Problematic smartphone use and academic achievement: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background and aims: The present study aimed to synthesize existing quantitative evidence on the relationship between problematic smartphone use (PSU) and academic achievement with a focus on quantifying its magnitude and examining its potential moderators. Methods: Eligible studies were searched for up to February 10, 2023 in six different databases (i.e., MEDLINE, Current Contents Connect, PsycINFO, Web of Science, SciELO, and Dissertations & Theses Global). Studies were considered eligible if they provided information derived from self-report instruments that allowed statistical calculation of the relationship between PSU and academic achievement. Pooled effect sizes (r) were computed using a random-effects model. Meta-regressions were conducted to test the influence of study-level moderators on the relationship of interest. Influence analyses and a three-parameter selection model (3PSM) were conducted to examine the robustness of the results and publication bias, respectively. Results: A total of 33 effect sizes from 29 studies (n = 48,490) were retrieved. Results showed a small effect size (r = -0.110), which tended to be larger in samples consisting of students from elementary and middle schools. Discussion and Conclusions: Findings from the present study contribute to the understanding of a potential determinant of decreased academic achievement by providing evidence that PSU may be one of them.

Psychological wellbeing in teachers. Study in teachers of early childhood and primary education.

Recently, there has been a growing interest in emotional wellbeing, even from the early stages of education. In order to work wellbeing among the students it is essential to analyze the wellbeing of the teachers who are teaching and working with the children. This study examines psychological wellbeing in early childhood (0-6 years) and primary school teachers (6-12 years). The study comprised 236 early childhood and primary school teachers - 76 men (32.2%) and 160 women (67.8%) - with ages ranging from 25 to 61 years (average 37.69 years - s.d.=2.47). The study examined psychological wellbeing (happiness, eudemonic wellbeing, self-esteem, and life satisfaction) and several sociodemographic variables (gender, age, years in the job, type of contract, and educational stage). Participants answered an ad-hoc sociodemographic questionnaire and subjective happiness, eudemonic wellbeing, self-esteem, and life satisfaction standard questionnaires. Early childhood schoolteachers yielded higher wellbeing-related scores. All the wellbeing-related variables were found to be correlated with one another, except for happiness and self-esteem. Teachers working in different educational stages were found to yield significantly different wellbeing-related scores. For the first time, network analysis revealed differences in the associations of the variables under study among Early Childhood Education and Primary Education teachers. Thus, while happiness and satisfaction with life were found to be correlated in both groups, stronger correlations between self-esteem and eudaimonic wellbeing were found in early childhood education teachers, while in primary education teachers the correlation was with satisfaction with life, which indicates that early childhood teachers present greater spiritual and existential understanding, leading to eudaimonic wellbeing. These differences between educational stages are considered greatly significant. It was concluded that more research is needed, ideally with broader and longitudinal studies, to understand and describe the relationship between personal and even structural variables and wellbeing.

Emotional wellbeing in teachers.

Wellbeing is determined by happiness and both positive and negative affects. These constructs are, in turn, related to emotional intelligence and play an important role in individual behaviour. This study examined the relationship between happiness, emotional intelligence, and positive and negative affects in a sample of 344 (121 men 35.17 % and 223 women 64.83 %) trainee teachers, with an average age of 22.36 years. Happiness and affects yielded lower values, which may be related to the age of the participants. All variables under study were found to be correlated, which suggests that they are measuring the same construct: subjective wellbeing. Network analysis indicated that the self-regulation of emotions was the axial factor in the relationship. Finally, it was found that only the factor of emotional intelligence that measures the self-regulation of emotion and affects (both positive and negative) can be used to predict happiness. The present investigation reveals that more research is needed that takes more variables into consideration to describe the effect of these variables on personal wellbeing. The study offers empirical support to models that argue for a relationship between happiness, emotional intelligence, and affects, and emphasises the need to work on future teachers during their training to address their psychological wellbeing.

A systematic review on cross-cultural validations and psychometric solidity of the orthotics and prosthetics user survey.

