روان‌شناسی

The educational inclusion of students with Down syndrome requires support systems capable of addressing diversity without replacing the student's own participation or shifting the pedagogical responsibility away from the classroom teacher. This study aimed to interpret the experiences of shadow teachers in providing inclusive educational support to students with Down syndrome in General Basic Education, within the framework of the university outreach project "El nuevo desafío de la inclusión universitaria: estrategias de refuerzo académico para jóvenes con diversidad funcional (discapacidad)". The research employed a qualitative approach, grounded in an interpretive paradigm and a hermeneutic-phenomenological design. Three shadow teachers (MSA1, MSW2, and MSB3) participated, selected through purposive, criterion-based non-probability sampling. Data were collected through individual, asynchronous semi-structured interviews via WhatsApp and analyzed using initial and analytical coding, alongside interpretive memos. Thematic sufficiency was assessed across the entire dataset. The participants' experiences were then compared and triangulated with the theoretical framework. The analysis yielded eight thematic axes: the value of the experience; the reality of educational inclusion; methodology and strategies; the role of the shadow teacher; challenges in providing support; support and collaboration networks; vocation and motivation; and proposals for improvement. The experiences analyzed suggest that this support functions as a mediating pedagogical practice that fosters student autonomy, the adaptation of strategies, and collaboration between families and teachers, though challenges persist regarding resources, teacher training, school pacing, and time constraints.

Family co-responsibility links family involvement with students' socioemotional needs and with the actions carried out by the school. This study aimed to understand, from the perspective of education professionals, family co-responsibility for the socioemotional support of basic education students in public schools. A qualitative study with a descriptive design and an interpretive orientation was conducted. Data were collected through an asynchronous, self-administered open-ended questionnaire completed by three professionals with different profiles and were examined through qualitative content analysis and source triangulation. The results show heterogeneous family involvement and support practices that combine educational monitoring with emotional support. Participants distinguished between having communication channels available and sustaining ongoing coordination with families. The barriers identified were mainly located in family and socioeconomic conditions, and no barriers were explicitly attributed to the school. Family-school collaboration was recognized as relevant to addressing socioemotional needs. Based on the professionals' perceptions, the study concludes that family support integrates educational and socioemotional dimensions and gains meaning through its connection with the school, within a co-responsibility in which both settings play distinct and complementary roles.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection remains a growing public health concern in the Philippines, where new infections rose by about 550% between 2010 and 2024 and diagnosis gaps persist in CALABARZON. Nurses are often the first and most sustained point of contact in HIV testing and care, yet knowledge gaps, stigmatizing attitudes, and procedure-focused training may limit their ability to provide compassionate, person-centered counseling. This study aims to develop and validate a Caring-Based HIV Counseling Training Program for Nurses in Laguna, Philippines, using a methodological research design and a modified Delphi technique. Registered nurses from selected government and private healthcare facilities in Laguna will complete a researcher-developed training-needs assessment questionnaire covering six competency domains: HIV-related knowledge; counseling and therapeutic communication; caring behaviors and person-centered practice; ethical and legal responsibilities; cultural sensitivity and stigma reduction; and linkage to prevention, treatment, care, and support. The questionnaire will undergo expert review, pilot testing, and reliability testing using Cronbach’s alpha. The needs-assessment findings, together with a review of current literature and guidelines, will inform a preliminary training program, which a multidisciplinary panel of approximately 15 to 20 experts will evaluate over successive anonymous Delphi rounds for relevance, clarity, comprehensiveness, cultural appropriateness, feasibility, and applicability. Consensus is defined in advance as at least 80% expert agreement, a median rating of at least 3.00, and an interquartile range of no more than 1.00. Content validity will be established through an Item-Level Content Validity Index of at least .78 and a Scale-Level Content Validity Index (average) of at least .90, overall agreement will be measured with Kendall’s coefficient of concordance, and the experts’ qualitative comments will undergo directed content analysis. The study is expected to produce an expert-validated, contextually relevant training program that strengthens nurses’ capacity to deliver compassionate, stigma-free HIV counseling, with its effectiveness to be tested in a future pilot or quasi-experimental study.

The study examined the relationship between Educational Philosophical Orientation and the Organizational practices of Secondary Mathematics teachers. Using a descriptive-correlational quantitative design, the study involved 150 secondary mathematics teachers and investigated how educational philosophical orientations are associated with teachers’ organizational practices. Findings revealed that Pragmatism obtained the highest mean score (M = 3.852) indicating that the teacher generally valued practical, experiential and problem-solving approaches in mathematics instruction. However, regression results show that Pragmatism did not significantly predict their actual practices. Instead, Idealism emerged as a significant positive predictor of Planning and Lesson Preparation( b = 0.343, p<.001), Collaboration with Colleagues and School Personnel ( b = 0.206, p = 0.044) and Professional Responsibility ( b = 0.374, p<.001). Realism was a significant predictor of Classroom Organization and Management ( b = 0.216, p = .038), and Existentialism did not significantly predict any of the Organizational Practice Dimensions. These findings indicate that the relationship between educational philosophical orientation and teachers’ organizational practice is domain specific rather than uniform across professional activities. The higher endorsement of Pragmatism alongside its lack of significant unique predictive contribution also suggests that teachers espoused philosophical preferences do not necessarily correspond directly to their professional practices. Overall, the finding highlights the value of integrating philosophical reflection with practical and contextual consideration in teacher education and professional development, particularly in strengthening teachers’ awareness of how educational beliefs relate to their professional practice.

School organizational culture in Islamic education requires ethical foundations that can support teachers' professional responsibility without neglecting their well-being. This article develops an analytical framework for examining the internalization of amanah (trustworthiness and accountability) and ihsan (excellence and care) in relation to teachers' organizational commitment at SDIT Ar-Raihan, Pagar Alam, Indonesia. A qualitative single-case study is proposed, involving purposively selected school leaders, teachers, and educational staff, with semi-structured interviews, nonparticipant observations, document analysis, and reflexive thematic analysis. A synthesis of recent scholarship indicates that value-based culture may influence affective and normative commitment through trustworthy leadership, professional meaning, organizational justice, and collegial support; continuance commitment also depends on employment conditions. These relationships are presented as propositions requiring field verification, not as empirical findings from the school. The framework offers an ethically grounded direction for examining teacher commitment and improving Islamic school management.

The teacher shortage is a global challenge. However, some countries are less prone to teacher shortages. The aim of this study was to examine three countries with little or no teacher shortage to explore what these countries do to attract and retain educated teachers. The three countries selected for this case study were Finland (Europe), Singapore, and the Republic of Korea (Southeast Asia). The data pertaining to these countries, as three specific case studies, come from policy documents, statistics, reports, and peer-reviewed articles. The themes in each case were thematically encoded and categorised by the described case context. The themes were identified deductively and strongly linked to the data. The results indicate that the teacher shortage and supply are related to teacher status and grounded in students’ performance and results, teacher training/education, systems for incoming and graduated teacher students, and support during their first years in their profession. Teacher status is seen as a loop in which higher teacher status leads to a lower likelihood of a teacher shortage. The conclusion is that attracting and retaining teachers is a multifaceted and complex process that is the result of many interacting aspects in each specific country’s context. Keywords: Finland, multiple case study, Sing

Over the last decade, there has been a visible surge of students participating in and leading different forms of activism. Following the cultural reckoning of 2020, the United States saw a rise in awareness and engagement in activism among young individuals. Continuing this trend, higher education institutions have seen an increase in on-campus demonstrations in recent years. Given the recent increase in activism, political engagement, and the globalization of social issues, this study examined how attitudes, beliefs, individual factors, and prior behaviors relate to undergraduate students’ willingness to engage in different forms of activism (i.e., conventional and high-risk). Across both forms of activism, institutional advocacy (i.e., the behavioral targeting of institutional racism) was the most consistent unique predictor of a student's willingness to engage in activism. Need for cognition and individual advocacy were significantly and positively related to conventional activism, whereas political orientation was negatively related to it. Social justice orientation was significantly and negatively related to high-risk activism.

This study aims to analyze the learning problems experienced by Grade VIII students at UPTD SMPN 16 Kupang based on students’ experiences and teachers’ perspectives. The study employed a descriptive qualitative approach, using interviews with 16 informants consisting of one homeroom teacher, three subject teachers, and 12 Grade VIII students. The data were analyzed thematically by grouping responses into recurring patterns relevant to the research focus. The findings derived from the available informant accounts revealed several issues, namely students’ limited openness in communicating their difficulties, inconsistent classroom participation, procrastination in completing assignments, and family responsibilities that reduce the time and energy available for learning. Some students reported being distracted by recreational activities, while others experienced fatigue after helping their parents at home. These findings indicate that learning problems need to be understood by considering academic factors, study habits, communication, and family context. Guidance and counseling services can support the identification of students’ needs and the development of effective learning strategies and time management skills.

Graduate employability Outcomes (GEO) is a crucial issue in emerging countries, where skill gaps and unemployment among university graduates are consistently rising. In this context, higher education institutions (HEIs) play a pivotal role in developing a strategic approach to fill the gap through collaboration between academia and industry. Nowadays, every higher education institution in emerging countries has an internal quality assurance cell (IQAC), and they play a critical role in ensuring continuous improvement, stakeholder engagement, and curriculum development. However, despite the growing relevance of this issue, limited empirical studies have been conducted on the mediating role of IQAC in the relationship between industry and academia for confirming graduate employability in an emerging economy, like Bangladesh. The purpose of this study is to examine the mediating role of IQAC, including university curriculum (UC), job scholars’ opportunities (JSO), on the association between university-industry collaboration (UIC), and university GEO in Bangladesh, using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) under the quantitative research approach. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from university graduates, faculty members, and administrative staff. The empirical evidence reveals that UIC significantly contributes to GEO; moreover, IQAC plays a substantial mediating role, including UC and JSO. The findings of the study offer practical contributions for higher educational institutions (HEIs), policymakers, and industry experts to continuously improve graduate employability outcomes, such as practical competencies, skills development, and job readiness.

Social capital represents a relational resource developed through trust, professional networks, collaboration, peer support, and knowledge exchange. In the context of Social Studies Education, social capital can support teachers in accessing information, experiences, and professional resources relevant to professional development and instructional planning. This study aims to analyze the conceptualization of teachers’ social capital, identify its dimensions in relation to teacher professionalism, and examine its relevance to Social Studies teaching practices and instructional planning. The study employs a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) approach guided by the PRISMA 2020 framework. The literature analyzed consists of scholarly publications published between 2023 and 2026 in Indonesian and English that met the established inclusion criteria. The data were analyzed through thematic synthesis based on conceptual dimensions, forms of professional relationships, and their contributions to teaching practices. The synthesis indicates that social capital facilitates teachers’ access to information, experiences, feedback, and professional support through networks and collaborative relationships. These resources can strengthen professional learning and pedagogical decision-making relevant to Social Studies instructional planning. However, empirical evidence directly linking teachers’ social capital to the quality of Social Studies instructional planning remains limited. These findings highlight the need for further research on how social capital can be translated into improvements in the quality of Social Studies instructional planning components.

Abstract: This paper develops an Implementation Framework as a response to the informal feedback from academics, educators and practitioners on the Multiplicity Theory. The claim the paper responds is that the theory is too abstract; thus, it is difficult to translate it into practice. This paper provides clarification to assist its adoption in education and other fields. We believe the illustrations provided in this paper will be helpful to those interested in applying the Theory in education and other fields. The paper compares the current Implementation Framework with other closely related frameworks. The paper concludes to be able to apply the theory an advanced consideration of sub-activities, aspects and resources among others is helpful in bridging theory-practice gap during implementation of a plan. As a result, we ensure quality of educational activities or products (outcomes). The implication of the framework is stakeholders should understand educational events/products (outcomes) are not from a single process, aspect and resources, but a function of a diversity of the same (processes, aspects and resources).

