scholarly journals Factors promoting sense of coherence among university students in urban areas of Japan: individual-level social capital, self-efficacy, and mental health

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mie Mato ◽  
Keiko Tsukasaki

Objective: Sense of coherence (SOC) is a concept that helps to explain the relation between personal intentionality as psychosocial factors and health-related behaviors. Thus, it is essential to enhance SOC when encouraging a healthy lifestyle. However, the factors that promote SOC have not been fully investigated among university students. The objective of this study was to clarify the general resistance resources (GRRs) that may promote the development of the SOC among university students. Therefore, we examined the relationship between SOC and social capital (SC), self-efficacy, and mental health. Methods: Participants included 443 students from nine academic departments at eight universities in the Kanto or Kinki metropolitan areas of Japan. Participants completed an anonymous questionnaire. Individual-level cognitive and structural SC, generalized self-efficacy, mental health inventory (from SF-36v2), and SOC were measured. Confirmatory factor analysis using structural equation modeling was conducted to verify the factor structure of the SOC-13 scale. Stepwise multiple regression analysis and two-way layout analysis of variance were performed with SOC as the dependent variable. Results: The factor structure of SOC indicated the optimal model fit in the second-order three-factor model of the 12 items. SOC was predicted by five variables: age, cognitive SC, structural SC, mental health, and self-efficacy. For students from urban areas, SOC was predicted by the interaction between cognitive and structural SC. Conclusion: SOC was significantly related to cognitive SC, structural SC, and self-efficacy as well as mental health in university students from urban areas. Furthermore, the combination of higher-level cognitive SC and higher-level structural SC exerted an inhibitory influence on SOC among students who previously and currently live in urban areas. Therefore, the findings indicated that both cognitive and structural SC as well as self-efficacy may act as GRRs that promote the development of SOC, and similarly, good mental health may promote a strong SOC.

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enrique Merino-Tejedor ◽  
Joan Boada-Grau ◽  
José C. Sánchez-García ◽  
Pedro Miguel Hontangas-Beltrán

AbstractThe objective of this study was to verify the factor validity and structure of the “Irritation Scale” in a sample of 578 Spanish university students. At the same time, the study aimed to verify the criterion-related validity of the scale, analyzing the results obtained through correlation with other variables, such as general self-efficacy, self-regulation, depression, and certain personality dimensions. The results obtained through the Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling approach (ESEM) using Mplus confirmed the presence of two factors in the Irritation Scale, as observed in other international studies within a workplace setting. The significant correlations obtained between the Irritation Scale and the variables considered in the study confirmed the construct validity and verified that irritation is significantly and positively associated with depression and academic burnout, and is negatively associated with general self-efficacy and self-regulation.


Author(s):  
Sadia Musharraf ◽  
Sheri Bauman ◽  
Muhammad Anis-ul-Haque ◽  
Jamil Malik

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate the ICT Self-Efficacy Scale and the association of cyberbullying and victimization with ICT self-efficacy. Sample 1 (436 university students) was used to identify the factor structure of the Scale, and sample 2 (1115 university students) provided the data to confirm the factor structure (CFA), and to compute the internal consistency reliability, and convergent validity of the scale. Findings demonstrate that the new scale is a reliable and valid domain-specific measure to assess ICT Self-Efficacy for university students. Suggestions for further research with the scale are provided.


Children ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Man Xiang ◽  
Xiangli Gu ◽  
Xiaoxia Zhang ◽  
Samantha Moss ◽  
Chaoqun Huang ◽  
...  

