scholarly journals Predictors of Refugee Adjustment: The Importance of Cognitive Skills and Personality

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Hahn ◽  
David Richter ◽  
Jürgen Schupp ◽  
Mitja D. Back

In light of the recent worldwide migration of refugees, determinants of a more or less successful integration are heavily discussed, but reliable empirical investigations are scarce and have often focused on sociodemographic factors. In the present study, we explore the role of several individual characteristics for refugee adjustment in the areas of (a) institutional, (b) interpersonal and (c) intrapersonal adaptation. In a sample of 4,527 refugees (M = 33.6 years, 38% women), we investigated the effect of sociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, months in Germany, religious affiliation), cognitive factors (cognitive ability, educational history, language skills, integration-course participation), and personality (locus of control, risk appetite, willingness to reciprocity) on adjustment parameters. Both, cognitive skills (especially language skills) and personality, showed incremental validity beyond sociodemographic factors for refugee adjustment comparable across contextual factors. Even with respect to contextual factors such as residency status and living situation, results remained largely stable. The study provides first hints on the importance of personality, thereby providing important implications for understanding integration processes and optimizing interventions on personal, social, and societal levels.

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Hahn ◽  
David Richter ◽  
Juergen Schupp ◽  
Mitja Back

In light of the recent worldwide migration of refugees, determinants of a more or less successful integration are heavily discussed, but reliable empirical investigations are scarce and have often focused on sociodemographic factors. In the present study, we explore the role of several individual characteristics for refugee adjustment in the areas of institutional, interpersonal and intrapersonal adaptation. In a sample of 4,527 refugees (M = 33.6 years, 38% women), we investigated the predictive power of sociodemographic characteristics, cognitive skills and personality factors. Both, cognitive skills and personality, showed incremental predictive validity beyond sociodemographic factors for refugee adjustment comparable across contextual factors. The study underscores the importance of personality providing important implications for understanding integration processes and optimizing interventions on personal, social, and societal levels.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suman Kothakonda

<p>My main goal is to focus on the importance of multilingual education through translanguaging pedagogies in Telangana schools especially in the areas of minority linguistic communities. India is remarkably well-known for cultural and linguistic diversity. In such a context, it is difficult to implement the right medium of instruction in which the students’ home language is different from the school language. Though there are many factors involved in delivering quality education, language plays a significant role in teaching and learning across the world. The majority of the schools encourage dominant language(s) in teaching and learning in Indian states. As a result, students of non-dominant language(s) are totally out of the classroom conversations and they slowly come to know that their languages are less prestigious and not used in schools. This leads them to show less interest in learning. Non-dominant language(s) are pushed out of important domains and such languages are impoverished with limited functions in India. In this paper, I discuss the complexity which lies in providing the right media of instruction to heterogeneous students in Indian classrooms and also explores the students’ language(s) proficiency levels in two target languages. Finally, I explain some ways to develop students’ linguistic and cognitive skills in such a multilingual environment. Two schools were, for this study, visited to understand the language(s) scenario in the Telangana region. The data was collected from 15 students who were in the IX class.Apart from this, we interacted with teachers to get their opinions on various topics in relation to students’ language skills as well as multilingual education. Extensive individual interviews and long conversations were conducted from classroom teachers in relation to students’ language skills in three languages. The data was collected through a variety of sources in order to illuminate multilingual education in Telangana schools. Oral and written samples were collected from the participants in two languages L2 & L3. In the process of data collection, each student performed spoken as well as written tasks. Oral tasks consist of discussions, role-plays, and one storytelling task based on the provided pictures. Written tasks consist of reading, listening, and writing (vocabulary, grammar, and sentence meaning). The result of the collected data reveals the proficiency levels of students in L2 & L3. The empirical data, interviews, and conversations revealed the significance of LI in schools at the right time. </p>


2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Dribe ◽  
J. David Hacker ◽  
Francesco Scalone

Although intermarriage is a common indicator of immigrant integration into host societies, most research has focused on how individual characteristics determine intermarriage. This study uses the 1910 ipums census sample to analyze how contextual factors affected intermarriage among European immigrants in the United States. Newly available, complete-count census microdata permit the construction of contextual measures at a much lower level of aggregation—the county—in this analysis than in previous studies. Our results confirm most findings in previous research relating to individual-level variables but also find important associations between contextual factors and marital outcomes. The relative size and sex ratio of an origin group, ethnic diversity, the share of the native-born white population, and the proportion of life that immigrants spent in the United State are all associated with exogamy. These patterns are highly similar across genders and immigrant generations.