Generation Alpha (born 2010-2024) and Generation Beta (born 2025-2039) represent an unprecedented developmental archetype defined by total digital integration and ubiquitous artificial intelligence (AI). This empirical study evaluated specialized psychological adaptation mechanisms, parenting models, and mental health intervention frameworks across these cohorts. Utilizing a mixed-methods design, quantitative data were gathered from $N = 300$ parents (Gen Alpha parents and expectant/early Gen Beta parents) using the Modified Parental Stress Scale (PSS) and Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), supplemented by qualitative interviews with $N = 20$ pediatric mental health experts. Independent samples $t$-tests confirmed that Gen Alpha/Beta display significantly higher digital dependency anxiety ($M = 38.60, p < .001$) alongside superior visual-spatial intelligence ($M = 44.10, p < .001$) relative to normative baselines. Crucially, a proactive "Digital Integration" co-navigation parenting framework yielded significantly lower parental stress ($M = 29.50$) compared to rigid "Digital Detox" restriction models ($M = 42.80, p < .001$). A preventive clinical framework focusing on Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and cognitive impulse management is proposed.

Children's behaviour and social adjustment within the classroom are important considerations. Behaviour can refer to how a pupil engages with learning tasks, follows instructions, works with others and interacts within the classroom. Social adjustment can relate to how children feel they fit in, build friendships, communicate effectively and feel included. Although behaviour and social adjustment are two distinct areas, they will be influenced by each other. This conceptual article will discuss the relationship between behaviour and social adjustment for upper primary school students. Using theories such as ecological systems, social learning and sociocultural. School engagement, friendships and school belonging will also be discussed. It is important to consider how behaviour should be seen as more than just an individual trait. Family factors, teaching style, peer relationships, individual differences and school factors can influence how a pupil behaves. A strength based approach to children's behaviour and social adjustment will be advocated. The article will conclude with key implications for classroom settings and recommendations for future research. Future research should be culturally aware, developmentally appropriate and ethical. This article is theoretical and will not give any findings.

Toilet training is an essential developmental process that fosters discipline and independence in early childhood. The acquisition of toileting skills is significantly influenced by parenting approaches. Authoritative (democratic) parenting, characterized by warmth, two-way communication, and clear boundaries, offers supportive guidance during this developmental transition. This study aimed to investigate the effect of an authoritative parenting style on toilet training ability among children aged 3–4 years. A quantitative research design with a correlational approach was employed, involving 206 parents of children aged 3–4 years selected via questionnaire distribution. Data were collected using the adapted Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire-Short Version (PSDQ-SV) and the Toilet Training Readiness Scale (TTRS), and analyzed using binary logistic regression. The results revealed a statistically significant association between authoritative parenting and toilet training outcome (p = .018, p .05), though accounting for a modest proportion of the overall variance. These findings suggest that while authoritative parenting contributes positively to early toilet training progression, consistent parental guidance and child-centered readiness factors remain vital.

The article offers a comparative analysis of the concept of pedagogical mastery in Uzbek, Russian and international scholarship and systematises official statistical data on the teaching workforce in Uzbekistan's general secondary education. The study uses a documentary-analytical review, comparative analysis and descriptive statistics; no experimental component was conducted. According to the National Statistics Committee, the number of teachers in general secondary schools grew from 486.6 thousand in 2019/2020 to 577.7 thousand in 2025/2026 (+18.7%), women account for 72.5% of the workforce, and regional differences reach a factor of 4.6. International evidence (Shulman; Hattie; Kunter et al.; Darling-Hammond et al.) indicates that teaching quality depends less on workforce expansion than on the integration of knowledge, practice, personal-value, reflective and digital-methodological components. The author proposes a five-component integrative conceptual model and formulates recommendations for qualitative monitoring of teacher capacity and for the design of professional development

ABSTRACT. The relationship between instructional leadership behaviours and lecturers’ job performance is important in higher education. Understanding this relationship can help academic leaders support lecturers and improve teaching, research, and academic development. Therefore, this study determines how instructional leadership behaviour of heads of departments (HoDs) influences lecturers’ job performance at the major public universities in Kumasi, Ghana. A cross-sectional survey design was employed to collect data from lecturers in public universities at a single point in time. The sample includes public university lecturers. A stratified random sampling technique was used to select 155 lecturers to provide quantitative data. Data were collected using a questionnaire and analyzed with both descriptive and inferential statistics, including frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations, along with the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient. The findings indicate that HoDs demonstrate active involvement in setting institutional direction, monitoring instruction, and supporting staff development. However, the findings reveal insufficient mentorship to support lecturers’ professional learning and performance. This lack of mentorship could limit opportunities for developing leadership potential among teachers and supporting their career growth. Lecturers displayed effectiveness in their teaching practices. The statistical results confirmed a significant effect of instructional leadership behaviours on lecture delivery (F(4,98) = 20.382, p < 0.01). It was recommended that HoDs should communicate departmental goals clearly and ensure that lecturers understand their teaching, assessment, research, and administrative responsibilities. Additionally, the strong positive correlation between the communication of institutional objectives and lecturer effectiveness highlights the need for university goals, teaching expectations, and performance standards to be communicated clearly across departments.

This mixed-methods study examined whether first-year teachers could improve relationships with students through Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). Fifty novice teachers implemented one of three PBIS strategies: daily one-on-one conversation, verbal praise, or immediate rewards with 192 selected students over a two-week period. Teacher-student relationships were measured using the Student-Teacher Relationship Scale (STRS) before and after the intervention. Results showed significant reductions in conflict (t(191) = 7.14, p < .001, d = 0.98) and moderate increases in closeness (t(191) = –7.11, p < .001, d = 0.67). No significant differences emerged across grade levels, teacher and student gender, or PBIS strategy type. Thematic analysis of teacher reflections highlighted improvements in engagement, cooperation, emotional regulation, and relational trust. Although the study was limited by its two-week duration and reliance on teacher self-reports, the findings demonstrate that even brief PBIS interventions can yield measurable relational benefits. Implications are discussed for teacher preparation programs and school-based practice. Keywords: teacher-student relationships, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), teacher preparation programs, first-year/novice teachers, school climate.

This article analyzes Brazilian academic production on Food and Nutrition Education (FNE) and teacher education based on theses and dissertations available in the Brazilian Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations, published between 2006 and 2024. The review was conducted in seven stages and used content analysis to investigate the selected studies. The results highlight the contribution of different fields of knowledge to the area, with a predominance of female researchers holding degrees in Nutrition or teacher education programs. Most studies focused on Elementary Education, particularly within the Natural Sciences curriculum, and employed participatory methodologies such as action research and ethnography. The teacher education initiatives analyzed were generally grounded in the Reference Framework for Food and Nutrition Education and the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population, fostering reflective and contextualized approaches. Thus, the present study found that teacher education in Food and Nutrition Education should promote autonomy, critical reflection, and the collective construction of knowledge, in line with contemporary educational perspectives.

Religious education is often expected to promote tolerance, but respect for religious difference does not necessarily ensure accurate understanding of religious others. This study examines how religious education policies in Indonesia and England emphasize different forms of cognitive tolerance. Using qualitative document analysis and comparative policy analysis, the study analyzes selected legal, curricular, and pedagogical documents through four components: Knowledge of Religious Others, Recognition of Internal Diversity, Critical Reflection, and Understanding Commonalities and Differences. Indonesian policy gives greater relative emphasis to understanding commonalities and differences within religion-specific formation, social harmony, and responsible citizenship. English policy gives greater emphasis to critical reflection and knowledge of religious and non-religious worldviews through shared enquiry. Recognition of Internal Diversity appears in similar proportions in both datasets, but it serves different curricular functions. The findings show differently configured pathways toward cognitive tolerance, combining the same cognitive components with different relative emphases and curricular purposes.

Abstract Child and adolescent externalizing problems have often been conceptualized broadly with imprecise language (e.g., “disruptive behavior”) or inconsistently across varying taxonomies (e.g., oppositional defiant and conduct disorder symptoms, aggressive and rule-breaking behaviors). Establishing clarity around dimensions of externalizing problems is an essential step toward more accurate measurement and construct validity across the externalizing domain. To that end, the current study investigated fine-grained dimensions in the structure of youth externalizing psychopathology. Caregiver-report survey data were collected for a national community sample of 576 youth (ages 6–14; 45% female, 25% Hispanic), including measures of irritability, oppositionality, reactive and proactive aggression, conduct problems, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and inattention. We used exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to examine relations among externalizing dimensions at the item-level followed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to examine relations at the construct-level. EFA results suggested that a 3-factor model best fit the data, including factors characterized by externalizing affect (e.g., “felt mad”), externalizing behavior (e.g., “bullies, threatens, or intimidates others”), and ADHD symptoms (e.g., “talks excessively”), with a few cross-loadings. Similarly, confirmatory models indicated that a 3-factor, non-hierarchical structure fit the data best when compared to three other models. Results provide support for distinct facets of the externalizing spectrum in child psychopathology, suggesting a preliminary direction for a unifying framework. These findings highlight the potential for future measurement research to further disentangle the distinct and overlapping facets of externalizing constructs, particularly using multiple methods and informants and with replication across samples.

This study examined the relationship between AI companionship- operationalized as attachment anxiety and avoidance toward AI- and psychological well-being among 50 Gen Z adults (aged 18-29) in India. Using the Experiences in Human-AI Relationships Scale (EHARS) and the WHO-5 Well-Being Index, the study found no significant associations between attachment to AI and well-being. These findings, though limited by sample size and design constraints, contribute to the growing literature on human-AI relationships in non-Western contexts.

The stress facing the educational leadership as school principals are required to deal with administrative management, supervision of staff, academic performance and institutional development. There are specific issues that may affect female principals in addition to the other factors listed above: Interpersonal demands, competing professional demands, and work–life balance. Problem-Focused Coping Strategies (PFCS) may be a way to cope with stress by identifying the sources of stress, planning and problem solving, prioritizing and making positive decisions. The present study investigated the correlation between PFCS and Stress Management (SM) of female school principals. The method of quantitative research was employed and data was gathered from 74 principals (females). Analysis of the correlation showed a weak negative correlation between PFCS and SM (r = -.117). The regression model accounted for about 1.4% of the variability in SM (R2 = .014). The overall regression model was not significant (F (1,72) = 1.005, p = .319). The regression coefficient for PFCS was also negative and not significantly different from 0 (B = -.254, β = -.117, p = .319). The results of this study suggest that there was no statistically significant predictive relationship found between the female principals who participated in the study and PFCS and SM. The results do not show that problem-focused coping is not effective, however; it does imply that it may be insufficient to account for variations in stress management in this sample. The results indicate that there is a need to explore further individual and organizational factors, such as workload, institutional support, leadership experience, resources, and work–life balance. More research is needed using larger samples, measuring instruments that have been established and validated, and using longitudinal or intervention designs to investigate the role of problem-focused coping in stress management. Other professional development programs that could be beneficial for educational authorities include those related to problem solving, time management, delegation, and conflict resolution. The research brings insights from the sphere of stress amongst female educational leaders to the discussion and provides some insights for future research directions.

Background: Prolonged screen exposure, after-hours connectivity, and sedentary work are linked to poor sleep and occupational burnout among Indian working professionals. Ayurvedic Dinacharya regulates waking, Vyayama, Bhojana Vidhi, and Nidra Vidhi; however, digital-era disruption of these domains among working adults remains unstudied. This study aimed to assess digital lifestyle behaviours mapped to Dinacharya principles as behavioural markers of Pragyaparadha, in relation to sleep quality and occupational burnout among working adults, and to identify behaviours independently associated with poor sleep and higher burnout. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical survey (STROBE-reported) was conducted at the All-India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), New Delhi, during (January 2026 to July 2026), among 400 working adults aged 25-40 years with ≥1 year of occupational experience. A structured proforma captured sociodemographic details and Dinacharya-mapped digital behaviours across five domains (morning routine, bedtime device use, after-hours connectivity, screen breaks/sedentary time, mealtime practices). Sleep quality and burnout were assessed using the PSQI and Copenhagen burnout inventory. Results: Of 400 participants, 56.8% had poor sleep quality, 61% personal burnout, and 55.8% work-related burnout. Bedtime device use and inadequate screen breaks/sedentary behaviour independently predicted poor sleep (aOR 1.76 and 1.98). After-hours connectivity, sedentary behaviour, and mealtime digital engagement predicted personal burnout; bedtime device use, sedentary behaviour, mealtime digital engagement, and digital overload predicted work-related burnout (all p<0.05). Conclusions: Digital lifestyle behaviours reflect patterns of Pragyaparadha in daily digital conduct. Interpreted through Dinacharya and Nidra, the findings support a culturally grounded, preventive Digital Dinacharya framework for digital-era occupational health.

