Academic success, engagement and self-efficacy of first-year university students:personal variables and first-semester performance / Éxito académico, compromiso y autoeficacia de los estudiantes universitarios de primer año: variables personales y desempeño del primer semestre

La educación superior puede ser extremadamente transformadora para los estudiantes y tiene un papel importante en la formación del capital humano, en la innovación y en el desarrollo social, cultural y ambiental de la sociedad. La expansión de la educación superior promovió el acceso de una mezcla de estudiantes más heterogénea, pero garantizar el acceso no garantiza el éxito académico. Este artículo tiene como objetivo analizar los predictores de desempeño académico en 447 estudiantes de primer año en el 1er y 2do semestre, considerando variables como sexo, edad, nivel educativo de los padres y calificaciones al ingresar a la educación superior, junto con los niveles de compromiso académico e autoeficacia de los estudiantes tras algunas semanas en la universidad. Los resultados muestran trayectorias estadísticamente significativas para sexo, edad y GPA hasta el desempeño del primer semestre, para los niveles educativos de los padres hasta la autoeficacia percibida, para la implicación académica de los estudiantes hasta el desempeño del primer semestre y el desempeño del primer semestre hasta el desempeño del segundo semestre La participación académica de los estudiantes también tuvo un efecto indirecto en el desempeño del segundo semestre. La correlación entre compromiso académica y autoeficacia fue positiva, fuerte y estadísticamente significativa. El modelo explicó el 35.2% de la varianza del rendimiento académico en el segundo semestre y el 15.0% de la varianza del rendimiento académico en el primer semestre. El conocimiento sobre los predictores del rendimiento académico y la importancia del compromiso y la autoeficacia respaldará las intervenciones oportunas, promoviendo el éxito y previniendo el fracaso y el abandono.(AU)

Higher education can be hugely transformative for students and has an important role in empowering human capital, innovation, and socie-ty’s social, cultural, and environmental development. The expansion of higher education has promoted access for a more heterogeneous mix of students, but ensuring access does not guarantee academic success. This paper aims to analyse predictors of academic achievement in 447 first-year students in their 1stand 2ndsemesters, considering variables including sex, age, parents’ educational level and grades on entering higher education, along with levels of students’ academic engagement and self-efficacy after some weeks at university. Results show statistically significant paths for sex, age, and GPA to 1st-semester achievement, for parent’s educational levels to perceived self-efficacy, for students’ academic engagement to 1st-semester achievement, and 1st-semester achievement to 2nd-semester achievement. Students’ academic engagement also had an indirect effect on the 2nd-semester achievement. The correlation between academic engage-ment and self-efficacy was positive, strong, and statistically significant. The model explained 35.2% of the variance in 2nd-semester achievement and 15.0% of the variance in 1st-semester achievement. Knowledge about pre-dictors of academic achievement and the importance of engagement and self-efficacy will support timely interventions, promoting success and pre-venting failure and dropout.(AU)

Food Addiction and Grazing-The Role of Difficulties in Emotion Regulation and Negative Urgency in University Students.

University students are a vulnerable population to the development of disordered eating, such as food addiction (FA) and grazing. FA is an emerging concept characterized by an intense desire to eat hyper-palatable foods. Grazing is characterized by the repetitive and unplanned ingestion of food throughout a period of time. Both FA and grazing have been associated with increased scores of negative urgency (NU) and difficulties in emotion regulation (ER). This study aims to evaluate the frequency of FA and grazing in a university population and to test the direct, total, and indirect effects-via FA-of ER and NU on repetitive eating and compulsive grazing. A total of 338 participants responded to a set of psychological measures assessing these variables. Thirty-six (10.7%) participants met the criteria for FA diagnosis and 184 (54.4%) presented grazing. Confirmatory factor analysis showed acceptable fit indexes for the model tested (χ2(1695) = 3167.575; p < 0.001; CFI = 0.955; NFI = 0.908; TLI = 0.953; SRMR = 0.085; RMSEA = 0.051; CI 90% (0.048; 0.053); P[RMSEA ≤ 0.05] = 0.318) and suggested that FA partially mediated the effect of difficulties in ER and NU on grazing, specifically on compulsive grazing. The results indicate that individuals with difficulties in ER and impulse control under negative emotions are more likely to engage in grazing if food addiction scores are higher. These results highlight the importance of assessing these variables, particularly in at-risk populations such as university students.

Adaptation, confirmatory factor analysis, and psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of the Repetitive Eating Questionnaire.