Author(s):  
Anne Hoffmann ◽  
Sue Ellen Krause ◽  
Joanne Wuu ◽  
Sue Leurgans ◽  
Stephen J. Guter ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Receptive and expressive vocabulary in adult and adolescent males with fragile X syndrome (FXS) have been shown as significantly lower than their chronological age; however, receptive vocabulary has been considered a strength relative to mental age. This has not been formally examined, however, and data are needed to compare receptive vocabulary with other language skills and with mental age in individuals with FXS. This is especially important as vocabulary measures are sometimes used as a proxy to estimate language ability. Methods This preliminary study examined receptive vocabulary, global language, and cognitive skills in 42 adults (33 males and 9 females) with FXS as a portion of the baseline evaluation prior to randomization in a clinical trial of ampakine CX516. The battery of standardized tests addressed receptive vocabulary with the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Third Edition (PPVT-III), receptive and expressive language (termed henceforth as global language) via the Preschool Language Scale, Fourth Edition or the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals, Third Edition, and non-verbal cognition via the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales, Fourth Edition (SB-IV). Results Results showed (1) significantly higher receptive vocabulary than global language, (2) significantly better receptive vocabulary than non-verbal cognition, (3) equivalent non-verbal cognition and global language, and (4) severity of autism symptomatology was not correlated to receptive vocabulary or global language once non-verbal cognition was removed as factor. The scores from the PPVT-III did not represent the global language skills in our sample of adults with FXS. Conclusions Findings from this investigation strongly suggest that the PPVT-III should not be used as a screening tool for language levels or cognitive function in clinical studies since the scores from the PPVT-III were not representative of global language or non-verbal cognitive skills in adults with intellectual disabilities. This finding is critical in order to understand how to evaluate, as well as to treat, language in individuals with FXS. Development of efficient and appropriate tools to measure language, cognition, and behavior in individuals with FXS is essential.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tengku Mohd Azizuddin Tuan Mahmood ◽  
Abdullah Al Mamun ◽  
Mohamed Dahlan Ibrahim

Purpose This study intended to determine the effect of selected entrepreneurial traits on the attitude of Asnaf Millennials in Malaysia towards entrepreneurship. Design/methodology/approach This is a cross-sectional study that collected the quantitative data via structured interviews from 310 randomly selected Asnaf Millennials from Kelantan, Malaysia. Findings The findings confirmed the positive and statistically significant effect of innovativeness, internal locus of control, need for achievement and proactive personality on the attitude of Asnaf Millennials on entrepreneurship. Originality/value This study focussed on the development of non-cognitive skills for individual characteristics regarding entrepreneurship for the benefit of development practitioners and policymakers. The government and development organisations should focus on developing entrepreneurial traits that are expected to improve the attitude towards entrepreneurship and increase the entrepreneurial activities in Malaysia. This initiative can improve the socio-economic condition of Asnaf Millennials with low income.


2011 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 110-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danielle M. Reynald

Routine activity theory can be applied to places in which a motivated offender encounters a suitable target that is not effectively guarded. The focus of this article was on the third aspect of this theory as the explanatory power of guardianship was examined and compared to other related contextual factors in explaining criminal victimization at micro-places. This empirical study used an observational measure of guardianship in action in residential places by observing household occupancy, monitoring by residents, and direct intervention during the daytime and nighttime. The results demonstrated the significant role of active guardianship compared to other spatio-physical and sociodemographic factors in explaining the amount of property crime recorded at the street segment level. This article is concluded by highlighting the ways in which these contextual factors help generate opportunities for capable guardianship, while simultaneously blocking opportunities for property crime.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farhan Saeed ◽  
Alan Bury ◽  
Stephen Bonsall ◽  
Ramin Riahi

Abstract The importance of NTS has been realised in many safety critical industries. Recently the maritime domain has also embraced the idea and implemented an NTS training course for both merchant marine deck and engineering officers. NTS encompass both interpersonal and cognitive skills such as situational awareness, teamwork, decision making, leadership, managerial skills, communication and language skills. Well-developed NTS training allow ship’s officers to recognise quickly when a problem is developing and manage the situation safely and efficiently with the available team members. As a result, the evaluation and grading of deck officers’ NTS is necessary to assure safety at sea, reduce the effects of human error on-board ships, and allow ship board operations to be performed safely. This paper identifies the skills necessary for deck officers to effectively perform their duties on the bridge of a ship. To achieve this, initially, a taxonomy of deck officers’ NTS is developed through a review of relevant literature and the conducting of semi-structured interviews with experienced seafarers. Subsequently, NTS weighting data is collected from experienced seafarers to allow the weight of each element of the taxonomy to be established by the use of the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP).


2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 59
Author(s):  
RAHMA AL-MAHROOQI ◽  
CHRISTOPHER DENMAN ◽  
FAISAL AL-MAAMARI

Since the beginning of Oman’s “modern era” in 1970, English has assumed a central role in the country’s education system and has acted as a lingua franca across a variety of domains. However, despite this, graduates of Omani public schools are often reported as lacking the English-language linguistic and communicative abilities demanded by higher education institutions and the world of work. Consequently, most high school graduates entering tertiary education are required to enrol in foundation programs to improve their English language skills, while the employability of graduates seeking jobs straight from high school has also been reported as being negatively affected. Within this context, the current research explored the ways in which contextual factors relate to Omani school graduates’ development of English language skills. To achieve this, eight high school English language teaching supervisors responded to an on-line, open-ended question about the contextual factors they believed caused Omani school students to graduate with low English language proficiency. Results indicate that participants believed families, parents, and “Englishness” are the most important contextual factors contributing to this issue. The practical implications of these findings are discussed.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document