Firms often treat spending on employee training, development and well-being as a discretionary expense rather than an investment. The aim of this article is to examine whether human capital investment improves firm financial performance through employee well-being, and whether this effect depends on the firm's financial constraints. The study integrates human capital theory, the Job Demands–Resources (JD-R) model and the corporate finance literature on financing constraints. A moderated-mediation model is proposed in which employee well-being mediates the link between human capital investment and financial performance, while financial constraints weaken the link between investment and well-being. The model is tested on matched employer–employee data from 50–60 project-based organisations in the construction, IT, consulting and engineering sectors of Tashkent. Multilevel moderated-mediation analysis is applied. The scientific novelty lies in treating human capital investment as a financially constrained corporate investment and testing this integrated model in the under-researched context of Central Asia. The results help managers and policymakers understand the financial rationale for investing in employees under different financing conditions.

Psychological distress during young adulthood may be influenced by early emotional experiences and current interpersonal relationships. The current study investigates the relationship between childhood emotional neglect, peer support and psychological distress in young adults. A quantitative research design was used with 200 participants aged 18-25 years selected through purposive sampling from educational institutions of Lahore. Childhood emotional neglect, peer support and psychological distress were measured with the Childhood Emotional Neglect Questionnaire (CENQ), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived social support (MSPSS), and Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10), respectively. Data were analyzed using Pearson- product moment correlation, hierarchical regression, PROCESS moderation analysis and one way ANOVA. Childhood emotional neglect was significantly and positively associated with psychological distress while peer support was not significantly and directly associated with psychological distress. Hierarchical regression indicates that psychological distress was significantly predicted by childhood emotional neglect, while peer support was not a significant direct predictor. The regression model explained 12.5% of variance in psychological distress. Moderation analysis showed significant interaction effects of friends’ support (P= .017) and family support (P= .032), indicating that these sources of support moderated the relationship between childhood emotional neglect and psychological distress. There were significant socio-economic differences for childhood emotional and peer support, but not for psychological distress. The findings highlight the importance of considering childhood emotional experiences and interpersonal resources when understanding psychological distress among young adults.

This study explored attachment-related responses and self-reported relationship experiences among adults. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey was conducted using an online questionnaire; the supplied response file contained 57 records. The questionnaire included demographic questions, 12 attachment-related statements, six relationship-experience statements, and an optional open-ended question about healthy relationships. Descriptive statistics were calculated. For exploratory analysis, four items concerning fear of rejection and reassurance were averaged into an anxiety-related index, and four items concerning emotional disclosure, closeness, and independence were averaged into an avoidance-related index. These researcher-created indices are not validated psychological scales. Spearman rank correlations were used to examine associations with relationship-experience ratings. The six-item relationship-experience composite had a mean of 3.65 on a 1-5 scale. The anxiety-related index was positively associated with the composite (ρ = .315, p = .017), as was the avoidance-related index (ρ = .430, p = .001), contrary to the initially anticipated negative direction. Since the items were not validated, no reverse-scoring was applied, and the sample was a convenience sample with uneven demographic representation, these findings must be interpreted cautiously. They do not establish causation or justify classifying individuals by attachment style.

Background: Psychological stress is a common issue among faculty members due to increasing academic, administrative, and professional responsibilities. Prolonged stress negatively affect mental well-being, job satisfaction, and work performance. Therefore, assessing the level of psychological stress among faculty members is essential for identifying the need for stress-management strategies. This study aimed to evaluate the level of psychological stress among faculty members of colleges and universities. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 101 faculty members from colleges and universities. Participants were recruited using a convenience sampling technique. Data were collected through structured online questionnaire consisting of demographic information and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Descriptive statistics, including frequencies and percentages, were used for data analysis. Results: A total of 101 faculty members participated in the study. The majority of participants were above 30 years of age (46%), female (64%), worked 40-50 hours per week (41%), and possessed a master's degree (68%). Assessment of stress levels using the perceived stress scale revealed 91% of participants experienced moderate stress, 6% experienced low stress, and 3% experienced high stress. Most respondents reported experiencing stress-related feelings such as being upset unexpectedly, inability to control important things in life, nervousness, and difficulty coping "sometimes," indicating a moderate level of perceived psychological stress. Conclusions: The findings indicate that psychological stress is prevalent among faculty members of colleges and universities, with moderate stress being the most commonly reported level. These results highlight need for effective stress-management interventions and workplace wellness programs to promote psychological well-being among faculty members.

The present study investigated the mediating effect of spiritual wellbeing on the relationship between mindfulness and emotion dysregulation among young adults. The sample N=200 were selected for the present research. A cross-sectional correlational research design was used for the present study. Through the convenience sampling technique, data were gathered by using the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) by Baer et al. (2006), the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) by Paloutzian and Ellison (1982) Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) by Gratz and Roemer (2004). According to the results, spiritual well-being is positively correlated with mindfulness and its dimensions (observing, describing, acting with awareness, non-judging, non-reactivity). Emotional dysregulation is negatively linked to mindfulness. Mediation analysis showed a significant prediction by mindfulness of spiritual well-being and emotional dysregulation. It was also found that spiritual well-being predicts emotional dysregulation. In addition, spiritual well-being was found to be a mediating factor through which emotional dysregulation and mindfulness are linked. According to the study, interventions aimed at enhancing emotional resilience and well-being in people will be of interest for the mental health section.

The increasing use of computers, predominantly involving prolonged static sitting, may increase the risk of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). This study aims to examine workstation ergonomic risk and musculoskeletal disorders among computer users through a literature review based on the Rapid Office Strain Assessment (ROSA) and the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ). A systematic search was conducted in PubMed and Google Scholar for articles published between 2020 and 2025, following PRISMA guidelines. A total of nine studies that met the inclusion criteria were analyzed narratively. The results indicate that most studies reported moderate to high levels of ergonomic risk, with chair-related factors as the dominant contributors. The prevalence of musculoskeletal complaints was also high, particularly in the neck, shoulders, and lower back. However, the relationship between ROSA scores and musculoskeletal complaints was inconsistent across studies, suggesting the influence of multifactorial determinants. Therefore, ROSA is more appropriately used as a screening tool for ergonomic risk, while NMQ complements it by capturing subjective complaints. The combined use of both instruments is essential to support a more comprehensive ergonomic assessment and the development of effective interventions.

Future orientation is an important developmental aspect for twelfth-grade senior high school students, who must decide on further study or careers after graduation. A preliminary study through interviews with the guidance and counseling teacher and an open-ended questionnaire administered to 50 twelfth-grade students of Sekolah Menengah Islam (SMI) Hidayatullah, Banjar Regency, showed that none of the respondents had clear future goals. This community service activity aimed to provide understanding and initial skills in setting future goals through the “Aku Bisa” (I Can) program, a psychoeducation-based activity consisting of an interactive lecture on goal setting, creating a “my aspirations” mind map, and a short film discussion. The one-day program was attended by 105 twelfth-grade students. Outcomes were evaluated through a pre-test and post-test based on a future orientation scale, observation during the activities, and a participant evaluation sheet. A paired sample t-test showed no significant difference between scores before and after the program (t(95) = 0.245; p = 0.807). Nevertheless, participants were able to write down their aspirations and plan how to achieve them in a mind map, and most participants rated their understanding of the material (78.10% good and very good) and the benefits of the activity (87.62% good and very good) favorably. This program can serve as an initial step in introducing future planning to students; however, longer implementation and follow-up evaluation are needed to detect meaningful changes in future orientation

This study examined the association between intolerance of uncertainty and psychological distress among emerging adults aged 18-29 years. A quantitative, cross-sectional correlational design was used with online convenience sampling. Of 181 survey submissions, one record was excluded because age was missing and one because the respondent was aged 17 years; a further 18 respondents who reported a previous mental-health diagnosis were excluded. The final analytical sample comprised 161 participants (M age = 23.60, SD = 3.09; 67.1% women). Intolerance of uncertainty was measured with the 12-item Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS-12), and nonspecific psychological distress with the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). Mean IUS-12 and K10 scores were 32.11 (SD = 9.44) and 24.31 (SD = 8.09), respectively. Internal consistency estimates were .887 and .913. Pearson's correlation indicated a positive association between IUS-12 and K10 scores, r(159) = .632, p < .001, 95% CI [.529, .717]. Spearman's correlation was also positive and significant (rs = .595, p < .001, 95% bootstrap CI [.475, .699]). Higher intolerance of uncertainty was associated with greater self-reported psychological distress in this sample. The cross-sectional design, convenience sampling, self-report measures, and diagnosis-based screening limit causal inference and generalisability.

Student engagement positively influences academic achievement, yet instruments suited to the Indonesian cultural context remain limited. This study aimed to develop a valid, reliable, and user-friendly student engagement scale for high school students. Using a quantitative descriptive design, the study involved 295 male and female students aged 15–18 years recruited through convenience sampling. The scale comprised three dimensions: behavioral, emotional, and cognitive engagement. The results showed that the scale demonstrated a good model fit based on the goodness-of-fit indices (χ2/df = 1.60; CFI = 0.966; TLI = 0.962; SRMR = 0.074; RMSEA = 0.045) and good reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.844 for emotional engagement, 0.753 for behavioral engagement, and 0.782 for cognitive engagement. The developed scale can be used by teachers, counselors, and educational researchers to identify students’ levels of engagement and inform the development of programs to improve student engagement.

Emotional contagion refers to the process through which people's emotions may be influenced by the emotional states and expressions of others. This study examined self-reported responses to stress in other people and explored their association with perceived stress. A quantitative, cross-sectional online questionnaire was completed between October 25 and 27, 2026. Of 33 submissions, 32 participants consented and were included in the emotional-response analysis; 31 had sufficient responses for the preliminary perceived-stress analysis. The questionnaire included 15 researcher-developed statements about responses to others' stress and 10 perceived-stress questions resembling the Perceived Stress Scale?10 (PSS-10). Descriptive results showed that 90.6% of participants agreed or strongly agreed that they could sense stress in people around them, while 75.0% reported that stress in family, workplace, or educational settings affected their emotional well-being. An exploratory Spearman correlation indicated a positive association between the emotional-response composite and perceived-stress scores (rs = .526, p = .002, n = 31). This association must be interpreted cautiously because the emotional-response questionnaire was not validated and the exact perceived-stress instrument requires confirmation. Findings provide preliminary descriptive insight but do not establish causation.

The number of depressed Malaysian university students has sharply increased over the past ten years. What started as a localized academic issue has now become a major national mental health crisis, but the true experiences of those affected remain elusive. Therefore, the purpose of the research is to comprehend the authentic experiences of students in Malaysian universities who are experiencing depression. This research employed a qualitative methodology via a phenomenological framework involving five participants female university students who are diagnosed clinically with depression. Information was accessed via semi-structured interviews that were digitally audiotaped, transcribed verbatim and translated to English to analyse the information. The results indicate that there are six major themes that describe the experience of having depression. They are high-achieving students losing their academic identity because they entered the survival mode, a bitter fight between seeking the help of professional assistance and turning to drug use or self-harm in order to cope, the pressure of being a normal, fearing to be seen as a burden, the contradiction between familial beliefs and attributing depression to lack of spirituality, the physically isolated nature of staying in the room because of the need to avoid social interaction, and the impact of past sexual abuse as an underlying factor of psychological trauma. The themes indicate that student depression is not just a medical problem but they are very much influenced by intrapersonal, social, cultural, and spiritual demands. It is thus recommendable to provide necessary support that will alleviate the deep-seated experience of depression, especially in the university.