Research is essential to reflect patients' satisfaction with their devices in the field of Prosthetics and Orthotics, record their performance and health-related quality of life. This requires culturally adapted questionnaires for each country. Periodic assessment of validity and test fit are essential elements for the long-term utility and effectiveness of psychometric tests. This article reviews the psychometric properties of the Orthotics and Prosthetics Users Survey (OPUS). The purpose, in addition to its adaptation to the Spanish-speaking population, involves a review/update of content, statistical analyses, and validity studies, until a larger number of studies are conducted. Study design: a Systematic review. A systematic literature search was carried out in specialized search engines: Alcorze (University of Zaragoza), MEDLINE (PubMed), and EMBASE of original articles published since 2000. Eleven items belonging to the OPUS were obtained, according to the language of the country where they were validated, and promising psychometric properties were confirmed (reflecting reliability values between 0.62 and 0.95; Cronbach's α scores between 0.73 and 0.98) with sample sizes between 10 and 321. The study concluded by stating that the OPUS was validated in different languages, reporting good psychometric robustness so far. Further deployment, refinement, and validation of this survey by country is warranted in view of its promising use.

Go, go . You'll be happier. Psychological variables among cyclists during COVID-19 lockdowns.

COVID-19 lockdowns involved radical changes in the habits and lifestyles of many. Notably, athletes saw their training routines altered. The relationship between lockdown effects and psychological variables was analysed using a sample comprising 1032 cyclists (average age: 42.97 years, s.d. = 8.94), taking part in the first cycling competition after lockdown. The target variables included psychological variables such as frustration tolerance, subjective vitality, autonomy self-determination, and affective status, as well as sociodemographic and training habits-related variables. The results showed that the constructs under analysis are related. Pre- and post-competition psychological variables were measured, and no significant differences were detected, except concerning subjective vitality. A regression analysis model was designed to analyse the impact of frustration tolerance, autonomy self-determination, and affective status on subjective vitality. The results reveal a lineal relationship (F = 71.789, p < .001) between subjective vitality and a set of independent variables: positive affects; health status; km of training per year; and frustration tolerance, which explain 46.7% of variance. Finally, since the variable that measures subjective vitality was shown to be significant, mediation analyses were undertaken to answer our hypothesis, following the results of the exploratory analysis. The results suggest that frustration tolerance has a direct effect on subjective vitality, and that this relationship is mediated by positive affects, health status, and km of training per year. It is concluded that exercising increases subjective vitality, which is affected by frustration tolerance, positive affects, health status and km of training per year. In addition, it can be argued that these three variables mediate the relationship between frustration tolerance and subjective vitality. Finally, it is worth stressing that, given the positive effects of exercise not only in physical health but also in psychological, social and personal wellbeing, self-determined attitudes in training should be encouraged, as this promotes self-efficacy and self-satisfaction, in both training and competition settings.

Validation of the metacognitive skills questionnaire for drivers of vehicles (CHMC).

Introduction: Knowing what strategies users use in the difficult task of driving has always been a priority objective in road safety, given that road accidents are one of the main causes of death in the world, as confirmed by the WHO. In this sense, the metacognitive skills questionnaire for drivers was validated. Methods: The questionnaire measures the metacongitive skills used by vehicle drivers at three times before, during and after driving. Results: The results of both the exploratory factor analysis (0.92 alpha by Cronbach) and the confirmatory factor analysis show the existence of three factors, a planning factor, a self-realization factor, and a third evaluation factor. Discussion: Finding these results together with a psychoeducational intervention design, will improve the behavior of drivers and in turn will serve to improve the training programs of the same to the different institutions and centers responsible for such training.

Cognitive Effects of a Cognitive Stimulation Programme on Trained Domains in Older Adults with Subjective Memory Complaints: Randomised Controlled Trial.