OBJECTIVE: The Repetitive Eating Questionnaire (Rep(eat)-Q) is a brief self-report measure developed to assess grazing behavior-an understudied problematic eating behavior associated with eating disorder psychopathology and poor weight management. This study aimed to adapt and test the psychometric properties and factor structure of the Rep(eat)-Q in a Brazilian community sample. METHOD: We used the International Test Commission guidelines for the adaptation of psychological measures between cultures. Participants were recruited from the community and on a university campus and completed a set of questionnaires including the Rep(eat)-Q, psychological measures, and sociodemographic data. RESULTS: A total of 718 (86.4% female) completed the Rep(eat)-Q and were eligible for the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Only 542 completed the entire survey (Rep(eat)-Q and other psychological measures) and were eligible for the analysis of the validity evidence based on the relations to other variables. CFA revealed support for a two first-order model as originally proposed, however, a hierarchical (i.e., second-order) model is proposed. We found support for second-order scalar invariance across sex. Both first- and second-order internal consistency estimates presented very good evidence. Analysis (n = 542) revealed moderate to strong correlations (≥.58 to .77) between grazing (total score and subscales) and binge eating and other psychological measures, presenting good convergent evidence. DISCUSSION: This study reports good psychometric properties of the Rep(eat)-Q for the Brazilian community sample. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE: Grazing is a problematic eating behavior and the Rep(eat)-Q is one of the measures to assess grazing. The article aimed to adapt and test the psychometric properties of the Rep(eat)-Q in a Brazilian community sample. The results support a two-factor structure and suggest that the Rep(eat)-Q possesses good psychometric properties to be used with the Brazilian populations.

Assessing meaning violations in Syrian refugees: A mixed-methods cross-cultural adaptation of the Global Meaning Violations Scale-ArabV.

Refugees are disproportionately affected by extreme traumatic events that can violate core beliefs and life goals (i.e., global meaning) and cause significant distress. This mixed-methods study used an exploratory sequential design to assess meaning violations in a sample of Syrian refugees living in Portugal. For this purpose, we cross-culturally adapted the Global Meaning Violations Scale (GMVS) for use with Arabic-speaking refugees. In total, 43 war-affected Syrian adults participated in the two-phase study. Participants completed measures of trauma and narrated violations as they filled out the newly adapted GMVS-ArabV. GMVS-ArabV validity evidence based on response processes was investigated through Phase 1 focus groups (FGs; n = 2), whereas data from Phase 2 cognitive interviews (n = 38) were used to preliminarily explore the measure's internal structure through descriptive statistics as well as culture- and trauma-informed content evidence through thematic analysis. The results suggested highest goal (M = 3.51, SD = 1.46) and lowest belief (M = 2.38, SD = 1.59) violations of educational goals and religious beliefs, respectively. Themes related to stressors, item formulation, response scale, and the global meaning construct suggested that (a) beliefs and goals can be differentially violated by different stressors; (b) much like war trauma, including torture, daily stressors can additionally shatter pretrauma global meaning; and (c) refugees reappraise meaning and suffer violations anew throughout their migration journeys. The GMVS-ArabV offers a promising tool for exploring shattered cognitions in refugees and informs evidence-based approaches to trauma recovery and psychological adjustment in postmigration settings (the Arabic abstract and keywords are available in the Supplementary Materials).

Burnout and dropout intention in medical students: the protective role of academic engagement.

INTRODUCTION: The influence of burnout, academic engagement, and their interaction in dropout intention among medical students should be further studied. Current research shows its consequences are relevant, however, there is little understanding on burnout and academic engagement moderation in dropout intention. The current study tested a model that relates the effects of coping strategies, social support satisfaction, general distress on academic engagement, burnout, and dropout intention, on medical students. METHODS: Through an online survey a non-probabilistic sample of one Medical Faculty's 1st- and 2nd-year students was recruited. Cross-sectional data were collected using psychometric instruments (Maslach Burnout Inventory - Student Survey, Social Support Satisfaction Scale for College Students, Brief COPE Scale for College Students, University Student Engagement Inventory, and Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale), sociodemographic and academic variables, and analyzed using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: 532 students (76% response rate) enrolled in the study. Latent variables structural model presented a satisfactory fit to the data and confirmed the expected negative path between burnout and dropout intention (ßDI<-SB=0.430; p<.001) and the latent moderation burnout x engagement (ßDI<-SB*SE=-0.218; p<.001). CONCLUSION: Academic engagement attenuates the impact of burnout on dropout intention, working as a protective factor. Social support satisfaction and adaptive coping are associated with increased levels of academic engagement, and general distress and maladaptive coping are associated with burnout. Medical Schools should develop interventions to prevent dropout intention, tackle students' stress and academic challenges, and develop their academic engagement levels.

Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT): Validity Evidence from Brazil and Portugal.

The Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT) has been gaining increased attention as a sound and innovative instrument in its conceptualization of burnout. BAT has been adapted for several countries, revealing promising validity evidence. This paper aims to present the psychometric properties of the Brazilian and Portuguese versions of the BAT in both the 23-item and 12-item versions. BAT's validity evidence based on the internal structure (dimensionality, reliability, and measurement invariance) and validity evidence based on the relations to other variables are the focus of research. A cross-sectional study was conducted with two non-probabilistic convenience samples from two countries (N = 3103) one from Brazil (nBrazil = 2217) and one from Portugal (nPortugal = 886). BAT's original structure was confirmed, and it achieved measurement invariance across countries. Using both classic test theory and item response theory as frameworks, the BAT presented good validity evidence based on the internal structure. Furthermore, the BAT showed good convergent evidence (i.e., work engagement, co-worker support, role clarity, work overload, and negative change). In conclusion, the psychometric properties of the BAT make this freely available instrument a promising way to measure and compare burnout levels of Portuguese and Brazilian workers.

Openness Toward Organizational Change Scale (OTOCS): Validity evidence from Brazil and Portugal.

Openness toward organizational change is central to employees' responses to organizations' strategic actions. This study aims to assess the validity evidence of the Openness Toward Organizational Change Scale (OTOCS) by examining the internal structure of the measure (e.g., dimensionality, reliability, measurement invariance) and its relations with other variables such as quality of work life, burnout, job satisfaction, and work engagement. A cross-sectional study was conducted using total sample of 1,175 workers, with 565 workers from Portugal and 610 from Brazil. The data provided satisfactory validity evidence based on the internal structure: the expected dimensionality was confirmed, acceptable levels of reliability were found, and measurement invariance was achieved among countries and sex. The measure also demonstrated satisfactory validity evidence based on the relations to other variables, being negatively associated with burnout and positively associated with work engagement, job satisfaction and quality of work. The OTOCS proved to be a relatively short self-report measure with satisfactory validity evidence to be used among Brazilian and Portuguese workers.

Development of the Referee Shared Mental Models Measure (RSMMM).

The concept of shared mental models refers to the shared understanding among team members about how they should behave in different situations. This article aimed to develop a new shared mental model measure, specifically designed for the refereeing context. A cross-sectional study was conducted with three samples: national and regional football referees (n = 133), national football referees and assistant referees and national futsal referees (n = 277), and national futsal referees (n = 60). The proposed version of the Referee Shared Mental Models Measure (RSMMM) has 13 items that are reflected on a single factor structure. The RSMMM presented good validity evidence both based on the internal structure and based on relations to other variables (presenting positive associations with team work engagement, team adaptive performance, and team effectiveness). Such promising psychometric properties point to an optimistic outlook regarding its use to measure shared mental models in futsal and football referee teams.

Measurement Invariance of the Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT) Across Seven Cross-National Representative Samples.

The aim of this study was to investigate the measurement invariance of the Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT) across seven cross-national representative samples. In this study, burnout was modeled as a second-order factor in line with the conceptual definition as a syndrome. The combined sample consisted of 10,138 participants from countries in Europe and Japan. The data were treated as ordered categorical in nature and a series of models were tested to find evidence for invariance. Specifically, theta parameterization was used in conjunction with the weighted least squares (mean- and variance adjusted) estimation method. The results showed supportive evidence that BAT-assessed burnout was invariant across the samples, so that cross-country comparison would be justifiable. Comparison of effect sizes of the latent means between countries showed that Japan had a significantly higher score on overall burnout and all the first-order factors compared to the European countries. The European countries all scored similarly on overall burnout with no significant difference but for some minor differences in first-order factors between some of the European countries. All in all, the analyses of the data provided evidence that the BAT is invariant across the countries for meaningful comparisons of burnout scores.