Background and Purpose: Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a global concern in adolescent mental health. Rural boarding middle school students, as a unique and vulnerable population, remain understudied regarding the potential heterogeneity and longitudinal trajectories of NSSI. This study aimed to identify latent classes of NSSI among this group, examine their transition patterns over time, and evaluate the effectiveness of an emotion management group intervention. Methods: Study 1 cross-sectionally surveyed 927 adolescents; we split samples into non-NSSI and NSSI subgroups and ran latent profile analysis (LPA) only among participants with NSSI ( n =285). Study 2 conducted a 6-month follow-up of 550 participants and applied latent transition analysis (LTA) to examine class shifts and predictive factors. Study 3 was a randomized controlled trial in which 30 students from the High-NSSI received an 8-week emotion-management group intervention. Intervention effects were evaluated using repeated-measures ANCOVA with demographic covariates. Results: Within the NSSI subgroup ( n = 285), two classes were identified: a High-NSSI class ( n = 21, 7.4%) and a Low-NSSI class ( n = 264, 92.6%). Poor sleep quality and bullying victimization independently predicted High-NSSI membership. Longitudinal analysis revealed high stability in the Low-NSSI class (91%) and high fluidity in the High-NSSI class (83% transitioning to low-risk). The emotion-management intervention significantly reduced both NSSI frequency and negative affect. Discussion: These findings demonstrate that clinically meaningful NSSI subtypes exist among rural boarding adolescents and that sleep quality and bullying are key modifiable risk factors. The results support a stepped-care approach in school settings, where the High-NSSI class requires intensive intervention and the Low-NSSI class may benefit from less intensive, universal supports. The emotion-management group intervention is an effective school-based program for the most severe NSSI subtype. Keywords: non-suicidal self-injury, latent profile analysis, latent transition analysis, emotion management, group intervention

Mental health services are constantly evolving with the gradual introduction of functionalized care, which means medical intervention has become more focused on a particular clinical area or stage of the illness. This has progressed to having designated teams for inpatient psychiatry. Usually, psychiatrists manage their patients both in outpatient and inpatient settings while working in a particular geographical area or sector. Moving away from this model to a functionalized inpatient setting, where other psychiatrists take care of their patients, is seen as a breach in continuity of care. In this context, it was intended to review the current literature for the experience of clinicians and patients in these sectorized (medical continuity) or functionalized models of psychiatric inpatient care. A narrative review of the current literature from multiple databases was conducted. The results suggested that there are positive and negative observations in both models. It appeared that neither met the expectations of patients nor clinicians. Patients preferred to be seen by the same consultant in community and inpatient settings, but clinical outcomes were not significantly different in the two models. The functionalized care was mostly medical continuity rather than multidisciplinary. Any changes in the care models may be driven by local facilities and issues. There is a need to improve the quality of care through existing models before any changes. More studies are needed to improve the evidence on the effectiveness of these service models.

Social media use among young people has been associated with body dissatisfaction due to exposure to hegemonic beauty standards. This study examined the effect of hegemonic beauty content on body dissatisfaction among Indonesian adults. A true experiment with a pretest-posttest control group design involved 40 participants (20 females and 20 males) aged 18–25 years. Repeated-measures ANOVA showed no significant difference in body dissatisfaction between the experimental and control groups (p = .335). The control group had a higher mean score (44.770) than the experimental group (31.681), although the difference was not statistically significant. These findings indicate that brief exposure to body diversity content did not significantly affect body dissatisfaction. This result may reflect limited exposure duration and participants’ prior experiences with beauty standards. Future research should examine longer exposure periods using naturalistic longitudinal designs that account for individual differences and cultural context in social media use and body image.

Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs) provide frontline guidance and support in demanding military environments, where operational workloads can affect personnel well-being and performance. This study described junior enlisted personnel’s assessments of NCO leadership, occupational burnout, and operational performance at the 560th Air Base Group, Brigadier General Benito N. Ebuen Air Base, during 2026, and examined challenges encountered by First Sergeants. A descriptive survey design involved 180 junior enlisted personnel selected from 326 eligible personnel through squadron-stratified sampling, supplemented by qualitative accounts from 11 First Sergeants. Adapted questionnaires measured four leadership dimensions, three burnout dimensions, and four performance dimensions; frequency, percentage, weighted mean, standard deviation, and thematic analysis were used. Leadership ratings ranged from 3.9236 for supervision, mentorship, and welfare support to 4.0361 for task guidance. Emotional exhaustion was moderate (M = 2.7833), whereas depersonalization (M ≈ 2.42) and reduced personal accomplishment (M = 2.1375) were low. Operational performance ratings were favorable (M = 4.0056–4.1667). Interview accounts identified manpower shortages, inadequate resources, strain on personnel welfare, and interpersonal leadership concerns. The findings informed a proposed Leadership Enhancement and Sustainability Framework prioritizing staffing, mentoring, workload management, and leadership integrity. Because the thesis did not report predictive regression or correlation tests, the results support descriptive assessment and an intervention proposal rather than established statistical prediction.

The rapid digitalisation and technological advancements associated with Industry 4.0 are transforming work environments, job demands, and employee expectations across sectors. While these changes create new opportunities for flexibility, innovation, and productivity, they also introduce increased pressures that can affect workers’ psychological well-being in different ways. Emerging literature highlights mental health and well-being as critical concerns in the digital era, yet limited attention has been given to how these changes are experienced differently by men and women. This conceptual paper aims to examine gender differences in psychological well-being within the context of Industry 4.0, with a focus on work demands, work–life balance, and organisational support. Through a critical review of existing empirical and theoretical studies, a conceptual framework is proposed, drawing on the Job Demands–Resources (JD–R) theory and supported by Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being model. This framework provides an understanding of how demands and resources associated with Industry 4.0 shape the well-being of men and women in both similar and different ways. The study offers insights for policymakers, organisations, and researchers in developing more inclusive and gender-sensitive strategies to support employee well-being in technology-driven workplaces and contributes to discussions on sustainable work and mental health in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

This study examined the influence of attachment style on fear of intimacy among emerging adults aged 18–25 years. A quantitative approach involved 152 participants who were currently or had previously been in romantic relationships, recruited through convenience sampling. Data were collected using the Experiences in Close Relationships–Revised (ECR-R) and Fear of Intimacy Scale (FIS). Linear regression analysis showed that insecure attachment significantly predicted fear of intimacy (β = 0.570, p < .001). Both attachment avoidance (β = 0.432, p < .001) and attachment anxiety (β = 0.368, p < .001) were significant predictors, with avoidance showing a stronger association. These findings suggest that discomfort with emotional closeness and anxiety in romantic relationships are associated with greater fear of intimacy. The results highlight the potential value of psychological interventions that support emerging adults in developing safer and healthier romantic relationships.

Discourse competence plays a crucial role in preparing English as Second Language (ESL) learners to produce coherent and cohesive communication. Nevertheless, the effective use of cohesive devices remains a challenge for many ESL learners, hindering their ability to produce coherent and meaningful discourse. To address this issue, the Case of the Lost Linkers Digital Educational Escape Room (DEER) was developed as a gamified learning tool to support the development of discourse competence. This study aimed to investigate ESL learners’ acceptance of the DEER game using the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A quantitative survey design was employed involving 151 ESL learners from a Malaysian public university. Data were collected using a five-section questionnaire consisting of demographic information and four TAM constructs: perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude toward use, and behavioural intention to use. Descriptive analysis revealed high levels of acceptance across all constructs. Learners perceived the DEER game as useful, user-friendly, enjoyable, and effective for learning linkers and cohesive devices. They also expressed strong intentions to continue using and recommending the game. The findings suggest that DEER has considerable potential as an engaging and learner-centred tool for supporting discourse competence development in ESL contexts.

Nurses delivered much of the direct care to COVID-19 patients and were repeatedly exposed to death, infection risk, and shortages of equipment, yet little is known about how Pakistani nurses experienced and managed posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). This qualitative study explored PTSS, experiences of trauma, perceived psychological impact, and coping strategies among nurses who cared for COVID-19 patients during peak pandemic waves. Eight registered nurses working in COVID wards and intensive care units of public hospitals in Islamabad and Rawalpindi were recruited through purposive sampling and took part in individual semi-structured interviews conducted in Urdu and basic English. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis. Four themes were generated: (a) symptoms related to trauma (altered sleep, changes in temperament, emotional reactivity, diminished interest in social life, flashbacks); (b) threats and stress due to COVID-19 (increased workload, direct threat to self and others, sense of isolation, lack of knowledge and equipment); (c) psychological impact of trauma (increased mental health concerns, burnout and compassion fatigue, elevated death anxiety, lack of optimism about the future); and (d) strategies to cope (sharing workload with the team, emotional support from colleagues). Seven of eight nurses described flashbacks, and accounts spanned several DSM-5 symptom clusters, although no diagnostic assessment was used. Peer teamwork and emotional support were the only coping resources reported, and no participant had received formal counselling. Peer solidarity seems to have been an informal resource of resilience where organizational support was absent and institutional psychological services should be built around it.

The education of young children constitutes the foundation of their cognitive, social, emotional, and behavioural development. Teacher psychological capital, emotional intelligence, and work engagement are personal resources that may be associated with good teaching practices and child development as perceived by teachers. Using COR theory, this study examined the relationships among teacher psychological capital, emotional intelligence, work engagement, teaching effectiveness, and teacher-reported children's developmental outcomes of early childhood educators in Lagos State, Nigeria. The study employed a correlational research design. A sample of 202 early childhood educators was selected through a multistage sampling process, in which five children per teacher's classroom were selected, resulting in a total of 1,010 children rated using the Early Development Instrument (EDI). The data for the study were gathered using the Psychological Capital Questionnaire, the Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) Pre-K, and the EDI Teacher Version. The scores of five children per teacher were aggregated to measure teacher-level indicators of child developmental outcomes. Data analysis was done using Pearson product-moment correlation, multiple regression, and hierarchical multiple regression at the 0.05 level of significance. The results indicated significant positive correlations among the research variables. Psychological capital, emotional intelligence, and work engagement, both together and individually, made significant contributions to teaching effectiveness and teacher-rated children’s developmental outcomes. Teaching experience and school ownership also significantly moderated the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. This research therefore concludes that psychological capital, emotional intelligence, and work engagement are significant resources for teachers, contributing to teaching effectiveness and teacher-rated children’s developmental outcomes.

While existing literature recognises mentorship as an important strategy for leadership development, there is limited empirical understanding of how women experience and negotiate mentorship as they advance into school leadership in the South African context. Despite policy efforts to promote gender equity, women remain underrepresented in school leadership, and the role of mentorship in addressing this disparity remains insufficiently understood. This study explores mentorship as a relational mechanism through which women negotiate access, leadership identity, and social capital in their advancement into school leadership. An interpretive qualitative design, underpinned by a narrative phenomenological approach and informed by Social Capital Theory, was used to explore the experiences of six purposively selected women leaders from township schools in a single district in KwaZulu-Natal. Data were generated through semi-structured interviews and were analysed thematically. Participants reported that supportive mentoring relationships provided them with confidence, professional visibility, networking opportunities, leadership guidance, and encouragement to pursue leadership positions. Participants with limited access to mentorship described feelings of isolation, reduced access to leadership guidance, and fewer opportunities for professional development. They also reported seeking mentorship through external professional networks and women-centered spaces when support within their immediate school environments was limited. Some participants described mentoring relationships characterised by unequal power dynamics, limited trust, or inappropriate behaviour. Based on these accounts, the researchers interpret mentorship as an uneven, relational, and context-dependent mechanism through which women negotiate access to professional resources, leadership identity, and social capital. The findings suggest that mentorship can facilitate women's leadership development when relationships are supportive and trusting, but may also constrain agency when mentoring relationships reproduce hierarchical and gendered power relations. The study, therefore, extends understanding of mentorship by shifting attention from the mere availability of mentors to the relational, institutional, and power conditions that shape how mentorship is experienced and mobilised. Although limited by its small, context-specific sample, the study provides contextually grounded insights into mentorship and women's advancement into school leadership. It highlights the need for structured, responsive, and gender-sensitive mentoring opportunities.