Age-related subjective memory complaints (SMC) are a common concern among older adults. However, little is known about the effects of cognitive stimulation (CS) interventions on subjective memory complaints. The aim of this study was to analyse the effectiveness of a CS programme on global cognition and cognitive functions of older adults with SMC. A randomised clinical trial was conducted on older adults with SMC, including 308 participants ≥65 years of age assessed 6 and 12 months after the intervention. The assessment instrument was the Spanish version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MEC-35), and all domains of the instrument were assessed. For statistical analysis, the data were analysed using robust ANOVA with means truncated at 20% utilising a two-way repeated measures model, with between (groups) and within (measurements) factors. In post hoc tests, a Wilcoxon signed-rank test of exact permutations between groups and Bonferroni correction were applied. In post hoc between-group tests, significant differences were found: (1) post-treatment in MEC-35, temporal orientation, short-term memory (STM), global language and praxis, and language and praxis (p ≤ 0.005); (2) at 6 months in MEC-35, global orientation, temporal orientation, and STM (p = 0.005); (3) at 12 months in MEC-35, global orientation, temporal orientation, STM, global language and praxis, and language (p = 0.005). This study shows benefits in global cognition and orientation, temporal orientation, STM, and language in older adults with SMC.

Types of Intelligence and Academic Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The concept of intelligence has been extensively studied, undergoing an evolution from a unitary concept to a more elaborate and complex multidimensional one. In addition, several research studies have focused their efforts for decades on the study of intelligence as a predictor of academic performance of students at different educational stages, being a stable and highly relevant predictor along with other variables such as executive functions, social context, culture or parental guardianship. Thus, the present study, based on a systematic review and meta-analysis, includes 27 studies with a total sample of 42,061 individuals. The main objective was to analyse the relationship between intelligence and academic performance using different predictive models that include moderating variables such as country of origin, type of intelligence, gender and age. The findings of this research highlight the significant, positive and moderate relationship between intelligence and academic performance (r = 0.367; p < 0.001), highlighting the predictive capacity on school performance when the type of intelligence (general and implicit; 35%) or the country of origin (45%) is taken as a moderating variable, with the explanatory models on age or sex not being significant. Therefore, it can be concluded that intelligence, in addition to being a good predictor of academic performance, is influenced depending on the type of intelligence or theoretical model taken as a reference, and also depending on the country or culture of origin.

Behaviour Patterns between Academic Motivation, Burnout and Academic Performance in Primary School Students.

BACKGROUND: The final years of primary school (early adolescence) are regarded as key for the academic and personal development of students. This study aims to analyze the relationship between academic motivation, academic burnout, and academic performance, differentiating between adaptive and non-adaptive patterns according to the results of the three constructs studied. METHODS: The sample comprised 398 students, both male (N = 224; 56.28%) and female (N = 174; 43.71%) with ages ranging from 11 to 13 years (M = 11.49; DT = 0.52). The instruments used were the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Student Survey (MBI-SS) and the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS), as well as academic marks as a measure of performance. RESULTS: The results revealed significant correlations between the three constructs under study, the variables that can be used to predict academic performance, and both adaptive and non-adaptive behavior patterns. CONCLUSIONS: The importance of motivation, burnout, and academic performance in primary education is manifested, whose interrelation can give rise to adaptive behaviors based on high school motivation away from academic burnout that leads to a higher academic performance in students.

Adaptation and Testing of the Factorial Structure of the Physical Education Grit Scale for Use in Secondary Education in Spain.

The challenges faced by students during Physical Education classes embrace both physical and academic aspects. Therefore, each individual possesses a series of internal psychological mechanisms, such as Grit, which allow them to adapt and overcome the vicissitudes. However, there are no scales that assess Grit in Span. Thus, the aim of the present study is to test the factor structure of the Physical Education Grit Scale in Span of Physical Education classes. For this purpose, 857 secondary school students took part in the present study. In order to test the factor structure, a confirmatory factor analysis, an exploratory factor analysis, an analysis of the reliability of the questionnaire and an analysis of temporal stability were carried out. The results showed that the factor structure consisted of two factors and four sub-factors (χ2/df = 2.17 (p = 0.001); CFI = 0.96; TLI = 0.96; IFI = 0.96; RMSEA = 0.051; SRMR = 0.037). In addition, the reliability and temporal stability analyses showed acceptable indices. Based on these results, evidence of reliability and validity of the Physical Education Grit Scale in Span of Physical Education is provided.