Depression has become the most prevalent mental health problem in developing countries, and especially among adolescents. Lubans and his colleagues proposed a psychosocial mechanism to understand the trajectory of mental health (i.e., depression). Thus, this study aimed (1) to examine the relations between different doses of physical activity (PA), light PA (LPA), moderate PA (MPA), and vigorous PA (VPA), academic self-efficacy, and depression among adolescents, and (2) to investigate the direct and indirect relations of various doses of PA to depression through academic self-efficacy among middle school adolescents. Participants were 428 (235 boys, Mean age = 13.7) adolescents recruited from two middle schools in China. They completed previously validated questionnaires to measure different intensity levels of PA (LPA, MPA, and VPA), academic self-efficacy, and depression. There were significant associations of academic self-efficacy with three different doses of PA (p < 0.01). Both LPA and MPA were negatively associated with depression but not VPA. Structural equation modeling (SEM) revealed a well-fit model suggesting the psychosocial pathway from different doses of PA to depression through academic self-efficacy. Findings of this study indicated that academic self-efficacy regulates adolescents’ depression. Tailoring different intensities of PA benefits adolescents’ academic self-efficacy by framing the positive and supportive environment in schools, which can potentially reduce the prevalence of depression during adolescence.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-75
Author(s):  
Sala Uddin Ahmmed ◽  
Amima Najnin Maria

COVID-19 pandemic is a public health emergency of international agony and poses a significant mental health threat among university students in Bangladesh. This study aims to explore the factors influencing the anxiety level of the students graduating into this pandemic. An online study was conducted and we sampled final year university students from Hamdard University Bangladesh by using convenience sampling. They responded to a questionnaire packet that included the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) and those inquiring about the respondents’ demographic and other relevant information. Results indicated that 13.46% of the students were experiencing severe anxiety. Furthermore, living in urban areas (OR = 3.12, 95% CI = 0.95 – 10. 16), being poor (OR = 34. 11, 95% CI = 2.52 – 461.67) and having relatives or acquaintances infected with COVID-19 (OR = 3.21, 95% CI = 0.06 – 0.69) were risk factors for anxiety. Conversely, living with parents (OR = 0.12, 95% CI = 0.02 – 0.63) was a protective factor against the anxiety of university finalists. Also, results of correlation analysis indicated that academic delays worry about finding a job, financial condition and influence on daily life were positively related to the level of anxiety symptoms (P < 0.05), whereas social support, was negatively correlated with their anxiety (P > 0.05). It is recommended that the mental health of students graduating amid this pandemic should be monitored to provide crisisoriented mental services to alleviate the anxiousness of the university finalists.


2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 714
Author(s):  
Mahdi Mohammed Alamri

Students’ learning environments are significantly influenced by massive open online courses (MOOCs). To better understand how students could implement learning technology for educational purposes, this study creates a structural equation model and tests confirmatory factor analysis. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a model through investigating observability (OB), complexity (CO), trialability (TR), and perceived usefulness (PU) with perceived ease-of-use (PEU) of MOOCs adoption by university students to measure their academic self-efficacy (ASE), learning engagement (LE), and learning persistence (LP). As a result, the study used an expanded variant of the innovation diffusion theory (IDT) and the technology acceptance model (TAM) as the research model. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with Smart-PLS was applied to quantitative data collection and analysis of 540 university students as respondents. Student responses were grouped into nine factors and evaluated to decide the students’ ASE, LE, and LP. The findings revealed a clear correlation between OB, CO, and TR, all of which were important predictors of PU and PEU. Students’ ASE, LE, and LP were affected by PEU and PU. This study’s established model was effective in explaining students’ ASE, LE, and LP on MOOC adoption. These findings suggest implications for designing and developing effective instructional and learning strategies in MOOCs in terms of learners’ perceptions of themselves, their instructors, and learning support systems.