Abstract Core body temperature (Tb) is defended within narrow limits through thermoregulatory behaviors like huddling, nesting, and physical activity as well as autonomic responses like brown fat thermogenesis. While Tb displays regulated fluctuations across different behavioral states and rest/arousal cycles, the neural control of these transitions is poorly understood. Here, we investigate the relationship between oxytocin neurons of the paraventricular hypothalamus (PVN OT ) and behavioral and autonomic thermoeffector pathways across physiological states in mice. First, we show that PVN OT neurons are activated during social thermoregulation. We then demonstrate that in vivo PVN OT calcium dynamics align with transitions from rest to thermogenesis and behavioral arousal. Counter to our initial hypothesis, these dynamics were observed in both social and non-social contexts. Using a computer vision model to track thermoeffector pathways, we demonstrate that precisely timed stimulation of PVN OT neurons during low-Tb resting states increases thermogenesis followed by behavioral arousal. We therefore suggest a model in which PVN OT neurons facilitate homeostatic state-dependent transitions in thermo-behavioral states.

The article discusses the concepts of spirituality, morality, and personal qualities of students, reveals the essential characteristics of spiritual and moral education of students, and the importance of cooperation between parents and teachers in educational activities.

Teacher assessment literacy has received increasing attention, yet evidence remains fragmented across studies. This systematic review and meta-analysis synthesized 18 studies comprising 21 independent samples using the ALI, CALI, and TALQ instruments. The pooled mean score was 16.48 (95% CI [14.86, 18.10]) on a 35-point scale, indicating low assessment literacy, with substantial between-study heterogeneity (I² = 99.21%). Publication year, geographical region, instrument type, teacher status, teaching level, and subject specialization were not significant moderators. This review provides the first quantitative benchmark of teacher assessment literacy across the ALI, CALI, and TALQ instruments and highlights the need to strengthen assessment literacy through pre-service education, continuous professional development, and context-responsive educational policies.

Educational change requires educators to adapt to evolving pedagogical, technological, and organizational demands. This cross-sectional study examined associations among instructional leadership, psychological empowerment, perceived collective efficacy, and adaptive performance among 401 educators recruited through convenience sampling from three public and private schools in Sulu Province, Philippines. Partial least squares structural equation modeling showed no significant direct association between instructional leadership and adaptive performance. Instructional leadership was nevertheless indirectly associated with adaptive performance through psychological empowerment, perceived collective efficacy, and the theoretically specified sequence involving both variables. The coefficient for the indirect association through perceived collective efficacy was numerically larger than those for the other indirect pathways, although the differences between indirect effects were not formally tested. The findings are consistent with the hypothesized indirect-association model but do not establish mediation as a temporal or causal process. Because the data were cross-sectional, self-reported, and nonprobability-based, the results apply to the participating educators and should not be generalized to Philippine educators as a whole.

This study examines how peer learning, mentoring, and alumni engagement jointly relate to student employability, using bibliometric and thematic analysis of 117 peer-reviewed articles indexed in Scopus (2010–2025). Publications increased markedly after 2019, reflecting growing scholarly interest in this area. Three interdependent thematic clusters emerged: peer learning as a foundation for teaching and learning practice; mentoring and experiential learning as supports for post-graduation career development; and alumni relations as a bridge between universities and workplaces. Based on these patterns, the study proposes a developmental ecosystem model of employability integrating pedagogy, relationships, and experiential learning, and suggests management education is shifting toward experiential, network-based approaches.

There is growing research interest in how adult education can better respond to an increasingly diverse student population as part of realising inclusive education. However, less attention has been given to practice oriented perspectives that examine how inclusion is enacted as a dynamic, situated process in everyday teaching. This study examines how teachers navigate the challenges involved in shaping inclusive adult education in Swedish municipal adult education (SMAE), drawing on the theory of practice architectures. Qualitative survey data were collected from teachers in eight SMAE institutions. The findings show that teachers encounter challenges embedded in cultural-discursive, material-economic, and social-political arrangements within a marketised system. These arrangements both enable and constrain their efforts to realise inclusive education. Teachers respond by adopting different strategies, ranging from disengagement and workaround solutions to market responsive and professionally accountable approaches, illustrating the uneven conditions shaping inclusive practice.

Various disciplines view reflection as both a theory and a practice for helping make learning more visible to students as well as giving them a greater sense of agency; thus, the importance of reflection in higher education is well established. In recent years, scholars in SoTL have acknowledged and theorized about the importance of reflection for faculty. Our 360-degree model builds on this scholarship and research in writing studies in order to suggest that directional (inward, outward, forward, backward) reflection helps faculty analyze their teaching practices by integrating theoretical insights and evidence to evaluate effectiveness while also supporting ongoing professional growth. This poster shares an application of the 360-degree model of reflection, encouraging faculty to build reflective practices into their SoTL projects.

This article examines ethics education in schools in the light of three converging processes: the expansion of Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE), human rights education, and the growing importance of digital environments in everyday life. It argues that Ethics Education goes beyond the transmission of values and involves issues of justice, participation, care, and recognition. Drawing on recent literature, the article analyzes both the contributions and tensions surrounding CSE as well as the challenges posed by digital citizenship. It concludes that schools currently require a broader political-pedagogical horizon to address these issues in an integrated manner.

This article examines the curricular articulation of the Teaching Practice Unit (Práctica Docente, PD) in three Higher Institutes of Teacher Education (ISFD), managed by the Province of Córdoba (Argentina). It is organized around three analytical levels -horizontal, vertical and inter-institutional- and it draws on a qualitative, descriptive-interpretive study: documentary analysis, interviews with two members of the provincial curriculum team and five school principals, and a survey of nine PD instructors. Results show specific devices for horizontal articulation (integrative workshops and seminars), vertical articulation (spiral progression and complementary regulations), and a relationship with partner schools that participants themselves describe as still developing. Limitations, including the absence of partner schools' voices, and the relation to recent provincial curricular changes are discussed.

Researchers have explained the emigration of Nigerian teachers, popularly termed japa, mainly through low remuneration and insecurity, while giving less attention to access to professional development and career progression. This study examined the professional development and career opportunities available to Nigerian nursery and primary school teachers in Nigeria and abroad, and how these are linked to the decision to migrate. A mixed-methods design was adopted. The study analysed the quantitative responses from 384 teachers in Nigeria and 20 teachers in the diaspora using means, standard deviations, and percentages. The study also thematically analysed semi-structured interviews with eight teachers (four in Nigeria and four in the United Kingdom and Canada). Teachers in Nigeria reported some exposure to professional development, but only 44% agreed that it was sufficient and 39% that it was affordable, although they indicated that most came from private schools and external organisations rather than from government. Teachers abroad reported greater access to professional development, often free and mandatory, and 80% agreed that they did not feel limited in their career advancement. However, only 40% agreed that they had experienced better career growth, and the interviews showed that visa conditions and the absence of Qualified Teacher Status confined some teachers to support roles. Professional development and certifications also functioned as a pathway to migration: the interview revealed that two of the teachers in Nigeria were preparing to leave through courses and certification, and three of the four teachers abroad had migrated in order to study. The findings suggest that limited professional development operates as a push factor and that certifications provide the route out. It was recommended that affordable and sustainable professional development should be provided for teachers in Nigeria.

Despite the integration of Earth Sciences into Moroccan secondary education, geology teaching faces multiple obstacles. This study provides a multi‑dimensional analysis of curricular, didactic, epistemological, linguistic, and ideological barriers. Using a mixed‑method design, we analysed official curricula (2007–2025), six textbooks, 47 articles, and surveyed 120 Life and Earth Sciences teachers. Results show that geology accounts for only 17% of total instructional time and is absent from three of seven major streams. 78% of teachers feel unprepared to teach geological time, 65% never use physical models, and only 12% of schools organise field trips. In French‑medium sections, 65% of students score below 50% on geology assessments (vs. 41% in Arabic sections). 72% of students confuse human and geological time scales. We propose evidence‑based remedies: curriculum restructuring (25% of LES time), mandatory field trips, physical modelling, ICT integration, and teacher training in conceptual change approaches.

Traditional statistical models face the challenges of insufficient modeling capabilities and difficulty in interpreting complex, nonlinear, and high-dimensional data. Therefore, this paper combines fuzzy logic and deep learning methods to construct a framework model for identifying key factors for high-quality employment for college students. The model in this paper uses multi-channel encoding technology. We use the attention mechanism to fuse the features obtained from multi-channel encoding and input the self-organizing fuzzy inference structure for regression and classification analysis. The system can transform numerical prediction results into a semantic rule-driven decision-making process, which can significantly improve the model’s modeling capabilities and interpretability for uncertainty. Our experiments were conducted on 5,623 graduates. Experimental results on the data show that our model achieved an average mean square error of 0.831, a coefficient of determination of 0.892, and a classification accuracy of 0.865, which are significantly higher than traditional statistical and machine learning models. The corresponding experiments demonstrate the key role of cross-modal fusion and fuzzy reasoning modules in improving the results. Feature importance analysis shows that factors such as internship duration, GPA, and research participation have a key impact on high-quality employment, which is consistent with expert consensus.

Background: Fresh graduates face an increasingly difficult school-to-work transition, while artificial intelligence (AI) has become a routine study and job-search companion; yet how the intention to use AI translates into employability, and through which mechanisms, remains unclear. Objective: Grounded in Social Cognitive Theory, this study tests whether behavioral intention to use AI is associated with self-perceived graduate employability directly and indirectly through career adaptability and job search self-efficacy, and whether AI self-efficacy and AI trust moderate these paths. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey of 612 Indonesian fresh graduates who use AI for career preparation was analyzed with partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Results: AI use intention positively predicted career adaptability (β = 0.305) and job search self-efficacy (β = 0.249), and both resources predicted self-perceived employability. The indirect paths through both resources were significant, and a direct effect of AI use intention on employability remained, indicating partial mediation. AI self-efficacy and AI trust showed significant main effects on their resources, while the interaction-related indirect effects were not significant. Conclusion: AI use intention is associated with self-perceived employability through career adaptability and job search self-efficacy. The cross-sectional findings do not establish causality. Educational institutions and career-service units may use these findings to inform structured AI-supported occupational exploration, skills-gap analysis, résumé refinement, and interview rehearsal, while encouraging critical verification of AI outputs.

Research on fitrah-based education is mostly conceptual or situated in early childhood and primary schools; its implementation in junior high schools bound by the national curriculum remains underexplored. This qualitative case study describes the forms of implementation, strategies for developing students' academic and spiritual potential, supporting and inhibiting factors, and implications for students at SMP Ar-Rauf Tangerang. Data came from interviews with seven informants, observation, and documents, analyzed with the Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña model. Four forms of implementation emerged: an integrated curriculum, learning centered on students' uniqueness, narrative assessment (Rapor Fitrah), and a nurturing school culture. Potential was developed through talent mapping, personalized Qur'an memorization, nature-based entrepreneurship, and differentiated instruction. Educator vision, parental involvement, and the environment supported implementation; tension with the national curriculum, teacher workload, and varied parental understanding inhibited it. The study proposes the Formal School Fitrah Ecosystem model.

Information technology (IT) professionals in India work under tight deadlines, long hours, job insecurity and rapid technological change, and Indian studies report substantial levels of stress, depressive symptoms and burnout in this group. How employees cope may help explain why some function well under these conditions while others do not. This narrative review synthesises research on coping strategies and psychological well-being among Indian IT professionals, drawing also on studies of other Indian occupational groups and international technology workers, with particular attention to gender. The evidence shows that approach-oriented strategies such as planning, active coping, positive reframing, acceptance and seeking support are generally associated with better well-being, whereas denial, behavioural disengagement, substance use and self-blame are associated with poorer well-being. Gender findings are inconsistent: some studies report higher stress or burnout among women, while others find no gender difference in depression, anxiety or well-being. Most studies are cross-sectional, use differing measures and were conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The review identifies the need for strategy-level analysis of coping, gender-balanced samples, research in under-studied IT hubs such as Gurgaon, and longitudinal designs.

