Increasing self-esteem among left-behind children in China: a cross-temporal meta-analysis from 2006 to 2020 : All author names.

BACKGROUND: Self-esteem serves as a fundamental indicator for assessing the mental health of left-behind children in China. Previous studies have placed more emphasis on investigating its current situation, while overlooking its dynamic changes with social development. METHODS: This research project used the approach of cross-temporal meta-analysis to analyze 72 papers that used the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, ranging from 2006 to 2020(date of data collection) and covering 29,835 left-behind children, to delve into the diachronic changes and influencing factors of self-esteem of left-behind children over the years. RESULTS: The outcomes demonstrated that: (1) The self-esteem scores of Chinese left-behind children increased from 30.74 in 2006 to 32.7 in 2020. (2) The level of self-esteem among left-behind children was significantly correlated with social indicators (economic conditions and educational level) for the actual year, 3 years prior, or 5 years prior to the self-esteem data collection. CONCLUSIONS: The level of self-esteem of left-behind children has been rising between 2006 and 2020. In addition, it is noteworthy that social development had a significant influence on predicting changes in the self-esteem of left-behind children.

Changes in Chinese college students' mobile phone addiction over recent decade: The perspective of cross-temporal meta-analysis.

In recent years, with the rapid advancement of Internet technology and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, mobile phones have been used more frequently, the development trend of mobile phone addiction among Chinese college students is a concern to society. This cross-temporal meta-analysis provides compelling evidence of the rising trend of mobile phone addiction in Chinese college students based on data from 42 independent studies (Sample Size = 49,544) over the past decade (2013-2022), and discuss the three important rising periods. Furthermore, extended research has revealed correlated factors of mobile phone addiction among Chinese college students, including gender, anxiety, depression, loneliness, stress, well-being, social support, and resilience. Additionally, the study identified the National internet penetration rate and the National GDP index as significant predictors of mobile phone addiction in Chinese college students. These findings not only reveal the changing trends of mobile phone addiction among Chinese college students, but also enrich the understanding of mobile phone addiction among this population and provide a reference for improving mobile phone addiction among in the future.

Changes in mental health levels among Chinese athletes from 1995 to 2023.

Objective: In recent years, with the increasing intensity of sports competition and social pressure, the issue of mental health among athletes have gradually attracted attention. Understanding the changing trends of athletes' mental health is of great significance for formulating effective intervention measures and safeguarding the mental health of athletes. Methods: A total of 306 articles were accumulated from September to November 2023 by selecting literature from databases that measured the mental health of Chinese athletes using the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90). Based on the screening criteria, 28 articles (N = 4,227) were finally included. A cross-sectional historical meta-analysis of these 28 studies using the SCL-90 between 1995 and 2023 was conducted. Based on cross-sectional historical meta-analysis methods, specific statistical methods, such as correlation and regression analyses, were used to examine trends over time in the scores of the nine SCL-90 factors measured by the athletes in the studies, as well as athlete type and gender differences. Results: (1) Athletes' scores on the depression, hostility, phobic anxiety, and paranoid ideation factors gradually increased with the change of era, and the explanation rate of the variation of each factor by era ranged from 18.8 to 27.2%; (2) During the period from 1995 to 2023, the mental health of athletes in China gradually deteriorated on the factors of depression, hostility, and phobic anxiety, the rate of change was rapid, with a medium to large magnitude (0.28-0.42); (3) The scores of female athletes on the depression and psychoticism factors scores showed a significant upward trend, while male mental health scores for each factor did not improve significantly over the years; (4) College athletes' scores on the depression, anxiety, hostility, phobic anxiety, paranoid ideation, and psychoticism factors showed an upward trend as the years changed. Conclusion: Chinese athletes' mental health has been on a downward trend for the past 28 years, which needs to be a cause for concern.

Longitudinal Changes in Chinese Prosociality.

This article presents three studies using data from the World Values Survey, 128 published studies, and China Family Panel Studies to comprehensively examine the longitudinal dynamics of Chinese prosociality, encompassing prosocial attitudes, tendencies, and behaviors, with the overarching goal of shedding light on the evolving nature of prosociality in the Chinese context. These studies reveal a consistent pattern, illustrating a decline followed by a resurgence in all three aspects, with a nadir around 2014. In addition, the study investigates the intricate relationship between economic inequality, prosocial behavior, and prosocial attitudes. The findings suggest that while economic inequality significantly relates to prosocial behavior, it does not entirely explain its fluctuations. Prosocial attitudes partially mediate the connection between economic inequality and prosocial behavior. These insights suggest that addressing inequality could contribute to a more conducive social environment for societal-level prosociality. However, further research is imperative to explore additional determinants of prosociality shifts.

