Susceptibility to positive versus negative emotional contagion: First evidence on their distinction using a balanced self-report measure.

Susceptibility to emotional contagion is defined as the disposition of how susceptible someone is to catch others' emotions and it has long been studied in research on mental health, well-being, and social interaction. Given that existing self-report measures of susceptibility to emotional contagion have focused almost exclusively on negative emotions, we developed a self-report measure to assess the susceptibility to emotional contagion of both positive and negative emotions (2 scales). In two studies, we examined their factor structure, validity, and reliability using exploratory factor analysis (Study 1, N = 257), confirmatory factor analysis (Study 2, N = 247) and correlations. Our results confirmed the two-factor structure and demonstrated good internal consistencies. Regarding external validity, our scales showed diverging correlational patterns: While susceptibility to negative emotional contagion was linked to mental health problems and negative emotions, susceptibility to positive emotional contagion was linked to interpersonal functioning and prosocial tendencies. In conclusion, our scales appear to be internally/externally valid and a promising tool for future research.

"I'm tired of black boxes!": A systematic comparison of faculty well-being and need satisfaction before and during the COVID-19 crisis.

As of today, surprisingly little is known about the subjective well-being of faculty in general, but especially when teaching online and during a time of pandemic during lockdowns in particular. To narrow this research gap, the present study systematically compared the subjective well-being of faculty teaching face-to-face before to those teaching online during the COVID-19 pandemic, adopting a self-determination theory framework. The data reported here stem from a study conducted before the pandemic (Sample 1, n = 101) and which repeated-measures survey design we replicated to collect corresponding data during the pandemic (Sample 2, n = 71). Results showed that faculty teaching online during the pandemic reported impaired satisfaction of all three basic needs, that is reduced autonomy, competence, and especially relatedness, as well as impaired subjective well-being (clearly reduced enjoyment and reduced teaching satisfaction; increased anger and a tendency towards more shame) compared to faculty teaching face-to-face before the pandemic. Yet pride, anxiety, and boredom were experienced to a similar extent across both samples. The effects of the teaching format on the different aspects of subjective well-being were overall mediated in self-determination-theory-congruent ways by the satisfaction of the basic needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. We conclude for a post-pandemic future that online teaching will supplement rather than replace face-to-face teaching in higher education institutions, as their importance for building relationships and satisfying social interactions not only for students but also for faculty seem to have been underestimated so far.

Boredom Makes Me Sick: Adolescents' Boredom Trajectories and Their Health-Related Quality of Life.

Existing research shows consistent links between boredom and depression, somatic complaints, substance abuse, or obesity and eating disorders. However, comparatively little is known about potential psychological and physical health-related correlates of academic boredom. Evidence for such a relationship can be derived from the literature, as boredom has adverse consequences in both work and achievement-related settings. The present study investigates latent correlations of 1.484 adolescents' (Mage = 13.23) mathematics boredom scores at three time points during a semester in 2018/19 and their Rasch scaled health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Moreover, we applied latent growth curve modeling to estimate boredom trajectories across the semester and determined the relationship between the latent growth parameters of student boredom and HRQoL in bivariate correlation analyses. Our results show that boredom is significantly negatively linked with all HRQoL dimensions (physical well-being, psychological well-being, autonomy and parent relation, social support and peers, school environment [SCH], and general HRQoL [GH]). Furthermore, stronger increases in boredom across the semester were negatively associated with SCH scores and GH. In conclusion, given that boredom is negatively linked with HRQoL and that stronger boredom growth is linked with more severe health-related problems, signs of academic boredom could be an early warning signal for adolescents' potentially severe problems.

Excessive boredom among adolescents: A comparison between low and high achievers.

Existing research shows that high achievement boredom is correlated with a range of undesirable behavioral and personality variables and that the main antecedents of boredom are being over- or under-challenged. However, merely knowing that students are highly bored, without taking their achievement level into account, might be insufficient for drawing conclusions about students' behavior and personality. We, therefore, investigated if low- vs. high-achieving students who experience strong mathematics boredom show different behaviors and personality traits. The sample consisted of 1,404 German secondary school students (fifth to 10th grade, mean age 12.83 years, 52% female). We used self-report instruments to assess boredom in mathematics, behavioral (social and emotional problems, positive/negative affect, cognitive reappraisal, and expressive suppression), and personality variables (neuroticism and conscientiousness). In comparing highly bored students (more than one SD above M, n = 258) who were low vs. high achievers (as indicated by the math grade, n = 125 / n = 119), results showed that there were no mean level differences across those groups for all variables. In conclusion, our results suggest that high boredom can occur in both low- and high-achieving students and that bored low- and high-achievers show similar behaviors and personality profiles.

Who Enjoys Teaching, and When? Between- and Within-Person Evidence on Teachers' Appraisal-Emotion Links.

Testing assumptions proposed by Frenzel's reciprocal model of teacher emotions (e.g., Frenzel, 2014), this study explored relations between teachers' appraisals concerning the attainment and importance of their teaching goals, and their emotions. Specifically, we addressed teachers' goals of high student performance, motivation, discipline, and high-quality teacher-student relationship and three key discrete emotions, namely, enjoyment, anger, and anxiety, during teaching. We had 244 secondary school teachers (70.1% female) self-report their goal attainment and importance appraisals and emotional experiences with respect to up to three different classes they currently taught. Results from single- and two-level multivariate multiple regression analyses largely supported the relevance of the goal attainment appraisals for teachers' emotions both on the between-person and the within-person level. Goal importance appraisals proved to be of secondary relevance. On the between-person level, those teachers who positively appraised the attainment of motivation, discipline, and teacher-student relationship quality proved to report more enjoyment and less anxiety and anger. On the within-person level, teachers reported enjoying teaching those classes more, which they perceived as better performing, more motivated and disciplined, and with whom they had a better relationship. Anger and anxiety were negatively linked to appraisals pertaining to the attainment of discipline and teacher-student relationship quality. Across both analysis perspectives, teacher-student relationship quality attainment showed particularly strong links with all three emotions. Because teachers' subjective evaluations regarding student behaviors were shown to be highly relevant for their emotions, we conclude that teachers could be supported in modifying their emotional experiences through cognitive reappraisal. Interventions targeting teachers' relationships with students, and their cognitive judgments thereof, seem particularly promising.