Source of improvement in balance control after a training program for ankle proprioception

Previous research on healthy individuals reported improvements in balance control following a purported ankle proprioception-training program. The training may have resulted in a general rather than a specific enhancement of ankle proprioception. To test this hypothesis, subjects were constrained at the hips and trunk with a custom-made thoracolumbosacral orthosis and performed a one-leg standing test with eyes closed and head tilted back, so that they had to rely primarily on their ankle musculature to keep their balance. Subjects were retested after training on the BAPS three times a week for 4 weeks, following the training recommendations of the manual. Subjects' bodies were not constrained during the training. Analysis showed that subjects made improvements during training in performing more difficult tasks on the board. On the one-leg test, however, there were no improvements in sway velocity, number of touchdowns, or falls relative to pretest scores. Improvements observed during training likely resulted from diffuse enhancement of proprioception in other body segments such as the knees, hips, spine, and upper extremities. A training program in control of general balance does not specifically target ankle proprioception.     

A confirmatory factor analytic approach on perceptions of knowledge and skills in teaching (PKST)

This paper reports the cross-validation of the factor pattern of the Perceptions of Knowledge and Skills in Teaching (PKST) survey, which was used to assess the self-perceived pedagogical knowledge and skills of pre-service and beginning teachers. The sample comprised 323 pre-service teachers enrolled in a 1-yr. post-graduate teacher education program in Singapore. The survey had 37 items distributed across six scales: student learning, lesson planning, instructional support, accommodating diversity, classroom management, and care and concern. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to cross-validate the survey's factor pattern. The results showed that the model was an acceptable fit to the data. The PKST survey can thus be adapted by different teacher education programs to assess pre-service and beginning teachers' progress in developing their pedagogical knowledge and skills.     

Mediator Roles of Interpersonal Forgiveness and Self-Forgiveness between Self-Esteem and Subjective well-Being

This study examined the effect of self-esteem on subjective well-being, with focus on confirmation of mediator roles of interpersonal forgiveness and self-forgiveness among a sample of 475 college students. The participants completed a questionnaire packet that includes Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Heartland Forgiveness Scale, and Subjective Well-Being Scale. Results revealed that self-esteem, interpersonal forgiveness, and self-forgiveness were all significantly correlated with subjective well-being. Bootstrap results indicated that both interpersonal forgiveness and self-forgiveness partially mediated self-esteem to subjective well-being. Structural equation modeling analysis also revealed significant paths from self-esteem to subjective well-being through both interpersonal forgiveness and self-forgiveness.