Birth cohort changes in anxiety levels among primary school students in China during 1995-2019: A cross-temporal meta-analysis.

To investigate birth cohort changes in anxiety levels among primary school students in China, we conducted a cross-temporal meta-analysis of 126 studies (N = 109,957) reporting the anxiety levels among primary school students in China during 1995-2019 using the Mental Health Diagnostic Test (MHT); higher MHT scores indicated higher anxiety. The results showed that: (1) The MHT scores for five types of mental health problems (social anxiety, lonely tendency, physical symptoms, terror tendency, and impulsive tendency) and the total MHT score were significantly negatively correlated with the data-collection year, indicating that the anxiety levels among primary school students in China decreased over time. (2) The MHT score for learning anxiety was significantly positively correlated with the data-collection year, indicating that the learning anxiety levels of primary school students in China increased over time. (3) The overall MHT score did not show significant gender differences, but gender-wise varying trends were observed in the types considered.

Changes in sleep quality among Chinese active service personnel: A cross-temporal meta-analysis, 2003-2019.

Military personnel live in operating environments in which poor sleep is common. In this cross-temporal meta-analysis (CTMA), 100 studies (144 data sets, N = 75,998) were identified to examine changes in sleep quality among Chinese active service personnel from 2003 to 2019. Participants were divided into three groups: the navy, the non-navy, and the unknown service. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was used as the measure of sleep quality; it contains a global score and seven component scores, with higher scores indicative of poorer sleep. Among all active military personnel, the PSQI global and seven component scores decreased from 2003 to 2019. In examining the results by military type, the PSQI global and seven component scores increased in the navy group. Conversely, both the non-navy and unknown-service groups showed decreased PSQI global scores over time. Similarly, all PSQI component scores decreased over time for both the non-navy and unknown service groups, except for the use of sleeping medication (USM), which increased in the non-navy group. In conclusion, the sleep quality of Chinese active service personnel showed a positive trend. Further research should focus on improving the navy's sleep quality.

Changes in Chinese adolescent college students' psychological security during 2004-2020: A cross-temporal meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Psychological security is the outcome of interaction between individuals and society, and it is an important indicator reflecting adolescent mental health and self-growth. Previous studies have paid more attention to external security, but less attention to individual's internal psychological security. In addition, few previous studies have examined the changes of psychological security over time and the influence of socio-cultural environmental factors on psychological security. METHODS: A cross-temporal meta-analysis was performed using papers that measured the psychological security level of Chinese adolescent college students between 2004 and 2020. Moreover, a time-lag analysis was conducted to define whether the macro-social indicators can explain the changes in Chinese adolescent college students' psychological security. RESULTS: (1) A total of 85 papers was included in the final sample (included 48,817 Chinese adolescent college students); (2) the scores of psychological security and its two sub-dimensions were significantly negatively correlated with the year, indicating that Chinese college students' psychological security declined significantly over time; (3) seven macro social indicators from the socioeconomic environmental, social connectedness and overall social threats can predict the changes in college students' psychological security; (4) the psychological security of male and female college students decreased over time, but the gender difference was insignificant. CONCLUSIONS: Evidently, social changes play an important role in predicting changes in Chinese college students' psychological security. The results can provide a research basis for the mental health education of adolescent college students, and also provide an explanation perspective for the increasingly serious "involution" phenomenon among Chinese college students.

Changes of medical staffs' subjective well-being in China (2004-2020): A cross-temporal meta-analysis.

Subjective well-being is a crucial index measuring the mental health of medical staffs, and it is necessary to examine the changes in subjective well-being (SWB) level of Chinese medical staffs with time. A cross-temporal meta-analysis was performed using papers that measured the SWB level of Chinese medical staffs between 2004 and 2020. Moreover, a time-lag analysis was conducted to define whether the macro-social indicators can explain the changes in SWB. A total of 47 papers were included in the final sample. The results revealed that score of SWB was significantly negatively correlated with the year. Score of SWB was significantly associated with six social indicators of economic condition (the residents' consumption level, housing prices, and old-age dependency ratio), social connectedness (the divorce rate and the urbanization level), and overall threat (the crime rate), which indicated that social change may account for the decline of Chinese medical staffs' SWB level. Our study revealed a decreasing trend of Chinese medical staffs' SWB level over time, which was associated with macro-social changes in diverse areas. In addition, combined with the corresponding macro-social indicators, a three-dimensional theoretical framework is proposed to explain the SWB for medical staffs as a group.

