Perceived Stress, Life Satisfaction and Self-Esteem in Female University Students

The aim of the current study was to assess the perceived stress, life satisfaction and self-esteem of women studying in co-education and uni-gender institutions. The sample comprised a total of 200 female students, 100 from uni-gender institutions and 100 from co-education institutions. Convenience and purposive sampling techniques were used to collect the data. The standardized Urdu versions of Perceived Stress Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale and Self-esteem Scale were used to collect the responses of students. SPSS (19th version) was used to analyze the data. Findings showed that women studying in uni-gender institutions are more stressed as compared to female students of co-education institutions but their self-esteem and life satisfaction remain unaffected. The results indicated that there is a significant difference between perceived stress, life satisfaction and self-esteem among female students. Moreover, they also revealed that stress and self-esteem affect the life satisfaction of women studying in co-education and uni-gender institutions. Furthermore, the results also depicted significant relationships between perceived stress, life satisfaction and self-esteem. The study will be helpful in improving the educational systems so that female students may enjoy a better learning environment which will boost up their confidence and self-esteem.

Machiavellian Personality Tendencies and Interpersonal Difficulties in University Students

Interpersonal relationships are a very important part of the university life of a person. To explore the relationship between interpersonal difficulties and personality traits, a sample of 300 students in the age range of 18-28 years (M=22.04) was taken from different government and private universities. To measure the Machiavellian Personality Tendencies among students an indigenous tool was developed rooted inthe Pakistani culture. Interpersonal Difficulties Scale (Saleem, Ihsan, & Mahmood, 2014) was used. It was revealed that students with high Machiavellian Personality Tendencies have more interpersonal difficulties and Machiavellian Personality Tendencies, gender, family system and birth order are significant predictors of interpersonal difficulties in university students. These results are discussed in the Pakistani cultural context and their implications are stated for future research and therapeutic work.

Providing Psychological Services to Immigrant Children: Challenges and Potential Solutions

Canada is a diverse and multicultural country. More than one fifth of Canadians are foreign-born individuals from over 200 countries (Statistics Canada, 2017a). Whereas diversity and official multiculturalism makes Canada attractive for immigrants, the newcomers nonetheless face challenges in the areas of settlement, employment, and access to mental health services. These challenges are particularly acute for immigrant children. This article describes four major challenges related to the provision of psychological services to immigrant children and suggests potential solutions for each of these four challenges. The article concludes with the suggestion of a multilevel approach to address these challenges, and the collaborative inclusion of relevant stakeholders.

Gaming Addiction in Adolescent Boys: The Interplay of Anger Expression, Narcissistic Personality and Social Interaction

The current study was conducted to assess the relationship between online gaming addiction, narcissistic personality, anger expression and social interaction among adolescent boys. Correlational research design was used and the sample was selected through non probability purposive sampling technique. Data was collected from adolescent boys (13-16 years) of five private schools of Lahore. Data was accumulated by using Anger Expression Scale (Shafaqat, 2016), Narcissistic Personality Scale (Ames, Rose, & Anderson, 2006) in Urdu version (Zafar & Kausar, 2016), Social Interaction and Technology Use Questionnaire (Henderson, 2001) in Urdu version (Zafar & Kausar, 2016) and Gaming Addiction Scale (Lemmens, Peter & Valkenburg, 2011) in Urdu version (Zafar & Kausar, 2016). Pearson product-moment correlation revealed that thereis a significant positive relationship between anger expression and gaming addiction (r=.25**,p < 0.01) among young adolescent boys. On the contrary, there exists a non-significant relationship between narcissistic personality and gaming addiction. There is also a significant negative relationship between social interaction and gaming addiction (r= -.10*,p < 0.05).The findings of this research will be helpful in determining the causes of gaming addiction in adolescent boys and to solve this problem among them.

Truancy among Undergraduate Students: An Exploratory Study

The study was conducted to investigate the opinion of truants about their teachers, their academic achievement and their reasons for skipping classes. It also investigated gender differences among truants in terms of their opinion about their teachers. Purposive sampling technique was used to draw a sample of 30 truants with an equal number of boys and girls. Traunts were identified by their respective teachers. The Survey of Study Habits and Attitudes (1965) form C was used to measure the opinion of truants about their teachers. One sample t test was used to analyze the data. The results indicated that truants carry a bad opinion about their teachers. They also indicated that truants have an average academic achievement. However, the study indicated no significant gender differences among truants in terms of their opinion about their teachers. Furthermore, the findings indicated that the teachers’ boring teaching style is the most frequently reported reason for skipping classes. Truants need counseling to change their perceptions regarding their teachers’ attitude as they believe that teachers exercise their authority too much and they give a hard time to students. The study can be beneficial for teachers, parents and educationists as it highlights the reasons behind truancy, opinions of truants about their teachers, their academic achievements and the need for counseling to modify their perceptions about their teachers.