Adaptation of Questionnaire about Aggressive Beliefs and Attitudes in Spanish Adolescents.

Aggressive beliefs and attitudes are increasingly present in adolescents, and it can be argued that they are a prevalent feature of adolescence. Michel, Pace, Edun, Sawhney, and Thomas's (2014) original thirty-item scale was later shortened to a more parsimonious eight-item scale (ABA-SF). This study addresses the adaptation and validation of the brief Aggressive Beliefs and Attitudes Scale to Spanish adolescents. The sample comprised a group of Spanish adolescents (N = 771, M age = 14.01 years). A total of two studies were undertaken: (1) the scale was translated into Spanish and its internal consistency, factorial structure and convergent validity were established; and (2) factorial analysis was undertaken to confirm the questionnaire. The results yielded high scores for internal consistency, reliability (α = 0.82; Ω = 0.83) and convergent validity. The examination of the underlying nomological network revealed links with positive and negative feelings, anxiety and aggression. According to the Exploratory Factorial Analysis (EFA), the aggregate variance of the factors in the scale was 65.814%, indicating that they can explain variations in aggression levels in adolescents. For its part, the Factorial Confirmatory Analysis (FCA) confirmed the match between the translation and the model, leading to a sustainable model composed by the three factors identified and eight items: χ2 (17) = 30.693; p < 0.001; χ2/gL = 1.805; CFI = 0.968; NFI = 0.837; TLI = 0.944; RMSEA = 0.060, IC del 95% (0.048−0.072). The short scale is easy to understand and quick to complete and is thus considered a useful instrument to assess aggression levels in adolescents.

Exploring the Effect of Parental Styles on Social Skills: The Mediating Role of Affects.

Parental educational styles have a significant effect in personal development. These styles (authoritative, democratic, permissive and neglectful) can be related to affects and social skills at the individual level. The study presented here, which comprised 456 participants (151 men; 33.11%), with an average age of 22.01 years (s.d. = 2.80), aimed to analyse the relationship between parental styles, affects and social skills, as well as the role played by affects in the relationship between parental style and social skills. The results suggest that the constructs under study are closely related. The most common parental style is democratic. By gender, permissive styles were more often applied to women and authoritative styles to men. No significant gender differences were found in the application of democratic and neglectful parental styles. In terms of emotional support, women were found to have higher negative affect scores and men higher emotional support scores. People with parents that use democratic and permissive styles scored higher in all variables related to affects and social skills, which challenges the notion that democratic styles are the best parental styles in terms of socialisation of children. The results of the affect and social skills scales were analysed in relation to parenting styles, indicating that children educated under a democratic parental regime tend to yield higher scores in terms of social skills than children educated under any other form of parental regime and medium scores in terms of affects. Finally, it was found that parenting styles have a direct influence on social skills, which tend to improve when affects play a mediating role between these two constructs. These results suggest that parenting styles are closely related to affects and social skills. In addition, they also suggest that affects play a mediating role in the relationship between parenting styles and social skills. Finally, owing to the impact that parenting styles have on affects and social skills, more research is needed to address this issue.

Self-Efficacy, Optimism, and Academic Performance as Psychoeducational Variables: Mediation Approach in Students.

Background: During the various stages of education, adolescents undergo emotional and motivational experiences that can play key roles in their development. This study aims to analyse the relationship among academic self-efficacy, optimism, and academic performance. Methods: This study comprised 1852 adolescent (male, N = 956, 51.61% and female, N = 896, 48.38%) aged 12-19 years (M = 14.77; SD = 1.80) from twelve secondary schools in Spain. The instruments used for the evaluation were the Academic Self-Efficacy Scale (ASES) and the Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R); the students' average marks were used to measure their academic performance. Results: The results of the study revealed significant correlations among self-efficacy, optimism and academic performance. Conclusions: These results emphasise the importance of academic self-efficacy as a mediating variable between the other two variables as well as its central role in the promotion of adaptive behaviours in the classroom, leading to adequate personal development, helping to prevent early school dropout and contributing to a more satisfactory academic experience.

