Academic self-confidence effects on test anxiety among Nigerian university students

The study investigated academic self-confidence effects on test anxiety indicators of performance impairment and intrusive worry. Respondents were 206 Nigerian undergraduate students (mean age = 20.29, SD = 2. 22; female = 43.2%). The students took the Westside Test Anxiety Scale (Driscoll, 2004) and the Academic Self-confidence Scale (Jones, 2001). Data were analysed to predict performance impairment and intrusive worry from academic self-confidence, taking into account students’ year of study and gender. Results suggest that academic self-confidence influenced both performance impairment and intrusive worry dimensions of test anxiety. Students who were high in academic self-confidence reported lower performance impairment or intrusive worry. Also, first year students reported higher intrusive worry than those in second, third, or fourth year of study. High manifestation of academic self-confidence is an asset for coping with test anxiety.     

Emotion regulation strategies in daily life: mindfulness,cognitive reappraisal and emotion suppression

Most empirical studies of emotion regulation have relied on retrospective trait measures, and have not examined the link between daily regulatory strategies and every day emotional well-being. We used a daily diary methodology with multilevel modelling data analyses (n = 187) to examine the influence of three emotion regulation strategies (mindfulness, cognitive reappraisal and emotion suppression) on the experience of daily negative and positive affect. Our results suggested that daily mindfulness was associated with lower negative and higher positive affect whereas the converse pattern was found for daily emotion suppression; cognitive reappraisal was related to daily positive, but not negative affect. When daily mindfulness, suppression and reappraisal were included in the same models, these strategies predicted unique variance in emotional well-being. Random slope analyses revealed substantial variability in the utility of these strategies. Indeed the presumably “adaptive” cognitive reappraisal strategy seemed to confer no benefit to the regulation of negative affect in approximately half the sample. Additional analyses revealed that age moderates the effect of cognitive reappraisal on daily negative affect: Higher use of reappraisal was associated with more negative affect for adolescents (aged 17 to 19) but became associated with less negative affect with increasing age. We interpret these results in line with a contextual view of emotion regulation where no strategy is inherently “good” or “bad”.     

一年级汉语儿童语素意识与口语词汇的双向关系:追踪研究的证据

以145名小学一年级儿童为被试,进行为期6个月的追踪,考察了儿童复合、同音和同形等不同层面语素意识与口语词汇的双向关系。结果发现:(1)控制了年龄、一般认知能力、语音意识及口语词汇的自回归效应后,同音和复合语素意识对口语词汇的发展具有显著的预测作用。(2)控制了相关变量及自回归效应后,口语词汇能够显著预测复合、同音和同形语素意识的发展。     

Gender differences in severity of writing and reading disabilities

Gender differences in mean level of reading and writing skills were examined in 122 children (80 boys and 42 girls) and 200 adults (115 fathers and 85 mothers) who showed behavioral markers of dyslexia in a family genetics study. Gender differences were found in writing and replicated prior results for typically developing children: Boys and men were more impaired in handwriting and composing than were girls and women, but men, who were more impaired in those writing skills, were also more impaired in spelling than women. Men were more impaired than women in accuracy and rate of reading passages orally, but boys were not more impaired than girls on any of the reading measures. Males were consistently more impaired than females in orthographic skills, which may be the source of gender differences in writing, but not motor skills. Population-based studies that report gender differences in reading in children with dyslexia may be confounding reading and writing disorders—the latter being the true source of gender differences in both children and adults with dyslexia.     

Asian American career development: A qualitative analysis

This study used a modified version of consensual qualitative research design to examine how contextual, cultural, and personal variables influence the career choices of a diverse group of 12 Asian Americans. Seven domains of influences on career choices emerged including family, culture, external factors, career goals, role models, work values, and self-identity. Furthermore, several overarching themes were discovered that expressed elements of many of these domains. These themes highlighted the pervasive and influential role that both culture and family of origin play in the construction of meaning that these Asian American participants made from their career choices. Implications of these domains and themes and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

New age advice: ticket to happiness?