Mental health disorders are a major concern with millions of people living with mental illnesses, but only a small fraction of them have access to treatment due to stigma attached, lack of resources and trained personnel. Therefore, the inclusion of mental healthcare services in primary health care (PHC) is essential for improving its accessibility. The present review investigates the effectiveness, the different models, and the barriers in integrating mental health services into primary health care in India. The review was conducted following the PRISMA protocol using database like PubMed and Scopus between January 2016 and January 2026. The systematic search yielded 62 results, of which 23 were selected based on established inclusion criteria and were subsequently analyzed thematically. Successful integration of mental health services into primary healthcare was identified as including, but not limited to, task-sharing, use of digital technologies, use of telepsychiatry, and creating an improved policy-driven system. Task-sharing with lay personnel was found to greatly increase the identification and management of people with mental illnesses, while digital technology and telepsychiatry led to better access to mental health services, especially in rural areas. Barriers to implementing integrated mental health services included a lack of training, stigma, insufficient workforce, and limited infrastructure. Integrated mental health services into primary healthcare exist and demonstrate positive results, but to sustain successful implementation, the identified barriers to integration must be eliminated or mitigated to reduce the existing treatment gap for mental illness in India.

This study aimed to analyze the mediating role of parent–school interaction disturbance in the relationship between parental job burnout and children’s academic burnout among workers in the petrochemical industries of Ardabil. A descriptive correlational design using structural equation modeling was employed with a sample of 218 working parents. Standardized instruments were used to assess parental job burnout, parent–school interaction, and children’s academic burnout. The results showed that parental job burnout had a positive and significant effect on parent–school interaction disturbance and children’s academic burnout. Parent–school interaction disturbance also had a positive and significant effect on children’s academic burnout. In addition, the indirect effect of parental job burnout on children’s academic burnout through parent–school interaction disturbance was statistically significant, confirming partial mediation. The findings indicate that the consequences of parental job burnout may extend beyond the occupational domain and affect children’s educational experiences. The study highlights the importance of reducing parental occupational stress and strengthening the relationship between families and schools as relevant strategies for preventing children’s academic burnout.

Objective: This study investigates the common characteristics of countries with high happiness index scores using a cluster analysis of 20 nations. Design: The study is an ecological study where the unit of observation is the population in a country. Setting: Data were drawn from the World Happiness Report, World Bank, WHO, and World Population Review (2023–2025). Main outcome measures: The study focused on five variables: social support, GDP per capita, healthy life expectancy, crude death rate, and health expenditure. Results: Results revealed that countries in higher-performing clusters exhibited consistently strong social support systems, moderate to high GDP per capita, high healthy life expectancy, moderate crude death rates, and substantial public health spending. Among these factors, social support emerged as the most influential determinant, aligning with recent literature emphasizing the psychological and societal benefits of strong interpersonal networks. GDP alone was not a sufficient predictor of happiness; countries with high economic output but lower investment in health and social infrastructure ranked lower in overall well-being. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that countries with high happiness cannot be characterized by economic prosperity alone. The cluster analysis showed that high happiness may coexist with different combinations of economic, social, and health conditions. The study therefore characterizes countries with high Happiness Index scores as heterogeneous rather than uniform.

Psychosocial risks are an important occupational health concern and may be associated with emotional exhaustion through psychological mechanisms related to employees’ appraisal of adverse working conditions. This secondary analysis used a quantitative, cross-sectional design and data from 458 university employees to examine the mediating role of perceived stress and the moderating role of resilience in the association between psychosocial risks and emotional exhaustion. Correlation, mediation, and moderation analyses were performed, with bootstrap estimation based on 10,000 resamples. Greater psychosocial risk was associated with higher perceived stress and emotional exhaustion, whereas resilience was associated with lower perceived stress. Perceived stress partially mediated the association between psychosocial risks and emotional exhaustion, accounting for approximately 32.5% of the total association. The stress–resilience interaction was statistically significant in the unadjusted model, although its incremental contribution was small (ΔR² = 0.004); after adjustment for sociodemographic and occupational covariates, the interaction retained a similar direction but did not reach conventional statistical significance (p = 0.058). The model accounted for 59.6% of the variance in emotional exhaustion. Given the cross-sectional design, these findings represent statistical associations and do not establish temporal or causal relationships. The results support considering organizational psychosocial conditions, perceived stress, and resilience jointly when examining occupational well-being among university employees.

In April 2026, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order fast-tracking access to psilocybin and ibogaine for the treatment of serious mental illness. This follows decades in which psychedelics had been vilified as a group of drugs entirely lacking in therapeutic potential, associated with counter-cultural groups such as hippies, and whose use was both criminalised and widely stigmatised. Our central questions are: How have the substances, practices, understandings and relationships that comprise psychedelic use developed, and shifted, over time? And how might we best understand the overall structure and dynamics of such changes? We argue that the recent psychedelic renaissance cannot be understood as the simple ‘discovery’ of a therapeutic potential that previously lay dormant in the substances themselves. It is better grasped as a part-process of longer-term informalisation processes, bound up with shifting balances of power between established and outsider groups and with the changing behavioural and emotional standards – the social canons – through which psychedelic use has become refigured. Drawing on the figurational sociology of Norbert Elias and relational work on substance use and health, we trace the shift in psychedelics from counter-cultural sacrament to therapy and technology of the self. Through dialogue with a multimodal, multi-source evidential base, we develop the concept of ‘pharmaceuticalisation from below’ to characterise both the contemporary uptake of psychedelics and the broader figurational dynamics this expresses.

Introduction: Psychological factors can be important for the physical performance of developing female football players, but research is needed to assess their impact. Objective: To determine the effectiveness of a motivational psychological intervention strategy to improve physical performance in female U-15 football players from a football school in Zone 8 of Guayaquil, Ecuador. Method: Pre-experimental design with a single group and pretest-posttest measurements. Thirty football players participated. For the evaluation of the motivational climate, the PMCSQ-2 was used, while the YYIR1 and the Cooper Test were the instruments employed to assess physical performance. The intervention consisted of 12 sessions of 45 minutes over six weeks. The Shapiro-Wilk test was applied and then the Student's t-test for dependent samples. Results: The overall PMCSQ-2 score did not show statistically significant changes (t(29) = −1.37; p = 0.182; d = −0.250). On the contrary, statistically significant differences with large effect sizes were found for both the YYIR1 (t(29) = −16.08; p < 0.001; d = −2.936) and the Cooper Test (t(29) = −19.54; p < 0.001; d = −3.567). Discussion: Improvements are evident in the evaluated physical indicators, without significant changes in the overall motivational score. This divergence indicates that the physical response and the perception of the motivational climate do not always develop at the same pace. Conclusions: The intervention was associated with significant improvements in physical performance, which supports its application in youth women's football.

Counselling researchers have spent decades arguing about why counselling works. One philosophical camp locates the active ingredient in specific techniques tied to specific disorders. The other locates it in factors common to all bona fide therapies, chiefly the relationship between counsellor and client. This article develops a process-based perspective on the debate, examining how relational and technical elements are used within an unfolding therapeutic interaction. Drawing on the equivalence findings, the contemporary alliance literature, the unresolved question of causal mediation, the routine outcome monitoring evidence, and Australian decolonising scholarship, I propose a culturally situated responsive calibration model. The model reframes the therapist’s continuous, feedback-informed adjustment of relational and technical elements, made within the client’s cultural frame of wellbeing, as a proposed proximal mechanism of change. Calibration is not a new observation about good practice. Building on established responsiveness theory, the proposed contribution is to organise testable episodes of clinical judgement around feedback, action, and the client’s definition of wellbeing. Four testable propositions are advanced, including tests of whether calibration adds explanatory value beyond established process and treatment measures. Implications for practice, training, and measurement are outlined. The model is offered as a conceptual framework awaiting empirical testing, not as an established finding.

Abstract Background Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a severe mental illness associated with emotional and functional impairment, elevated suicide risk, and high individual and societal costs. BPD is under-researched in the general population, especially among males, and from a developmental perspective. We examined the prevalence and development of BPD symptoms in young men and explored the longitudinal associations with risk-taking behaviors. Methods Data came from the prospective-longitudinal Cohort Study on Substance Use Risk Factors (C-SURF), a population sample of young men. Participants were screened for BPD risk using the McLean Screening Instrument (MSI-BPD) at mean age 25 (2016–2018; n = 5,516) and again at mean age 28 (2019–2020; n = 5,367). Risk-taking behaviors (e.g., interpersonal violence, gambling, substance use) were self-reported at both time points. Multilevel regression models examined within-person changes in BPD symptoms, including self-harm, and risk-taking behaviors over time. Results 7.4% of participants had a high risk of BPD, defined by endorsing 7 + MSI-BPD items at least once. Among those with 7 + items endorsed at the first assessment, 29.5% still endorsed 7 + items three years later. Despite a general within-person decline in BPD symptoms with age, participants at initially high risk for BPD continued to exhibit elevated levels of risk-taking behaviors after three years. Conclusion BPD symptomatology affects a substantial proportion of young men. Despite its modest stability over time, it is associated with persistent engagement in various risk-taking behaviors. Interventions targeting BPD symptoms in male populations may offer a promising avenue towards mitigating substantial psychosocial burden associated with these behaviors.

Context and relevance. The study investigates the contributions of Lev Vygotsky's cultural-historical theory to Brazilian special/inclusive education, particularly regarding the constitution of the subject with autism in school contexts. The theoretical framework is grounded in the concepts of drama, freedom and singularity, understanding the schooling process as a privileged pathway of human (trans)formation. Objective. To analyse how pedagogical knowledge impacts the constitution of the child with autism, based on the notion of constitutive singularity. Hypothesis. The schooling process anchored in critical-emancipatory pedagogical knowledge operates as a promoter of the subject's humanisation, in opposition to traditional clinical approaches that reduce the subject to diagnosis and to ableist perspectives that position them in a state of devaluation. Methods and materials. The research, adopting a cultural-historical approach, was configured as intervention-research with an eight-year-old student with autism, enrolled in the second year of primary education. Video recordings, audio recordings, photographs, field diaries and interviews with the teacher, the child and his mother were utilised. Data were analysed through the microgenetic approach. Results. The analysis of two paradigmatic episodes of story retelling through illustration and physical education class evidences that the child, upon inserting personal elements into school tasks, manifests his will and singularises himself, expressing the drama of the social personality as a struggle for existence. Conclusions. Understanding singularity as a dialectical, historical, cultural and dramatic process allows us to overcome pathologising views and to recognise that disability is not a destiny, but a condition that, in relations with others and with culture, can be transformed into potentiality.

Background: Insomnia is an important public health concern and may be particularly relevant among security personnel because of irregular work schedules, occupational demands, sustained vigilance, and inadequate rest. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of insomnia and its association with selected sociodemographic and health-related factors among security personnel in a tertiary care government hospital in south India. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 100 security personnel. Sociodemographic characteristics, including age, gender, income, education, and marital status, and health-related characteristics, including body mass index, diabetes, and hypertension, were assessed using a structured questionnaire. Insomnia was assessed using the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). Associations between insomnia and selected variables were examined using the chi-square test. Results: Sub-threshold insomnia was present in 32% of participants, while no cases of moderate or severe insomnia were identified. Significant associations were observed between insomnia and gender (p=0.019) and income level (p=0.020). No significant associations were observed with age, education, marital status, or metabolic health status. Self-reported Diabetes and Hypertension were present in 10% and 4% of participants, respectively, while 74% were classified as obese. Conclusions: Although moderate or severe insomnia was not observed, nearly one-third of security personnel had sub-threshold insomnia. Workplace-based sleep hygiene interventions may be beneficial, particularly among women and lower-income employees. Further studies incorporating objective sleep assessments and detailed evaluation of shift schedules are warranted.

Background: Rural women in India are often confronted with situations that make it difficult for them to access formal mental health services such as inaccessibility, internalized stigma, believing that suffering is due to external causes and gender inequalities. These barriers delay receiving formal care for mental health and make these women resort to informal ways of coping such as community support and local faith healers. Methods: This study aimed to explore the informal coping strategies and beliefs around mental health among 100 rural women over the age of 18 years residing in Amroha district of Uttar Pradesh, India. Being a qualitative study, the method employed for the survey was focused group discussions and the participants were included through a convenience snowball sampling. The discussions were held in Hindi language for the ease of the participants and were recorded for analysis which was done through a thematic analysis approach. Results: The results highlighted six broad themes: (1) burden of responsibilities and emotional burnout, (2) physiological manifestations of psychological distress, (3) normalization of chronic stress, (4) psychological distress arising from marital conflict and gender-based adversity, (5) reliance on spiritual and informal coping strategies in place of formal mental healthcare, and (6) emotional suppression and silent tolerance. Conclusions: The findings suggest the urgent need to design culturally aligned psychotherapeutic interventions that focus on creating awareness through psychoeducation that could reduce stigma as well as helping rural women deal with their unmet mental health challenges.