Author(s):  
Hafiz Muhammad Asif ◽  
Hafiz Abdul Sattar

Purpose: A novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2 was identified as the cause of COVID-19 eventually led to the declaration of Public health emergency of international concern and a pandemic by WHO due to its exponential global spread. Present study was conducted to investigate the impact of second wave of pandemic on mental wellbeing and social behaviors among university students of Pakistan during this crucial period of COVID-19 infection. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was designed to evaluate the psychosocial impact during the current COVID-19 outbreak among the students of The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Snowball sampling or chain referral sampling procedure was adopted to recruit the participants in the study. Verbal informed consent was taken from all participants before recruitment in the study irrespective of their gender, age and socioeconomic status. Results: Mental health of university students during COVID-19 epidemic was affected to a varying degree revealing that 26.66% were recorded to have mild, 27.15% moderate and 17.04% suffering from severe anxiety out of total 1029 students. Students who were residing in urban areas with parents and having a steady family income were negatively associated and found protective factors against anxiety. However, having a relative or an acquaintance infected with COVID-19 was an independent risk factor for experienced anxiety. Positively associated factors with the level of anxiety symptoms included economic stressors, effects on daily-life, and academic delays whereas social support was negatively correlated with anxiety in COVID-19 related stressors. Conclusion: Public health emergencies and such pandemic are exerting serious psychological impacts on university students. It is recommended that the higher authorities should plan better policies to reduce this impact for the provision of high quality and timely crisis-oriented psychological services to university students.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fahimeh Malekinezhad ◽  
Paul Courtney ◽  
Hasanuddin bin Lamit ◽  
Mauro Vigani

Introduction: Green spaces support people mentally in their everyday life. Perceived restorativeness and Perceived Sensory Dimension (PSD) have been addressed as optimal environmental related characteristics with regards to psychological restoration. However, relatively little research has investigated how the perception of these characteristics, directly and indirectly, affects restoration experience, particularly in a sample of university students within the area of green outdoor campus landscapes.Methods: This study hypothesizes these associations through application of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), inputting data from a sample of university students in Malaysia. In the hypothesized model, we examine the degree of restoration that is enjoyed by subjects within landscapes through the effects of these characteristics. Indirect effects of perceived restorativeness via evaluation of mediation effects associated with perception of landscape characteristics and restoration experience are also investigated.Results: Through validation of the measurement model, we find significant positive coefficient paths with adequate predictive abilities in the hypothesized model. Findings suggest the effect of PSD on perceived restorativeness leads to a better explanation of restoration experience. In addition, perceived landscape characteristics of PSD enhance restoration experience in alignment with perceived restorativeness characteristics.Conclusions: Greater effects on restoration experience come through perceived restorativeness that is affected by PSD, which itself is capable of promoting favorable experiences of restorativeness in a green space and facilitating psychological restorative outcomes. The mechanistic effect of emotional regulation implies a distinct role of green spaces in maintaining good mental health and has relevance to public health models that promote independence and well-being through preventative approaches. The work paves the way for further studies that examine which dimensions of PSD support perceived restorativeness and restoration experience more than others, and the wider psycho-social value of green spaces through the application of mediation effects and personal sensory dimensions in the development of mental health.


Author(s):  
Qian Sun ◽  
Nan Lu

Although social capital has been found to be an important social determinant of mental health in later life, research on social capital in the context of COVID-19 and the interplay among subdimensions of social capital is lacking. The present study examined the mediating role of cognitive social capital on the relationship between structural social capital and mental health among older adults in urban China in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected from the Yangpu district in Shanghai, China, in July–August 2020. A quota sampling approach was used to recruit 472 respondents aged 60 years and older from 23 communities in the Yangpu district. Mental health was measured by depressive symptoms and life satisfaction. Cognitive social capital was assessed through trust and reciprocity, and structural social capital was assessed through organization memberships, and COVID-19 related volunteering and citizenship activity. Structural equation modeling was used to test the mediation model. The results show that cognitive social capital had a full mediation effect on the association between structural social capital and mental health indicators (life satisfaction: b = 0.122, SD = 0.029, p < 0.001; depressive symptoms: b = −0.343, SD = 0.119, p < 0.01). The findings indicate that social capital can play an important role in sustaining and improving mental health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Policy and intervention implications are discussed.


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