The ‘New Age’ movement emerged in the second half of the 20th century and New Age ideas became the vogue in the Western world. New Age is much concerned with personal quality of life and offers both a philosophy of life and various therapeutic practices, presumed to raise happiness. This paper first describes the main recommendations to be found in New Age books. Next it considers the probable effects on happiness of these, by examining both the theoretical plausibility and the empirical conditions of happiness. This paper concludes that several recommendations are likely to produce beneficial consequences. It is argued, however, that the advice will not fit everybody equally well and that some New Age practices may reduce happiness, e.g., practices that undermine a realistic outlook on reality.     

经验合作教学对教师教学准备影响的实验研究

本研究以"经验合作教学"的校本教师培训的新思路为依据,以经验合作教学的操作性方案为干预手段,运用教育实验法考察经验合作教学计划对教师教学准备的影响。研究表明:(1)《教师教学准备评价问卷》的信、效度均达到心理测量学要求,可以作为评价教师教学准备的工具;(2)经验合作教学对教师的教学准备具有积极促进作用;(3)经验合作教学对不同教龄、性别、职称教师教学准备的影响不同。     

伴家族史的2型糖尿病危险因素的病例对照研究

为探讨2型糖尿病代谢特征及发病的危险因素,选取大连地区91例有家族史的T2DM患者为病例组,以44例患者的配偶（糖耐量正常）为对照组,进行流行病学问卷调查和体格检查,同时测定空腹血糖、空腹胰岛素、总胆固醇、甘油三酯、高密度脂蛋白、低密度脂蛋白等指标,采用稳态模型法计算两组的胰岛素抵抗指数和β细胞功能指数,并进行多因素非条件Logistic回归分析。结果显示：TG、腰臀比和Ln（HOMAIR）病例组高于对照组,而Ln（HOMAβ）则病例组低于对照组,均具有统计学意义（P〈0．05）。多因素非条件Logistic回归分析结果提示,影响T2DM发病的因素有心血管疾病史、Ln（HOMAIR）及Ln（HOMAβ）。由此可见T2DM患者存在血脂代谢异常;心血管疾病史和Ln（HOMAIR）为发病的危险因素,Ln（HOMAβ）为保护因素。     

认知闭合需要研究梳理与未来走向

认知闭合需要反应了个体在不确定情景中的认知动机, 在信息爆炸不断加重认知负荷的今天具有重要研究意义。研究梳理了认知闭合需要的概念结构与测量工具, 总结了近30年来相关研究在人格特质、信息加工、决策偏好、态度信念和精神健康等领域的研究结果, 最终指出区分“能力”和“动机”是未来研究的正确走向。此外, 未来的研究还应深入探讨认知闭合需要的概念与结构, 正确使用和合理开发相关测量工具, 并且丰富对其前因变量的实证研究。     

Beyond beliefs: Challenging obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours within a collaborative counselling relationship

Three clients with obsessive‐compulsive disorder were studied using a multiple case study approach. Clients' experiences of cognitive‐behavioural therapy, in particular the impact of having their beliefs challenged, and their responses to self‐monitoring tasks and behavioural experiments were investigated. Data included case notes made during therapy, pre‐ and post‐therapy questionnaires, and post‐therapy semi‐structured interviews. Qualitative analysis of the data identified clients' obsessive beliefs, general negative beliefs and meta‐cognitive beliefs, and explored any post‐therapy changes in these beliefs. The results demonstrated similarities between cases in obsessive beliefs (e.g. inflated responsibility for harm), general negative beliefs (e.g. feelings of failure), meta‐cognitive beliefs (e.g. the need to control thoughts) and affect (e.g. guilt). Questionnaire data from all three clients suggested no clinically significant post‐therapy changes in general negative beliefs and meta‐cognitive beliefs. However, idiosyncratic changes in obsessive beliefs were reported during therapy and at post‐therapy interview, and clients reported improved functioning and decreased levels of distress during therapy and at interview. Responses to challenge were uniformly positive, but reactions to self‐monitoring and behavioural experiments varied across cases. The implications of these findings for the treatment of obsessive‐compulsive disorder using cognitive behavioural techniques are discussed.