Changes in mental health levels among Chinese physical education college students from 1995 to 2019.

To explore the changes in the mental health levels of Chinese physical education college students, the present study conducted a cross-temporal meta-analysis of 43 papers that adopted the Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90) from 1995 to 2019. The results showed that the average scores of the seven SCL-90 factors were negatively correlated with the year of data collection. The socioeconomic indicators (GDP, per capita GDP and household consumption level) were significantly negatively correlated with the eight dimension scores of the SCL-90 (except for phobic anxiety). The mean effect sizes of the sex differences in the seven dimension scores (except depression and phobic anxiety) were lower than the small effect size. In conclusion, Chinese physical education college students' mental health levels have increased in the past 25 years. This phenomenon may be related to Chinese socioeconomic growth, the implementation of national sports policies, and the provision of mental health education for college students. In addition, although the increasing trend in the mental health level of female students was more obvious, there were no significant sex differences.

Psychological security in Chinese college students during 2006-2019: The influence of social change on the declining trend.

BACKGROUND: As a key indicator to measure the mental health status, psychological security level of Chinese college students and its changes over time are of great value to examine. METHODS: A cross-temporal meta-analysis was performed using papers that measured the psychological security level of Chinese college students using the Security Questionnaire between 2006 and 2019. In addition, a time lag analysis was conducted to define whether the selected macro social indicators can explain the changes in the psychological security level. RESULTS: A total of 58 papers involving 28,352 Chinese college students were included in the final sample. The results revealed that scores of psychological security and its two factors were significantly negatively correlated with the year. Scores of psychological security and its two factors were significantly associated with five social indicators of economic condition (residents' consumption level), social connectedness (divorce rate, urbanization level) and overall threat (college enrollment rate, crime rate), suggesting that social change may account for the decline in psychological security level of Chinese college students. LIMITATIONS: The underlying mechanism is only discussed at a theoretical level. Thus, future studies can collect the relating empirical evidence to test the proposed theoretical model. CONCLUSIONS: Our study revealed a decreasing trend of Chinese college students' psychological security level across time, which was associated with macro-social changes in diverse areas. In addition, combined with the corresponding macro-social indicators, a three-dimensional theoretical framework is proposed to explain the psychological security for college students as a group.

A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis on Marital Satisfaction of Chinese Couples.

Objective: To investigate the changing trend of Chinese couples' marital satisfaction and its relationship with social changes. Methods: A cross-temporal meta-analysis was performed on 118 original studies (n = 31,909) reporting marital satisfaction of Chinese couples from 1994 to 2020, primarily using correlation analysis and regression analysis. Results: (1) Overall, the marital satisfaction of Chinese couples showed a downward trend over time. (2) Men's marital satisfaction displayed almost no change, while women's marital satisfaction had a more obvious downward trend. (3) Changes in macrosocial factors (per capita consumption expenditure, housing prices, old-age dependency ratio, and divorce rate) could significantly predict the downward trend of marital satisfaction, especially for women. Conclusion: In the past 27 years, the overall marital satisfaction level of Chinese couples has shown a downward trend, and there are gendered differences, which may be related to changes in the socioeconomic and cultural environments.

A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis of Changes in Left-Behind Children's Mental Health in China.

A considerable body of research using the Mental Health Test (MHT) has explored the psychological repercussions of the physical separation of children from one or both parents as they pursue better economic prospects in cities. Generally, these studies compare the mental health status (MHS) between left-behind children (LBC) and non-left-behind children (NLBC). That notwithstanding, little is known about the real policy impact of these studies on the ground over the years. Using a relevant search strategy and selection criteria, we identified qualified studies (N = 102: 2004 to 2019). Cross-temporal meta-analysis (CTMA) was performed on these studies for dynamic trends. Our results demonstrate: (1) a slight but significant change in MHS of both LBC and NLBC, with LBC being significantly worse off over time; (2) a significant deterioration in MHS of LBC over time, particularly among left-behind boys (LBBs); (3) a stable and significant decline in MHS of left-behind junior high and elementary school students, respectively; and (4) a more substantial degradation in MHS of LBC with both parents absent compared with LBC with a parent present. The findings reveal that the efforts of, and collaboration among, researchers, policy experts and politicians are producing results. Nevertheless, more targeted research is needed to unearth the underlying issues that generate the differences among subpopulations of LBC to better inform pragmatic interventions for collective psychological wellness of LBC.