Validation of the Portuguese version of the Community Assessment of Psychic Experiences and characterization of psychotic experiences in a Brazilian sample

Objective: We investigated: i) the reliability and validity of a Brazilian version of the Community Assessment of Psychic Experiences (CAPE), developed to detect and characterize psychotic experiences in the general population; and ii) the association between psychotic experiences, childhood adversity, and cannabis use in a population-based sample. Methods: We performed factorial analyses and generalized linear models with CAPE scores as the dependent variable in a sample composed of 217 first-episode psychosis patients, 104 unaffected biological siblings, and 319 non-psychotic population-based participants. Results: After removing seven items from its positive dimension and two items from its negative dimension, a 33-item Brazilian version of the CAPE showed acceptable adjustment indices (confirmatory fit index = 0.895; goodness of fit index = 0.822; parsimony goodness of fit index = 0.761; root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.055, p [RMSEA ≤ 0.05] = 0.04) and internal consistency in all its dimensions (> 0.70). Childhood adversity was associated with higher scores in all three dimensions, as well as with total score. Lifetime cannabis use was associated with higher scores only in the positive dimension. Conclusion: The proposed Brazilian version of the CAPE corroborates the tridimensional approach for assessing psychosis-proneness, and the frequency and severity of psychotic manifestations are distributed as a spectrum in the general population.

Short Index of Job Satisfaction: Validity evidence from Portugal and Brazil.

Job satisfaction is an important construct that is known to be associated with workers' performance and wellbeing. As such, to properly measure it, one must use adapted measures that show adequate validity evidence for the desired context. Such measures should preferably be short to allow the parsimonious use of various measures/constructs in the same data collection. The aim of this paper is to adapt the Portuguese version for Brazil and Portugal of the Short Index of Job Satisfaction (SIJS). The SIJS is a psychometric instrument that measures job satisfaction through five items. A cross-sectional study was conducted with two multi-occupational workers samples, one from Brazil (n = 599) and one other from Portugal (n = 572). The SIJS presented good validity evidence based on its internal structure, namely dimensionality, reliability, and measurement invariance across countries and sexes. It also revealed to be positively correlated with work engagement, and quality of work life (convergent evidence). It also has shown to be negatively associated with burnout (discriminant evidence). The SIJS showed promising validity evidence. The SIJS can be useful to be used together with other instruments, due to its small number of items, producing data with good psychometric properties.

Validation of the Portuguese version of the Community Assessment of Psychic Experiences and characterization of psychotic experiences in a Brazilian sample.

OBJECTIVE: We investigated: i) the reliability and validity of a Brazilian version of the Community Assessment of Psychic Experiences (CAPE), developed to detect and characterize psychotic experiences in the general population; and ii) the association between psychotic experiences, childhood adversity, and cannabis use in a population-based sample. METHODS: We performed factorial analyses and generalized linear models with CAPE scores as the dependent variable in a sample composed of 217 first-episode psychosis patients, 104 unaffected biological siblings, and 319 non-psychotic population-based participants. RESULTS: After removing seven items from its positive dimension and two items from its negative dimension, a 33-item Brazilian version of the CAPE showed acceptable adjustment indices (confirmatory fit index = 0.895; goodness of fit index = 0.822; parsimony goodness of fit index = 0.761; root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.055, p [RMSEA ≤ 0.05] = 0.04) and internal consistency in all its dimensions (> 0.70). Childhood adversity was associated with higher scores in all three dimensions, as well as with total score. Lifetime cannabis use was associated with higher scores only in the positive dimension. CONCLUSION: The proposed Brazilian version of the CAPE corroborates the tridimensional approach for assessing psychosis-proneness, and the frequency and severity of psychotic manifestations are distributed as a spectrum in the general population.

Preliminary Test of the Potential of Contact With Dogs to Elicit Spontaneous Imitation in Children and Adults With Severe Autism Spectrum Disorder.

IMPORTANCE: Finding strategies to enhance imitation skills in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is of major clinical relevance. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether contact with dogs may be a useful approach to elicit spontaneous imitation in people with ASD. DESIGN: Participants completed a spontaneous imitation task under three experimental conditions: after a free-play interaction with a live dog, after a free-play interaction with a robotic dog, and after a waiting period that involved no stimuli. PARTICIPANTS: Ten children and 15 adults diagnosed with severe ASD. OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Imitation ratio, imitation accuracy, and indicators of social motivation. RESULTS: Children appeared more motivated and engaged more frequently in spontaneous imitation in the live dog condition than in the other conditions. No differences between conditions were found for adults for imitation or social motivation. However, correlations suggested a possible trend for adults in time spent engaging with the live dog before testing and in increased imitation frequency. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The results are preliminary and do not indicate the utility of integrating (live) dogs into interventions aimed at promoting social motivation and enhancing imitation skills in people with ASD. However, they suggest that doing so holds promise. Larger scale studies are now needed. WHAT THIS ARTICLE ADDS: This research calls for occupational therapy practitioners' attention to the potential benefits that may derive from using dogs to promote spontaneous imitation, and increase imitation performance, in people with ASD, particularly children.