Mental health systems face a persistent gap in accessible, continuous, and person-centred support. Conversational AI can expand access to psychoeducation, emotional check-ins, self-management, and service navigation, but may also introduce risks of digital exclusion, cultural mismatch, privacy concerns, unsafe advice, and overreliance on automation. This paper develops a conceptual framework integrating Orange Technology, which promotes emotional wellbeing, cultural sensitivity, social connectedness, and resilience, with empathetic AI for mental health support. An integrative literature review examined peer-reviewed systematic reviews and WHO and UN guidance published from 2021 to 2026. Evidence suggests that conversational AI can improve depression, distress, anxiety, and engagement, although effects are heterogeneous and may decline over time. Personalization and empathic interaction may enhance engagement, while the framework's effects on community resilience, cultural sensitivity, and community resource integration require further empirical validation. The framework therefore positions AI as a supportive, human-in-the-loop layer rather than a replacement for clinicians, families, peers, or communities. It connects emotional sensing, empathetic dialogue, personalized support, escalation pathways, community connection, inclusive access, and governance, while aligning mental health innovation with SDG 3, 9, and 17.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the strategies for developing and unlocking the professional capability and capacity of senior hospital managers in Nepal. This research is the first published study outlining the self-perspectives of Nepalese senior hospital managers on their capability and capacity development. The study utilised a qualitative descriptive design as the second phase of a larger sequential mixed methods research project. Data were collected from 11 senior hospital managers through semi-structured interviews conducted online via the Zoom online videoconferencing platform between August to October 2024. Four key themes identified were: Stability, continuity and coherence; Practical and logistical constraints; Interference, conflict and control; and managing the mismatch between ability and expectations. Findings highlight breakages in work roles and pervasiveness of political and opportunistic individual actions alongside complex and lengthy bureaucratic processes that stifled senior public hospital managers working roles. Along with well-organised administrative procedures, appropriate compliance training for senior hospital managers is sought essential. Findings from this study may be broadly applicable to other under resourced countries in the Asia Pacific region.

The article is devoted to substantiating the structural components of stress resilience of future managers in the process of professional training in institutions of professional pre- higher education. The relevance of the study is determined by the growing demands on the professional activity of a modern manager, which is characterized by high responsibility, the dynamic nature of management processes, the need for prompt decision-making, constructive interaction with people, and effective functioning under conditions of constant change and psycho- emotional workload. Based on the analysis of scientific sources, it has been established that there is no unified approach to determining the structure of stress resilience in contemporary psychological and pedagogical literature. Depending on their conceptual foundations, researchers focus on its emotional, cognitive, behavioral, motivational, and personal characteristics. In this study, stress resilience is considered as a form of psychological resilience that ensures an individual’s ability to adapt effectively to the influence of stressors, maintain the productivity of professional activity, and act constructively in complex managerial situations. The author’s structure of stress resilience of future managers has been substantiated, comprising motivational-value, cognitive- behavioral, emotional-regulatory, and reflexive-communicative components. It has been established that the motivational-value component determines an individual’s orientation towards developing their own stress resilience and awareness of its professional significance; the cognitive-behavioral component characterizes the level of knowledge about the nature of stress and the ability to apply effective ways of coping with it; the emotional-regulatory component ensures self-control, emotional balance, and the ability to act under conditions of psychological tension; the reflexive-communicative component is associated with self-analysis of professional activity, constructive interaction within a team, and readiness for personal and professional self-improvement. The proposed component structure can be used as a theoretical basis for developing criteria, indicators, pedagogical conditions, and a model for developing stress resilience in future managers.

Health shocks—such as new diagnoses of chronic disease—can disrupt daily life and create potential “teachable moments” for behavioral improvement. Yet, existing evidence on post-diagnosis behavior change remains mixed and largely limited to high-income countries. This study addresses a major empirical gap by examining whether chronic disease diagnoses are associated with measurable within-person changes in health behaviors among middle-aged and older adults in Thailand, a rapidly aging middle-income society. We analyzed four waves (2015–2022) of the Health, Aging, and Retirement in Thailand (HART) survey. The analytic sample comprised adults aged ≥45 years with no baseline diagnosis of cancer, diabetes, or cardiovascular disease (N = 2,891; 9,577 person-wave observations). Self-reported physician-diagnosed conditions were used to construct disease-status indicators. Behavioral outcomes included smoking, current alcohol use, sufficient physical activity (≥150 minutes/week), normal body mass index (BMI) (18.5–23), and waist obesity (sex-specific cutoffs). Individual fixed-effects linear probability models with survey-wave fixed effects and adjustment for time-varying covariates (log income, activities of daily living [ADL] score, and marital status) estimated within-person associations, with standard errors clustered at the individual level. Disease-specific models and models including interactions with sex assessed heterogeneity. In pooled analyses, the disease-status indicator was not significantly associated with smoking, alcohol use, physical activity, BMI, or waist obesity. In contrast, a diabetes diagnosis was associated with a reduction of 3.6 percentage-point in current alcohol use, and both diabetes and cancer diagnoses were associated with reductions in frequent drinking. Models including interactions with sex suggested larger diagnosis-associated reductions in selected alcohol-use outcomes among men, although statistical evidence varied by outcome and disease type. Among middle-aged and older Thai adults, chronic disease diagnoses were associated with selective, rather than comprehensive, changes in health behaviors. Diagnosis alone is insufficient to support changes across multiple health behaviors, underscoring the need for structured post-diagnosis counselling, follow-up, and gender-sensitive secondary prevention in aging middle-income populations.

The discussion on third gender rights today highlights a significant socio-legal transformation, tracing a path from historical respect through colonial criminalisation to current constitutional acknowledgement. This evolution signifies a growing recognition and validation of third gender identities within legal frameworks, demonstrating a societal shift towards inclusivity and acceptance, as well as addressing long-standing discrimination and marginalisation faced by these individuals. Despite constitutional promises, systemic discrimination, social exclusion and inadequate legal protections continue to deprive transgender persons of civil rights such as voting, marriage, property ownership and access to justice. The article concludes that genuine recognition of gender identity, beyond token legislation, is essential to secure equality and dignity for transgender communities in the contemporary era.

Peer feedback is a process where employees provide constructive input, based on their observations and interactions, with their colleagues. This feedback can encompass various aspects of an individual's performance, such as behavior, communication skills, and contributions to team dynamics. Peer feedback typically aims to offer valuable insights, promote personal growth, and enhance teamwork within an organization. It often involves both positive and constructive criticism, fostering a culture of continuous improvement. This approach helps employees gain a better understanding of their strengths and areas needing development, ultimately contributing to their professional development and the overall success of the organization. Peer feedback is an essential component of a 360-degree feedback system, offering a holistic view of an individual's performance.

Mothers handle everyday discipline while also carrying the strain and worry of the parenting role, yet these experiences are often studied separately. This study examined the relationships between parenting attitude, parental stress, and anxiety among mothers. A quantitative, cross-sectional correlational design was used with a convenience sample of 59 mothers, who completed a 30-item questionnaire rated on a five-point Likert scale. Parenting attitude was assessed through three discipline dimensions based on the Parenting Scale (laxness, over-reactivity, and verbosity), and parental stress and anxiety were each assessed with ten statements developed for the study. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Cronbach's alpha, and Pearson and Spearman correlations. Mean scores were 3.30 (SD = 0.54) for parenting attitude, 3.06 (SD = 0.89) for parental stress, and 3.16 (SD = 0.72) for anxiety. Parenting attitude correlated positively with parental stress (r = .52, p < .001) and anxiety (r = .44, p < .001), and parental stress correlated with anxiety (r = .51, p < .001). Over-reactivity and verbosity were more closely related to stress than laxness was. Internal consistency was high for the stress (α = .91) and anxiety (α = .88) scales. The findings suggest that discipline difficulties, stress, and worry tend to occur together in mothers, although the design does not permit causal conclusions. Support programmes for mothers may benefit from addressing stress and worry alongside parenting skills.

The present study aimed to analyze parental grief and coping in response to children’s school failure within high-demand parenting. A qualitative, descriptive approach with a narrative design was used. Case-type sampling was used to select mothers and fathers characterized by exercising parenting centered on high demands and expectations. Information was obtained through interviews and analyzed using Thematic Analysis, allowing the identification of six themes: parental involvement in schoolwork, maternal centrality in parenting and education, idealization of filial success, maternal vicarious success, intolerance of the loss of excellence, and resistance to grief over filial failure. It was concluded that some mothers perceive their children’s performance as their own success or failure and that high expectations were associated with anger, frustration, sadness, and disappointment in response to unexpected results, as well as with difficulties in accepting grief over the loss of the idealized image of the son.

Eating disorders are complex mental health conditions that typically develop during adolescence or early adulthood and may have a significant adverse impact on both physical and mental health. The main types of eating disorders include anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder, all of which are characterized by altered eating behaviours and associated health problems (Robatto et al., 2024). Eating disorders may be associated with a range of psychological and somatic complications, including depression, anxiety, cardiovascular and endocrine disorders, as well as an increased risk of mortality (Mushtaq et al., 2023). The effects of these disorders may also manifest in the oral cavity. Therefore, in dental hygiene practice, particular importance should be placed on the early recognition of potential oral health changes, individualized assessment of the patient’s oral health status, and the selection of appropriate preventive measures. Dental hygienists may play an important role not only in the prevention of oral diseases but also in the early recognition of oral manifestations potentially associated with eating disorders and in encouraging patients to seek timely multidisciplinary professional care.

Caregivers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders experience significant multifaceted burdens. However, little qualitative research has been done to explore caregivers’ lived experiences in relation to the effect of burden and coping strategies in the study area. The study sought to investigate caregivers’ awareness problems, coping mechanisms, and support systems in caring for children with neurodevelopmental disorders in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The study was conducted in three public, non-teaching hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Using a descriptive phenomenological technique. In-depth interviews were conducted with 15 purposively selected caregivers. The data was analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s six-phase framework technique. The analysis found six interrelated themes: Awareness and Perception of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs), Emotional Responses to Diagnosis and Adaptation, Caregiving Roles and Responsibilities, Multidimensional Burden and Challenges, Coping Strategies and Adaptation Mechanisms, and Support Systems and Structural Barriers. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory was used to explain how personal, institutional, and systemic factors explain participants’ experiences and interpret caregiving realities. These findings underscore the call for integrated and collaborative efforts to address individual and system-level challenges among caregivers. Enhancing support systems, mitigating stigma, and correcting systemic inadequacies can improve caregiver well-being and optimize care for children with NDDs.

Teacher performance is a key determinant of educational quality and the successful implementation of learning processes. Among the factors that may influence teacher performance are the adequacy of educational facilities and infrastructure, as well as the quality of the working environment. This study aims to examine the influence of facilities and infrastructure, together with the work environment, on teacher performance at SMA Negeri 1 Batukliang Utara, Central Lombok Regency. A quantitative approach with a descriptive research design was employed. The study involved all 33 active teachers using a total sampling technique. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire based on a five-point Likert scale and analyzed using multiple linear regression with IBM SPSS Statistics version 26. The findings reveal that facilities and infrastructure do not have a significant partial effect on teacher performance (β = 0.017; p = 0.933), whereas the work environment has a positive and statistically significant effect (β = 0.770; p = 0.003). Simultaneously, both independent variables significantly influence teacher performance (F = 10.840; p < 0.001), explaining 41.9% of the variance in teacher performance, while the remaining 58.1% is attributable to other factors not included in the research model. These findings indicate that a supportive and conducive work environment plays a more substantial role than educational facilities in improving teacher performance. Therefore, school management should prioritize the creation of a positive work environment while continuing to improve educational facilities to support teachers' professional responsibilities.