Relationship between Social Skills and Happiness: Differences by Gender.

This study examines the relationship between social skills and happiness in 1st-year Teaching School students, as well as possible gender differences. The sample comprised 243 Teaching School students (Primary Education) in Zaragoza, including 110 men (45.27%) and 133 women (54.73%), aged 18-25 (average age 20.23 years; s.d. = 1.586). In order to analyse the relationship between social skills and subjective happiness, the Scale of Social Skills and Subjective Happiness Scale were used. While men scored higher in all social skills-related factors, women scored higher in all factors related to happiness. The study shows that factors such as self-expression in social settings and the ability to say no and cut off social interactions have a direct and significant effect on happiness among men, while self-expression in social settings and the ability to express anger led to a higher perception of happiness among women. Similarly, situations such as asking for and defending rights have an indirect and significant effect in men, reducing their levels of happiness. In the case of women, no social skills factors were found that led to lower happiness. It may be concluded that significant gender differences exist, although broader and lateral studies are needed in order to examine the relationship between gender identities, social skills and subjective happiness more in depth, and thus, understand the effect of these constructs in the development of personality.

Cognitive Differences in the Older Adults Living in the General Community: Gender and Mental Occupational State Study.

Older adults are particularly vulnerable to cognitive impairment with age, and gender differences are remarkable. However, there is very little evidence to identify both baseline cognitive and occupational gender differences prior to older adults' retirement to design more efficient personalized cognitive interventions. This descriptive observational study examined gender differences in initial cognitive performance in 367 older adults with subjective memory complaints from a primary healthcare center in Zaragoza (Spain). To evaluate initial cognitive performance, the Spanish version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MEC-35) and the set test were used to measure verbal fluency. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics were evaluated, and cognitive and occupational differences were analyzed per gender. Men had higher educational and occupational levels, were older and more of them were married (p < 0.001) than women. Regarding cardiovascular risk factors, diabetes and cerebrovascular accidents were more frequent in women, while hypercholesterolemia and obesity were more frequent in men (p < 0.001). High blood pressure was more frequent in women, but not significantly so (p = 0.639). Global cognition was higher in men (p < 0.001) for attention, calculation, and language (p < 0.001). Verbal fluency was higher in women, but the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.105). These results could be generalized to other health centers in the province and other Spanish autonomous communities as their sociodemographic variables are similar. Individualized interventions that adapt to gender, cognitive and initial occupational performance should be developed and adapted to elderly populations living in the general community to maintain their cognitive capacity and prevent their cognitive impairment and the social health costs this would imply.

Psychometric properties of empathy questionnaire for Spanish adolescents.

The aim of this study was to adapt and test the empathy questionnaire in Spanish adolescents (N = 701, age = 13.47 years). The study involved two different strands: (1) the questionnaire was translated into Spanish, and its internal consistency, factorial structure and convergent validity were assessed; (2) the questionnaire was subject to confirmatory factor analysis.The results of the confirmatory factor analysis show that the questionnaire's factors present an aggregate variance of 58.588%, which suggests that the questionnaire is a valid tool to represent affective empathy, cognitive empathy and empathic concern. On the other hand, the confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the sustainability of the model, which comprises three identified factors and twelve items. The empathy questionnaire is easy to understand and can be completed in a short time, so it is considered a useful tool to assess empathy in Spanish adolescents. The results are discussed in the context of theoretical accounts of empathy.

The Mediating Role of Positive and Negative Affects in the Relationship Between Self-Esteem and Happiness.