Transcultural Adaptation of the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) for Brazil and Portugal.

During the last few years, burnout has gained more and more attention for its strong connection with job performance, absenteeism, and presenteeism. It is a psychological phenomenon that depends on occupation, also presenting differences between sexes. However, to properly compare the burnout levels of different groups, a psychometric instrument with adequate validity evidence should be selected (i.e., with measurement invariance). This paper aims to describe the psychometric properties of the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) version adapted for workers from Brazil and Portugal, and to compare burnout across countries and sexes. OLBI's validity evidence based on the internal structure (dimensionality, reliability, and measurement invariance), and validity evidence based on relationships with other variables (work engagement) are described. Additionally, it aims presents a revision of different OLBI's versions-since this is the first version of the instrument developed simultaneously for both countries-it is an important instrument for understanding burnout between sexes in organizations. Data were used from 1,172 employees across two independent samples, one from Portugal and the other from Brazil, 65 percent being female. Regarding the OLBI internal structure, a reduced version (15 items) was obtained. The high correlation between disengagement and exhaustion, suggested the existence of a second-order latent factor, burnout, which presented measurement invariance for country and sex. Confirmatory factor analysis of the Portuguese OLBI version presented good goodness-of-fit indices and good internal consistency values. No statistically significant differences were found in burnout between sexes or countries. OLBI also showed psychometric properties that make it a promising and freely available instrument to measure and compare burnout levels of Portuguese and Brazilian employees.

Brazil-Portugal Transcultural Adaptation of the UWES-9: Internal Consistency, Dimensionality, and Measurement Invariance.

The aim of this paper is to present a revision of international versions of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale and to describe the psychometric properties of a Portuguese version of the UWES-9 developed simultaneously for Brazil and Portugal, the validity evidence related with the internal structure, namely, Dimensionality, measurement invariance between Brazil and Portugal, and Reliability of the scores. This is the first UWES version developed simultaneously for both countries, and it is an important instrument for understanding employees' work engagement in the organizations, allowing human resources departments to better use workforces, especially when they are migrants. A total of 524 Brazilian workers and 522 Portuguese workers participated in the study. Confirmatory Factor Analysis, group comparisons, and Reliability estimates were used. The use of workers who were primarily professionals or administrative support, according to ISCO-08, reinforced the need to collect data on other professional occupations. Confirmatory factor analysis showed acceptable fit for the UWES-9 original three-factor solution, and a second-order factor structure has been proposed that presented an acceptable fit. Full-scale invariance was obtained between the Portuguese and Brazilian samples, both for the original three-factor first-order and second-order models. Data revealed that Portuguese and Brazilian workers didn't show statistically significant differences in the work engagement dimensions. This version allows for direct comparisons of means and, consequently, for performance of comparative and cross-cultural studies between these two countries.

Work Engagement among Rescue Workers: Psychometric Properties of the Portuguese UWES.

Rescue workers have a stressful and risky occupation where being engaged is crucial to face physical and emotional risks in order to help other persons. This study aims to estimate work engagement levels of rescue workers (namely comparing nurses, firefighters, and police officers) and to assess the validity evidence related to the internal structure of the Portuguese versions of the UWES-17 and UWES-9, namely, dimensionality, measurement invariance between occupational groups, and reliability of the scores. To evaluate the dimensionality, we compared the fit of the three-factor model with the fit of a second-order model. A Portuguese version of the instrument was applied to a convenience sample of 3,887 rescue workers (50% nurses, 39% firefighters, and 11% police officers). Work engagement levels were moderate to high, with firefighters being the highest and nurses being the lowest engaged. Psychometric properties were evaluated in the three-factor original structure revealing acceptable fit to the data in the UWES-17, although the UWES-9 had better psychometric properties. Given the observed statistically significant correlations between the three original factors, we proposed a 2nd hierarchal structure that we named work engagement. The UWES-9 first-order model obtained full uniqueness measurement invariance, and the second-order model obtained partial (metric) second-order invariance.