This qualitative study examines how K–12 educational leaders describe and make sense of their leadership practices related to instructional support, evaluation and improvement strategies, collaborative relationships and trust, and parent and community engagement. Drawing on open-ended survey responses from practicing school and district leaders, the study employs inductive thematic analysis to explore leadership efficacy as enacted through daily practice rather than expressed solely as an abstract belief. Guided by Bandura’s self-efficacy theory, Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, and transformational leadership theory as interpretive lenses, leaders’ narratives are situated within the relational and contextual systems shaping leadership work. Findings reveal a coherent, practice-oriented leadership narrative grounded in collaboration, trust-building, reflective practice, and responsiveness to local context. Instructional leadership and evaluation were consistently framed as growth-oriented, relational processes, while collaborative relationships and trust emerged as foundational conditions enabling leadership practice across domains. Parent and community engagement was described as a reciprocal, boundary-spanning function rooted in communication, visibility, and partnership. Collectively, the findings position leadership efficacy as a relational and contextually embedded practice and highlight implications for leadership preparation and professional learning.

This study aims to analyze the effects of career planning and self-efficacy on the work readiness of participants in Competency-Based Training (CBT) at the Miftahul Ulum Community Vocational Training Center (BLK) in Tasikmalaya City. The study employed a quantitative approach with descriptive and verification methods, using a census technique involving 60 participants. Data were collected through a Likert-scale questionnaire and analyzed using multiple linear regression with the assistance of SPSS version 31 at a 5% significance level. The results indicate that career planning and self-efficacy simultaneously have a positive and significant effect on work readiness. Partially, both variables also have positive and significant effects on work readiness, with self-efficacy showing a relatively stronger effect. The model yielded an R value of 0.703 and an R² value of 0.494, indicating that 49.4% of the variation in work readiness can be explained by career planning and self-efficacy, while the remaining 50.6% is explained by other factors outside the model. The findings indicate the importance of integrating technical competency development, career planning, and self-efficacy enhancement in the implementation of vocational training programs.

Introduction The purpose of this study was to explore how K-12 Equity Directors seek to build capacity in others for district equity work. Methods Using a sociotransformative constructivist approach, we interviewed 20 Equity Directors in two U.S. states. Results Results indicate the Equity Directors sought to build capacity in others for equity work through engaging in conversations intentionally, collaborating in authentic activity, working towards a sense of equity consciousness, and illuminating social location. Discussion The results may assist other school district office leaders who may or may not have someone designated as an Equity Director to build capacity in others beyond the district office to engage in equity work.

This study investigated assistant principals’ self-perceptions of their role as instructional leaders and examined the corresponding perceptions of principals. Grounded in Weber's (1996) instructional leadership model and using the Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale (PIMRS), this quantitative study surveyed assistant principals and principals from a large suburban district. Findings reveal a gap: assistant principals rated themselves higher in instructional leadership than their principals. The results indicate that the assistant principal role requires a clearer definition, targeted professional development, and leadership succession planning. These findings offer implications for educational leadership training and school district practices.

This study examined the alignment between professional development opportunities and instructional practices among public kindergarten teachers at West City Elementary School, Dumaguete City, during school year 2025–2026. Guided by the integrated Gibbs–ERA reflective framework, it employed a descriptive-correlational design and total enumeration of seven kindergarten teachers. Data were collected through an adapted structured questionnaire administered via Google Forms and analyzed using descriptive statistics and Spearman’s rank-order correlation. Respondents rated trainings and seminars (reported composite mean = 3.29), coaching and mentoring (3.48), classroom management (3.88), and teaching strategies (3.89) positively. Teachers particularly endorsed collaborative coaching, effective use of classroom time, supportive student–teacher relationships, differentiation, and adjustment of teaching strategies. Professional development opportunities had a very strong positive association with reported instructional practices (Spearman’s ρ = .860, p = .013, n = 7). These self-reported findings suggest that professional learning and instructional practice are closely aligned in the school, although the single-school, small-sample design cannot establish causality or verify changes in pupil outcomes. The study recommends sustained, school-based training, peer coaching, mentoring, instructional observation, and structured reflection to support transfer of professional learning to everyday teaching.

This descriptive study examined the reported extent of best teaching practices among private secondary school teachers in the Apostolic Vicariate of Tabuk, Kalinga and Apayao, Philippines. The 2015 investigation involved 70 teachers from 10 private secondary schools and used a five-point survey questionnaire addressing teachers’ professional conduct, subject-matter expertise, student-centered teaching, experiential learning, moral development, critical thinking, and facilitation. Frequencies, percentages, weighted means, and reported analysis-of-variance (ANOVA) comparisons were used. Most respondents were female (74.29%), aged 20–30 years (91.43%), college graduates (65.71%), and had served for 1–10 years (95.71%). The overall reported mean for teaching practices was 4.72, classified as “Very Much Use.” Strongly rated practices included facilitating group dynamics (M = 4.97), demonstrating expertise in the field (M = 4.96), and content knowledge (M = 4.90). The original ANOVA summaries classified differences by civil status (F = 10.1274), educational attainment (F = 8.4656), and years of service (F = 7.1212) as significant, while gender (F = 0.7169) and age (F = 1.602) were not. Because some source calculations, degrees of freedom, and narrative interpretations conflict, inferential decisions require verification from the original data. Overall, teachers reported frequent implementation of professionally grounded, values-oriented, and learner-responsive practices. The findings support continued contextualized faculty development, equitable instructional resources, and careful evaluation of classroom practices.

Effective school leadership is vital to school management, teacher performance, and quality education. This study examined the leadership skills, core behavioral skills, and administrative practices of public secondary school heads in the Schools Division of Cagayan de Oro City during the school year 2025–2026. It assessed key leadership and behavioral competencies and determined their relationships with administrative practices. A descriptive-correlational design was used, with universal sampling of 105 school heads. Data were gathered through a standardized questionnaire anchored on the Results-Based Performance Management System and the Philippine Professional Standards for School Heads. Frequency, percentage, weighted mean, standard deviation, and Pearson correlation were used. Findings showed high levels of leadership skills, core behavioral skills, and administrative practices. People development was the strongest leadership dimension, while teamwork and innovation were the most evident core behavioral competencies. Managing school operations and resources, and focusing on teaching and learning, were among the strongest administrative practices. The study found significant positive relationships between leadership skills and administrative practices, and between core behavioral skills and administrative practices. The study concludes that effective school leadership requires a combination of people leadership, professional behavior, instructional leadership, strategic management, and administrative competence. It recommends needs-based leadership development, mentoring and coaching, stronger results-focused practices, ongoing instructional leadership training, stakeholder engagement, reflective practice, and individualized professional development plans to support the continued growth of school heads.

This mixed-methods study had two aims: to determine the purpose of school administrators’ use of social media and to develop and validate a scale measuring those purposes. In the qualitative phase, 15 school principals were interviewed individually, and the social media accounts of five principals were analyzed to identify purposes of use. In the second phase, an instrument was developed and validated across two independent samples of school administrators attending separate in-service training programs organized by the Turkish Ministry of National Education (MONE). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA; n = 156), using principal axis factoring with direct oblimin rotation, revealed a three-factor structure: stakeholder communication, personal use, and professional development, accounting for 65.52% of the total variance. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA; n = 148) supported the factor structure with satisfactory model fit (χ²/df = 1.60, CFI = .955, RMSEA = .064). Convergent and discriminant validity were established through average variance extracted, composite reliability, McDonald’s omega, and the Fornell–Larcker criterion.

This study aims to examine the effectiveness of the PJBL model with a scientific approach that influences student learning outcomes. The method used in this study is a literature study by collecting and analyzing various previous research sources related to the implementation of PjBL in elementary schools. This literature study focuses on how PjBL can develop students' cognitive, affective, psychomotor, and social-emotional skills. The results of the study show that PjBL through a scientific approach can increase students' interest, motivation, and learning outcomes. This model encourages students to collaborate, think critically, and actively engage in real projects that are relevant to everyday life. However, there are several challenges in its implementation. The success of this model requires support from good time management, teacher guidance, and adequate facilities.

Teachers’ participation in professional development is often high, yet it does not always translate into classroom innovation, a persistent transfer-of-learning gap. This study explores how principals’ assertive communication was associated with teachers’ professional competence development in two junior high schools (one public, one private) in Brebes Regency, Indonesia. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was used: baseline teacher competence was descriptively mapped from the Ruang GTK platform and the Education Report (Rapor Pendidikan), followed by a qualitative phase with 22 purposively selected informants (principals, vice-principals, teachers, students, and parents). Data were gathered through surveys, interviews, observations, and document analysis, and analyzed using Miles et al.’s interactive model with triangulation. Baseline data showed high training participation (score 4) but stagnant instructional innovation and classroom management (scores 2–3). Four interactional dimensions of assertive communication emerged: directive transparency, dialogic respect, non-blaming corrective feedback, and facilitative advocacy. These were associated with reduced teacher defensiveness and greater openness to interactive and digital teaching, and varied with institutional readiness. The study frames assertive leadership as a dynamic system of instructional communication rather than a fixed trait. Given its two-school, non-causal design, the findings are context-specific; they suggest that sustaining competence requires structured post-training clinical supervision and a constructive feedback culture.

International branch campuses (IBCs) deliver foreign science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) qualifications inside host economies, yet how graduates’ reported educational experiences relate to their professional outcomes has received little attention in the Gulf. This study examined employability, work readiness and job alignment among Qatari nationals who completed a bachelor's degree at one of two United States IBCs in Qatar. A cross-sectional survey of 75 employed graduates, recruited purposively through professional networks and snowball referrals, was analysed using Fisher exact tests with exact odds ratios and effect sizes, together with parsimonious binary, ordinal and Firth penalised logistic regression with Wald intervals for coefficients and bootstrap percentile intervals for average predicted probabilities; responses to one open-ended question were categorised descriptively. Most graduates worked in roles related to their major (86.7%) and entered employment immediately after graduation (61.3%). Labour-market preparedness was associated with very high perceived employability (odds ratio 4.9, 95% CI 1.6–14.7) and with a very smooth transition to work (Firth odds ratio 13.9, 95% CI 3.5–54.8), and professional ability development was also associated with very high employability (odds ratio 6.5, 95% CI 1.9–22.4). Job alignment corresponded with smoother transitions, though imprecisely (odds ratio 8.6, 95% CI 1.0–73.0). Women were less likely than men to report being very well prepared (adjusted odds ratio 0.11, 95% CI 0.03–0.45); other gender comparisons were inconclusive. Graduates most often requested internships and practical exposure and locally grounded labour-market knowledge. The findings suggest that monitoring preparedness and occupational alignment alongside employment rates offers a more informative account of the professional experiences reported by graduates of international STEM programmes delivered locally.

Purpose: This study aims to develop and evaluate an adaptive ergonomic framework for reducing Musculoskeletal Disorder (MSD) risks among pre-elderly workers in Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). Methodology: This study adopted a sequential quantitative design consisting of two consecutive phases. The first phase involved a cross-sectional ergonomic assessment of 50 pre-elderly MSMEs workers using the Nordic Body Map (NBM), Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA), Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA), and Quick Exposure Checklist (QEC). Based on the integrated assessment results, an adaptive ergonomic framework incorporating administrative controls, engineering controls, ergonomic personal protective equipment (PPE), and anthropometry-based workstation redesign was developed. The second phase evaluated the framework through a 14-day before–after intervention study in five selected MSMEs. Results: Most workers were exposed to moderate-to-very high ergonomic risks, with musculoskeletal complaints predominantly affecting the lower back, back, wrists, neck, and lower extremities. Following implementation, QEC exposure scores decreased across the five MSMEs from 68.7–84.5% before intervention to 46.3–63.2% after intervention, accompanied by reductions in REBA/RULA risk classifications and lower NBM complaint levels. Conclusion: The proposed framework effectively reduced ergonomic risks and musculoskeletal complaints among pre-elderly MSMEs workers through practical and low-cost interventions. Originality: This study contributes a comprehensive and context-specific adaptive ergonomic framework that integrates risk assessment, workstation redesign, administrative controls, and ergonomic PPE recommendations tailored to the characteristics of pre-elderly workers in resource-constrained MSMEs.