Perceived Stress and Resilience among Private and Public Undergraduate University Students during Covid-19 Pandemic

This is a quantitative study that examines relationships between perceived stress and resilience among private and public undergraduates university students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. In total, 160 undergraduate students had been gathered for this study's purposes. Two questionnaires were utilised in the research; the Perceived stress scale and Connor-Davidson Resilience were distributed among respondents through Google Form. The findings reported that there is a low negative relationship between perceived stress and resilience. Apart from that, the findings reported no significant relationship between perceived stress and genders. There was a significant relationship in perceived stress predicting the level of resilience among public and private undergraduates university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Undergraduates students had a moderate level of perceived stress thus needing a stress intervention or stress management in facing a stressful situation. Resilience is needed to be implemented in every educational system to help to build resilience among students.

Research on psychological stress intervention of college students based on Diffie-hellman key exchange algorithm

At present, the mental health of college students has also become an important issue that urgently needs attention under the influence of the surrounding environment. It is coupled with the grim employment situation after graduation and the students’ psychological burden is becoming more and heavier. This paper based on Diffie-Hellman key exchange algorithm studied the effect of psychological stress intervention. First, the Diffie-Hellman key exchange algorithm was analyzed, and then the Diffie-Hellman prediction model was established according to the psychological pressure of college students. Secondly, the simulation test was conducted to compare the simulated results with the original data. The conclusion of the data fitting of the network model training set, verification set and test set were good and the error was very small. Finally, the detailed application of the algorithm and the model were described.

A Digital Human for Delivering a Remote Loneliness and Stress Intervention to At-Risk Younger and Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Randomised Pilot Trial (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Loneliness is a growing public health issue that has been exacerbated in vulnerable groups during the COVID-19 pandemic. Computer agents are capable of delivering psychological therapies through the internet, however, there is little research on their acceptability to date. OBJECTIVE The objectives of this study were to evaluate: (1) the feasibility and acceptability of a remote loneliness and stress intervention with digital human delivery to at-risk adults; and (2) the feasibility of the trial methods in preparation for a randomised controlled trial. METHODS A parallel, randomised pilot trial with a mixed design was conducted. Participants were adults aged 18–69 years with an underlying medical condition, or aged 70 years or older with a >24 MMSE score (i.e., at greater risk of developing severe COVID-19). Participants took part from their place of residence (20= independent living retirement village, 7= community dwelling, 3= nursing home). Participants were randomly allocated to the intervention or waitlist control group, who received the intervention one week later. The intervention involved completing cognitive behavioural (e.g., psychoeducation on stress awareness, deep breathing) and positive psychology exercises with a digital human facilitator on a website for at least 15-minutes per day over one week. The exercises used evidence-based strategies to improve loneliness, stress, and psychological well-being. Feasibility was evaluated using dropout rates and behavioural observation data. Acceptability was evaluated using behavioural engagement data, the Friendship Questionnaire (adapted), self-report items and qualitative questions. Psychological outcomes were measured to evaluate feasibility of trial methods and included loneliness (UCLA Loneliness Scale), stress (Perceived Stress Scale), COVID-19 distress, well-being (Flourishing Scale), and affect (Scale of Positive and Negative Experiences). RESULTS 30 participants (15 per group) were recruited. Participants were 22 older adults, and 8 younger adults with a health condition. 6 participants dropped out of the study. 24 participants’ data were analysed (12= intervention group; 12= waitlist group). The digital human intervention and trial methods were generally found to be feasible and acceptable in younger and older adults living independently. Slow internet speed reduced intervention feasibility for some participants. Suggestions for improvement included: additional content, tailoring to the population, and changes for the digital human’s design. The intervention and trial methods were less feasible to nursing home residents who required caregiver assistance. CONCLUSIONS The digital human was a feasible and acceptable way of delivering a remote loneliness and stress intervention to at-risk adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. The intervention and trial methods were most feasible for people living independently. Support was found for further testing of digital humans to deliver remote psychological interventions. Findings will inform expansion of intervention content and the design of a randomised controlled trial to evaluate intervention effectiveness. CLINICALTRIAL Australia New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR): ACTRN12620000786998