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Yu W, Abbey C, Qian Y, Wang H, Rozelle S, Singh MK. Behavioral Strengths and Difficulties and Their Associations with Academic Performance in Math among Rural Youth in China. Healthcare (Basel) 2022; 10:healthcare10091642. [PMID: 36141254 PMCID: PMC9498325 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare10091642] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2022] [Revised: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Behavioral strengths and difficulties among children and adolescents may be significantly associated with their academic performance; however, the evidence on this issue for rural youth in developing contexts is limited. This study explored the prevalence and correlates of mental health from three specific dimensions—internalizing problems, externalizing problems, and prosocial behavior—measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), and the association of these dimensions with academic performance in math among a sample of 1500 students in rural China. Our findings indicated that students in rural China had worse behavioral difficulties and poorer prosocial skills when compared to most past studies conducted inside and outside of China. In addition, total difficulties and prosocial scores on the SDQ were significantly associated with student math test scores, as students whose externalizing, internalizing, and prosocial scores were in the abnormal range scored lower in math by 0.35 SD, 0.23 SD, and 0.33 SD, respectively. The results add to the growing body of empirical evidence related to the links between social environment, mental health, and academic performance in developing countries, highlighting the importance of students’ mental health for their academic performance, and of understanding risk factors in the social environment among rural youth in developing countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjing Yu
- China Academy for Rural Development, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
- Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6055, USA
| | - Cody Abbey
- Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6055, USA
| | - Yiwei Qian
- Research Institute of Economics and Management, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, Chengdu 610074, China
- Correspondence:
| | - Huan Wang
- Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6055, USA
| | - Scott Rozelle
- Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6055, USA
| | - Manpreet K. Singh
- Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-5101, USA
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Small LA, Huynh AK, Parchment TM. The association between self-Esteem, stigma, and mental health among South African youth living with HIV: the need for integrated HIV care services. AIDS Care 2022; 34:86-94. [PMID: 34839770 PMCID: PMC8785656 DOI: 10.1080/09540121.2021.2002253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Treatment among pYLHIV focuses on their physical health. However, they also experience depression and anxiety, compounded by developmental challenges and the stress of managing a chronic illness. However, limited services are available to help pYLHIV manage the emotional stressors of living with a stigmatized condition. Data are from 37 caregiver-child dyads in the VUKA EKHAYA study, in Durban, South Africa. Outcomes were self-esteem and stigma. Predictors included symptoms of depression and anxiety, and HIV treatment and transmission knowledge. Outcomes and predictors were standardized (mean: 0, standard deviation: 1). Pearson correlation, bivariate and multivariate associations between predictors and outcomes were examined. Self-esteem was negatively correlated with symptoms of anxiety (r=-0.5675; p<0.001) and depression (r=-0.6836; p<0.001), suggesting higher self-concept was correlated with fewer symptoms. In multivariate analyses, increased depressive and anxiety symptoms were associated with lower self-esteem, B=0.68 and 0.57, respectively. Higher depressive and anxiety symptoms connected to more internalized stigma B=0.38 and 0.34, respectively. Conversely, HIV knowledge was not related to self-esteem or stigma. HIV treatment and transmission knowledge are not enough to reduce stigma and improve the self-esteem of pYLHIV. Integrated mental and physical health care is needed to help pYLHIV manage psychological stressors that can mitigate their emotional wellbeing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Latoya A. Small
- Department of Social Welfare, Luskin School of Public Affairs, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Alexis K. Huynh
- VA HSR&D Center for the Study of Healthcare Innovation, Implementation & Policy (CSHIIP), V.A. Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System
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Matsuoka M, Matsuishi T, Nagamitsu S, Iwasaki M, Iemura A, Obara H, Yamashita Y, Maeda M, Kakuma T, Uchimura N. Sleep disturbance has the largest impact on children's behavior and emotions. Front Pediatr 2022; 10:1034057. [PMID: 36518780 PMCID: PMC9744255 DOI: 10.3389/fped.2022.1034057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 11/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Children's behavior and emotions are affected by sleep disturbances, the parent-child relationship, media viewing time, and the social status of parents and caregivers. We conducted a questionnaire survey to identify the factors that have the greatest impact on children's behavior and emotions and how these factors relate to each other. METHODS A parental questionnaire survey was performed at a public elementary school. The questionnaire comprised questions on the family environment (e.g., family structure, media and game exposure, after-school lessons, and caregiver's work schedule) and physical information, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) for parents' sleep condition. A path diagram was drawn to hypothesize the complex interrelationships among factors, and structural equation modeling was used to estimate the path coefficients. RESULT We identified several factors that significantly affected the SDQ score. The CSHQ total score had the largest impact, followed by after-school lessons, single-mother families, and children's sex. In addition, several indirect pathways that led to the CSHQ score (i.e., a pathway from time spent watching television to CSHQ score via children's bedtime and a pathway from single-mother family to CSHQ score via PSQI total score) significantly affected the SDQ score. CONCLUSION Children's sleep habits that were influenced by several environmental factors had the greatest impact on children's behavior and emotions, which suggested that children's behavioral problems can be improved by interventions focused on sleep habits, such as sleep hygiene instructions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michiko Matsuoka
- Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan.,Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan
| | - Toyojiro Matsuishi
- Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan.,Research Center for Children and Research Center for Rett Syndrome, St. Mary's Hospital, Kurume, Japan
| | - Shinichiro Nagamitsu
- Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan.,Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Fukuoka University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Mizue Iwasaki
- Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan
| | - Akiko Iemura
- Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan
| | - Hitoshi Obara
- Biostatistics Center, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan
| | - Yushiro Yamashita
- Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan
| | - Masaharu Maeda
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan.,Department of Disaster Psychiatry, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Tatsuyuki Kakuma
- Biostatistics Center, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan
| | - Naohisa Uchimura
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Kurume, Japan
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Carney T, Chibambo V, Ward C, Myers B. A Qualitative Study of caregiver’s Perceptions and Needs Around Adolescent Substance Use and Other Risk Behaviours. Int J Ment Health Addict 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s11469-020-00238-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
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Small LA, Parchment TM, Bahar OS, Osuji HL, Chomanczuk AH, Bhana A. South African adult caregivers as "protective shields": Serving as a buffer between stressful neighborhood conditions and youth risk behaviors. JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY 2019; 47:1850-1864. [PMID: 31441506 PMCID: PMC7082847 DOI: 10.1002/jcop.22235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2018] [Revised: 07/15/2019] [Accepted: 07/21/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Low-income youths in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, face elevated risks to their well-being from exposure to neighborhood conditions correlated with engaging in risky behaviors. These risks can be mitigated through adult caregivers who serve as protective shields, buffering adverse conditions. However, this protective role is dependent on the caregivers' mental health and well-being. This secondary analysis uses baseline data from 475 child-caregiver dyads in an HIV-prevention program to examine the mediating effects of caregiver mental health on the relationship between neighborhood conditions and child risk-behaviors. Multivariate analyses identify the direct and indirect effects of neighborhood stressors and caregiver mental health on child risk-behavior. Findings suggest that caregivers mitigate the impact of neighborhood conditions on their children, but caregivers' mental health is directly affected by neighborhood conditions. Therefore, caregivers' mental health and well-being must be considered key elements in developing youth risk-behavior interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Latoya A. Small
- Department of Social Welfare—Luskin, School of Public Affairs University of California, Los Angeles
| | | | - Ozge Sensoy Bahar
- Brown School– Washington University in St. Louis., St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Hadiza L. Osuji
- McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research New York University Silver School of Social Work, New York, New York
| | | | - Arvin Bhana
- University of KwaZulu-Natal Centre for Rural Health
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van Rensburg AC, Theron LC, Rothmann S. Adolescent perceptions of resiliencepromoting resources: the South African Pathways to Resilience Study. SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY 2017. [DOI: 10.1177/0081246317700757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Resilience, or being well-adjusted despite facing adversity that predicts negative life outcomes, is a process that is scaffolded by resilience-enabling supports. How well resilience-enabling resources support positive adjustment depends, in part, on adolescents’ perceptions of the availability and usefulness of such resources. Currently, there is limited quantitative, generalisable evidence of the aforementioned. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to document how two groups of Sesotho-speaking adolescents perceived available social-ecological resources and how significantly varied perceptions related to these adolescents’ use of formal supports. The advisory panel to the Pathways to Resilience Study clustered participating adolescents into a resilient group ( n = 221) and vulnerable, or service-using, group ( n = 186). In comparison with the service-using adolescents, resilient adolescents reported significantly higher perceptions of physical and psychological caregiving. Analyses of variance revealed that higher perceptions of caregiving were associated with higher voluntary and lower mandatory service usage. We concluded that relationship-building was a crucial resilience mechanism and would, therefore, encourage psychologists to both prioritise and facilitate caregiving.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Linda C Theron
- Optentia Research Focus Area, North-West University, South Africa
- Department of Educational Psychology, Faculty of Education, University of Pretoria, South Africa
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