with less PA. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), PF, and MC in 8- to 9-year old children in Germany and China. MVPA was differentiated into five PA settings: family sport, club training, school sport, leisure sport, and outside play. (2) Methods: This longitudinal study comprised N = 577 children (n = 311 girls, n = 266 boys) who were studied over a one-year period. Each child’s PF and MC was determined using sports motor tests. The children’s PAs were measured using a questionnaire. (3) Results: The children’s PA was positively associated with PF and MC. The MVPA-settings: family sport, leisure sport, outside play, school, and club sport, explained between 18 and 23 percent of the variance in selected PF and MC characteristics in a multivariate linear regression analysis. (4) Conclusions: An increase in the children’s MVPA might be an appropriate aim in the school sport in Germany as well as in the club sport system in China. Furthermore, family sport should be enhanced in Germany and outside play activities in China, respectively.

Copyright of Journal of International Social Research is the property of Journal of International Social Research and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In order to clarify the misunderstandings that may lead to conclusions in terms of the "opening" or "closure" of societies, this article offers a secondary exploitation of a survey conducted by Nina Kareva on the hospitality that Russians received abroad as well as foreigners hosted in Russia. Such experiences and their troubles are often referred to the diversity of customs. Our perspective is different. Just as Kareva has revealed structural and asymmetrical features of the reciprocal engagements of the host and the recipient, we compare the hospitality test with structural constructions of political communities, the grammars of commonality in the plural which several international comparative research programs helped us to identify. It serves to illuminate the story of a Russian hosted in the United States in the 1980s as well as the reactions it prompted from an international audience of sociologists, and to draw some lessons on recent history.

The paper proposes a comparative analysis of the forms of address and greeting as part of the verbal politeness models identified both in Spanish and Romanian, in order to determine some similarities and differences between the two cultural models. This analysis reveals the existence of a tripartite system of hierarchical politeness in the Romanian language, whilst in Spanish there is a bipartite system, oriented towards the horizontal axis of interpersonal relationships. The act of greeting in Romanian goes by the system of hierarchical politeness and exhibits a lower degree of formality for the complementary greeting as compared to the Spanish cultural model. Leave-taking in Spanish culture covers a much more limited range of greeting forms than in romanian culture, where higher attention is drawn to everyday life events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Due to the relatively recent introduction of psychotherapy in South Korea and against the background of collectivist and Confucian values, it has been suggested that South Koreans harbor more negative attitudes towards psychotherapy compared to Germans and that the social acceptance of psychotherapy is lower. Methods: We compared the attitudes of 99 women from South Korea with 98 German women using the questionnaire on attitudes towards psychotherapeutic treatment (FEP). For the study of the South Korean women we translated the questionnaire into the Korean language. Results: The results of the psychometric analysis suggest that the Korean version of the FEP is of acceptable quality. South Korean women reported a significantly more negative attitude towards psychotherapy compared to German women. Furthermore, South Korean women anticipated a more skeptical social attitude towards psychotherapy compared to Germans. Conclusion: The presented results suggest the relevance of cultural imprinting in psychotherapy. They are discussed with respect to culture-specific self-concepts, concepts of disease and healing expectations and the increase of individualistic values in the Korean society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A visual culture learning community (VCLC) is an adolescent or young adult group engaged in expression and creation outside of formal institutions and without adult supervision. In the framework of an international, comparative research project executed between 2010 and 2014, members of a variety of eight self-initiated visual culture groups ranging from manga and cosplay through contemporary art forms, fanart video, graffiti and cosplay in five urban areas (Amsterdam, Budapest, Chicago, Helsinki and Hong Kong) were studied through interview, participant observation and analysis of art works. In this article, collaborative group practices and processes in informal learning environments are presented through results of on-site observations, interviews and analyses of creations. VCLCs are identified as inspiring, collaborative spaces of peer mentoring that enhance both visual skills and self-esteem. Authors reveal how identity formation is interrelated with networking and knowledge sharing. Adolescents and young adults become participants of global communities of their creative genres through reinterpretation and individualisation of shared visual repertoires. In conclusion, implications for art education from the VCLC model for creative collaboration are suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]