Weight-Related Teasing, Coping Strategies and Self-Esteem in Obese University Students

The current study aimed to examine the relationship between weight-based teasing, coping strategies and self-esteem among obese university students. A total of 60 obese university students (Males=30, Females=30) of the age group 17 to 26 years (M= 21.52, SD= 2.24) were chosen from different universities of Lahore. The measures used in the current study were Body Mass Index (Center for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2013), Perception of Teasing Scale (Thompson, Cattarin, Fowler & Fisher, 1995), Coping Orientation to Problem Experienced Questionnaire (Carver, Scheier & Weintraub, 1989) and Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965). The findings revealed no significant gender differences in the use of problem focused and emotion focused coping styles. The results also revealed that 70% of the overweight/obese students were living a sedentary life style while 30% of the participants were engaged in taking a properly balanced diet along with exercise. 60% of the students were overweight due to the excessive eating, no physical activity or excessive sleeping. The results also showed that there was a significant positive relationship between perception of teasing and self-esteem and perception of teasing was a strong predictor of self-esteem among obese university students.

The Impact of Body Image on Self-Esteem in Adolescents

The purpose of the current study was to explore the impact of body image on self-esteem in adolescent males and females. A sample of 290 adolescents (144= male, 146= females) was taken from different schools and colleges of Multan. Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and Body Image Scale were used to measure the impact. Findings indicated a positive relationship between the level of confidence in the body image of adolescent males and their self-esteem. Moreover, it was found that adolescent females in their later years of adolescence had a high level of self-esteem as compared to adolescent females in their early years of adolescence. Independent t-test scores found that adolescent females report feeling more conscious about their body image and weight as compared to adolescent males. Results also showed that adolescent females disclose less information about themselves as compared to adolescent males.

The Development of a Social Skills Scale for Adolescents

The main purpose of the study was to develop an indigenous tool to find out the level and nature of social skills in adolescents. Initially, a pool of 32 items was generated after interviewing 20 participants (both girls and boys). It was reduced later to 25 items excluding repetitions. These 25 items about social skills were administered on 20 new participants as a self-report measure on a 4-point rating scale. Moreover, one item considered ambiguous by participants was dropped and a final list of 24 items was given to 300 girls (50%) and boys (50%; M= 14.9 & SD= 1.07) along with Demographic Proforma and School Children Problem Scale (Saleem & Mahmood, 2011). The sample for the study was selected from government schools using stratified random sampling technique. Exploratory factor analysis revealed three factor solutions which were labelled according to their emerging themes like Getting Along Skills, Social Attributes and the Friendship Skills. The inter scale correlation ranged between (r=.66-.86) and alpha co-efficient showed high reliability (α .80). The tool can be used by school psychologists in assessing and training children with social skills deficits.

The Moderating Role of Coping Strategies in Occupational Stress and Burnout among Mental Health Practitioners in Pakistan

The current study was aimed to observe the moderating role of coping strategies in occupational stress and burnout among mental health practitioners. It was also aimed to examine the relationship of demographic factors with occupational stress, burnout and coping strategies. Data was collected from 200 mental health practitioners (clinical psychologists and psychiatrists) from different government and private hospitals and rehabilitation centers situated in different cities of Pakistan. Three scales were used in the research, that is, Mental Health Professional Stress Scale to measure occupational stress, Brief Cope to measure coping strategies and Maslcah Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey to assess burnout. The results indicated that there is a strong positive correlation between occupational stress, burnout and emotion focused coping strategies. The analyses showed that coping strategies did not moderate the relation between occupational stress and burnout. In demographic variables, the variables of age, education, experience and work hours were significant. Younger mental health practitioners scored high on occupational stress, burnout and use of emotion focused coping strategies than older ones. In qualification and experience, less qualified and less experienced practitioners had more occupational stress, burnout and used emotion focused coping strategies than more qualified and more experienced practitioners. Those practitioners whose working hours were less had low occupational stress and burnout and used problem focused coping strategies.

A Scientific Study of Religion as a Catalyst to Bring Positive Change in Human Behavior

It is a fact well-established that religion has influenced humankind throughout the course of history irrespective of the strength of its influence and its permanence that reflects its relatedness with human existence. It was assumed that the lesser befitting implementation of ‘modernity’ in the ancient tradition of religion is one of the causes of low religious productivity and less positivity in the present day life. Perhaps this is the case with all the Abrahamic religions. An amalgamation of tradition and moderation in a chain of a school system was assessed. The psychological and scientific follow up of the outcome supported the fact that religion has the ability to bring in positive and desirable ‘behavioral change’ in a given direction and to contribute towards ‘peace’ which is an internationally known positivity.