BACKGROUND: Affects, both positive and negative, can act as mediators between self-esteem and happiness. The present study is undertaken among 812 university students in order to examine the relationship between these variables. METHODS: The sample included 812 university students - 361 men (44.46%) and 451 women (55.54%) - who participated voluntarily. The Positive and Negative Affect Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale and Self-Esteem Scale were the instruments used in this study. RESULTS: The results revealed that men have greater self-esteem and positive affects, while women scored higher in terms of subjective happiness. The analysis revealed a significant correlation between the variables under analysis. Positive affects show a strong positive correlation between self-esteem and happiness, while negative affects show a negative correlation. Mediation analysis suggests that affects, both positive and negative, mediate the relationship between self-esteem and subjective happiness. The results of this study may present us with new perspectives concerning the role that affects play between self-esteem and happiness. CONCLUSION: The data present evidence of the mediating role-played by affects, both positive and negative, in the relationship between self-esteem and happiness. More research is needed to examine to what extent these results can be extrapolated, and how to design measures to improve psychological health and well-being.

Psychometric properties of empathy questionnaire for Spanish adolescents

Abstract The aim of this study was to adapt and test the empathy questionnaire in Spanish adolescents (N = 701, age = 13.47 years). The study involved two different strands: (1) the questionnaire was translated into Spanish, and its internal consistency, factorial structure and convergent validity were assessed; (2) the questionnaire was subject to confirmatory factor analysis. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis show that the questionnaire's factors present an aggregate variance of 58.588%, which suggests that the questionnaire is a valid tool to represent affective empathy, cognitive empathy and empathic concern. On the other hand, the confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the sustainability of the model, which comprises three identified factors and twelve items. The empathy questionnaire is easy to understand and can be completed in a short time, so it is considered a useful tool to assess empathy in Spanish adolescents. The results are discussed in the context of theoretical accounts of empathy.

School motivation, goal orientation and academic performance in secondary education students.

BACKGROUND: In the students' school stage can appear many psychological variables that can positively or negatively affect the academic life of the students as well as their learning process. Therefore, the present study aims to explore the relation between school motivation, goal orientation and academic performance in adolescent students. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed on adolescent students (N=3512) from 18 public Secondary Education (ESO) centers. The Scale of School Motivation (EME-S), the Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ) and academic performance, quantified by each student's mean mark, were instruments used. RESULTS: The results revealed significant relations among, on the one hand, intrinsic school motivations, task-oriented goal orientations and academic performance in a more adaptive pattern behavior and, on the other hand, relations between extrinsic motivations and ego-oriented goal orientations. The influence of intrinsic motivations, task-oriented goal orientations and low amotivation indices on predicting academic performance was deduced. CONCLUSION: The importance of promoting adaptive behaviors that improve adolescent students' academic lives focus on adequate levels of school motivation and task-oriented goal orientations at their education centers was revealed.

The relationship of internalizing problems with emotional intelligence and social skills in secondary education students: gender differences.

Internalizing problems (depression, anxiety, social anxiety, somatic complaints, post-traumatic symptoms, and obsession-compulsion) are very important in adolescents' development. These problems can be related with people who lack social skills and poorly handle their emotions. This study assessed 1358 secondary education students (12-17 years) to analyze the relationship linking internalizing problems, emotional intelligence, and social skills. The results showed not only how these constructs were related, but how students' internalizing problems varied according to their emotional intelligence and social skills. They also indicated that two in every three males, and just over one in every two females, obtained high scores for internalizing problems. The model showed a good fit: χ2(85) = 201.161 p < 0.001; χ2/gl = 2.367; CFI = 0.919; NFI = 0.869; TLI = 0.900; RMSEA = 0.075, IC 95% (0.062-0.089). Finally, gender influenced the way that internalizing problems, emotional intelligence, and social skills were related, and an inverse relation appeared to link internalizing problems, emotional intelligence (r = - .77), and social skills (r = - .52) for females, while this relationship was poorer for males. By way of conclusion, we state that internalizing problems are related with emotional intelligence and social skills in secondary education students, but this relationship differs according to gender.