Core Self-Evaluations Increases Among Chinese Employees: A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis, 2010-2019.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the changes in core self-evaluation (CSE) scores among Chinese employees during 2010-2019. We conducted a cross-temporal meta-analysis including 50 studies (17,400 Chinese employees) to evaluate the relationship between the year of data collection and levels of CSE. We found that correlations between levels of CSE and year of data collection were strong and positive (r > 0.500). Regression results showed that the year of data collection could predict the CSE score when the mean sample age and sex ratio (%female) were controlled. In addition, CSE scores were positively related to GDP per capita and negatively related to the unemployment rate.

Changes in empathy of nurses from 2009 to 2018: A cross-temporal meta-analysis.

The empathy of nurses is associated with self-care and self-compassion, which may enhance the quality of the nurse-patient relationship. Yet, research on the empathy of nursing staff has mostly used cross-sectional designs, which cannot capture the degree of empathy changes over time. To explore changes in empathy among nurses in China from 2009 to 2018. A cross-temporal meta-analysis was used to examine continuous changes in the empathy of nurses. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were used to conduct this cross-temporal meta-analysis of 57 samples of nurses in China who completed the three subscales (perspective-taking, compassionate care, and walking in the patient's shoes) of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy-Health Professionals from 2009 to 2018 (N = 13,825). This meta-analysis was conducted following good scientific practice in every phase, and approval by ethics committees was not required according to the local regulations in China. The findings suggest that the nurses' mean total scores of empathy and perspective-taking on the Jefferson Scale of Empathy-Health Professionals declined significantly over time, but the trend in compassionate care and walking in the patient's shoes was not significant. No significant changes were found in the overall empathy or the three dimensions of empathy of the nurses in the Eastern region across time, whereas a significant decline was found on the total empathy and perspective-taking scores of the nurses in other regions (i.e. the Central and Western regions). The mean total score of empathy and walking in the patient's shoes of the nurses who worked in the intensive care units showed a significant decrease over time. Furthermore, these findings indicate that the empathy of Chinese nurses has decreased steadily over the past 10 years. High levels of empathy can effectively reduce healthcare risks, errors, and disputes among nursing staff and enhance patient satisfaction and well-being.

The prevalence of mental distress and association with social changes among postgraduate students in China: a cross-temporal meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to estimate the mental distress prevalence of Chinese postgraduate students and the association with the social changes based on the data between 2000 and 2019. STUDY DESIGN: This is a cross-temporal meta-analysis study. METHODS: The literature was retrieved with both English and Chinese electronic databases, including articles published from 2002 to 2019. Statistical analyses were performed with R 3.6.1 and SPSS 22. RESULTS: Eighty-nine primary studies with 99 reports were included in our meta-analysis, totaling 54,722 Chinese postgraduate students. The result showed that: (a) the prevalence of mental distress was 28% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 25%-31%), and the prevalence of moderately positive symptoms was 9% (95% CI: 7%-11%); (b) the prevalence of positive symptoms was negatively correlated with the years of data collection and the prevalence of mental distress decreased by at least 16% from 2000 to 2019; and (c) social changes, particularly the policies of mental health and the educational environment had a significant contribution to these changes. CONCLUSIONS: More than a quarter of postgraduate students have mental illness in China, whereas the prevalence of their mental distress has been decreasing. Social changes are shown to play an important role in contributing to this change.

Birth Cohort Changes in the Subjective Well-Being of Chinese College Students: A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis, 2002-2017.

According to the happiness-income paradox, economic growth within a country does not necessarily lead to an increase in well-being. However, previous literature also showed that economic growth has a greater impact on well-being in a low-income country than a high-income country. China is a typical developing country that has experienced dramatic development in recent decades. How did the well-being of the Chinese change? To examine birth cohort changes in Chinese college students' subjective well-being, a cross-temporal meta-analysis that involved 100 studies was conducted (106 data points, N = 55,830). The results showed that Chinese college students' well-being increased by at least 0.45 standard deviations from 2002 to 2017. In addition, their subjective well-being was significantly correlated with social indicators (e.g., GDP per capita, divorce rate, and university enrollment rate) for the corresponding years and 3 years prior to the collection of subjective well-being data. It is evident that social changes play an important role in predicting changes in well-being.

Social change and birth cohort decrease in social support for older adults in China: A cross-temporal meta-analysis, 1994-2018.

Social support not only plays an important role in the physical and mental health of the elderly people but also constitutes an essential resource for healthy ageing. With the rapid economic and social development during the last 40 years in China, the acceleration of urbanisation, and the disintegration of traditional extended families, the social support that Chinese older adults receive may be declining, leading to deterioration in quality of life for the rapidly ageing population. Cross-temporal meta-analysis was employed to investigate changes in older Chinese adults' social support from 1994 to 2018. One hundred and thirty-six studies (N = 82,722; age ≥ 60) that used the social support rating scale (SSRS) were analysed. Additionally, social support scores were correlated with social indicators to explore the relationship between social support and the environment of social development. Results show that social support scores decreased by 5.09 and 0.73 standard deviations over the past 24 years. Correlation with social indicators suggests that a decrease in social connectedness and an increase in economic imbalance may be responsible for the reduction in social support.

Changes in Work-Family Conflict of Chinese Employees: A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis, 2005-2016.

With the rapid growth of China's economy, work-family conflict (WFC) level of Chinese employees might have changed over time. The present research performed a cross-temporal meta-analysis of 71 papers using the Work-Family Conflict Scale (WFCS) from three Chinese academic databases and three databases in English to investigate changes in Chinese employees' WFC (N = 23,635) during 2005-2016. Results showed that the WFC level of employees increased significantly by 0.77 standard deviations over the past 12 years. The increasing trend over time occurred among both male and female employees, which is slightly more salient among male employees. However, there was no significant gender difference in WFC scores. This study found that the increase in WFC scores among Chinese employees was associated with scores of six social indicators that might cause stress in workplace (the number of employees and number of college graduates) and stress in family (divorce rate, residents' consumption level, elderly dependency ratio, and family size) of 5 years before and the year of data collection, which indicates that social changes played an important role in changes of WFC. The explanations and implications of these changes are discussed.

Three decades of increase in health anxiety: Systematic review and meta-analysis of birth cohort changes in university student samples from 1985 to 2017.

Health anxiety can be defined as a multifaceted trait that is primarily characterised by a fear of, or preoccupation with, serious illness. Whereas low levels of health anxiety can be helpful, clinically significant levels are associated with personal suffering and substantial societal costs. As general anxiety is probably on the rise, and the Internet has increased access to health-related information, it is commonly speculated that health anxiety has increased over the past decades. We tested this hypothesis based on a systematic review and meta-analysis of birth cohort mean health anxiety in Western university student samples from 1985 to 2017. Sixty-eight studies with 22 413 student participants were included. The primary analysis indicated that the mean score on the Illness Attitudes Scales had increased by 4.61 points (95 % CI: 1.02, 8.20) from 1985 to 2017. The percentage of general population Internet users in the study year of data collection was not predictive of student mean health anxiety. In conclusion, this study corroborates the hypothesis of an increase in health anxiety, at least in the student population, over the past decades. However, this increase could not be linked to the introduction of the Internet.

Verbal and visuospatial short-term and working memory data across a 43-year period (1973-2016) worldwide: Flynn and anti-Flynn effects.

Secular gain and drop in cognitive test performances over time have been observed and called respectively the Flynn and anti-Flynn effects. The current datasets include raw data from an investigation of the Flynn and/or anti-Flynn effects on verbal and visuospatial short-term and working memory reported in 'The Flynn effect for verbal and visuospatial short-term and working memory: A cross-temporal meta-analysis' (Wongupparaj, Wongupparaj, Kumari, Morris, 2017) [1]. Specifically, the datasets totally contain 1754 individual samples (n = 139,677) across a 43-year period from forward/backward digit span (F/BDS) and forward/backward Corsi-block span (CBS) tests. Mean memory test scores, standard deviation scores, types of memory tests, years of publication, mean ages, male percentages, types of publication, types of countries, platforms of memory tests, and sample sizes were collected and included in the datasets. DS and CBS data are unique in that they can provide a rich source of trends concerning changing short-term and working memory test scores across memory types, test platforms, age groups, gender, and countries. Further, these data can be of use for investigation of psychometric properties for the memory tests.