The influence of academic pressure on adolescents’ problem behavior: Chain mediating effects of self-control, parent–child conflict, and subjective well-being

A reciprocal association between interpersonal relationship quality and student's positive affect: A three-wave random intercept cross-lagged study in a Chinese primary mathematics learning context

AIM

This study adopted a three-wave random intercept cross-lagged panel model to explore the longitudinal reciprocal relationships between (a) the teacher-student relationship (TSR) quality and (b) the parent-child relationship (PCR) quality and positive affect among Chinese primary school students.

SAMPLES

Two primary school student samples, including 3505 and 2505 students, were tracked with their perceived relationship quality with math teachers and parents and their positive affect levels in mathematics learning over three academic years.

RESULTS

The results demonstrated that more closeness with parents could significantly predict students' subsequent higher level of positive affect in mathematics learning. However, more closeness with their math teachers did not show significant prediction. Meanwhile, more conflict with math teachers and parents could significantly predict their subsequent lower degree of perceived positive affect in mathematics learning. That is, a reciprocal association lines in the PCR quality and positive affect, whereas only a unidirectional association exists between the TSR and positive affect. The predictions of the experienced positive affect on their perceived interpersonal relationships with math teachers and parents were stronger than those in the reverse association.

CONCLUSIONS

This study identifies that while the effects of closeness with math teachers and parents on positive affect in students' math learning differ, conflict with math teachers and parents indeed harms students' experienced positive affect in math learning. More attention should also be paid to fostering positive affect in math learning.

Profiles of Family and School Experiences and Adjustment of Adolescents During the Transition to High School

Although family and school experiences play an important role in adolescents' adjustment during the transition to high school, most prior studies investigated the effects of these experiences in isolation; their joint implications for both adolescents' concurrent and long-term adjustment outcomes are less clear, and the potential role of individual characteristics within such associations remains understudied. Based on 525 10th graders (Mage = 15.48, SDage = 0.71, 43.6% boys) who participated in a longitudinal study, the present research aimed to identify distinct family and school experience profiles among first-year high school students and examine their associations with adolescents' internalizing problems and externalizing problems, both concurrently and 18 months later. Latent profile analysis revealed four distinctive profiles: thriving, low resources-moderate family risk, developmental stress-high parental conflicts, and developmental stress-high peer victimization profiles. The other three profiles (vs. the thriving profile) reported significantly higher levels of concurrent internalizing problems; while these differences diminished after 18 months. However, the enduring impacts of these profiles on internalizing problems persisted among adolescents with higher levels of environmental sensitivity. Additionally, adolescents characterized by two developmental stress profiles (vs. the thriving profile) exhibited significantly higher levels of externalizing problems both currently and longitudinally. Findings underscore the importance of identifying at-risk populations among adolescents during the transition to high school by including both family and school experiences when examining environmental influence on their adjustment, as well as the necessity to take individual environmental sensitivity into account when examining these associations.

Associations of recent stressful life events with anxiety symptoms among Chinese adolescents with a consideration of family functioning

Background: The association between stressful life events (SLEs) and adolescent anxiety symptoms has been extensively studied, but the specific impacts of different SLEs domains remain inconclusive. Moreover, limited research has examined the role of family functioning in these associations.Objective: This study aimed to investigate the associations between various recent SLEs and adolescent anxiety symptoms and explore the role of family functioning.Methods: Data were obtained from the second phase of the Longitudinal Study of Adolescents' Mental and Behavioral Well-being Research in Guangzhou, China. A total of 10,985 students (51.9% boys; mean [SD] age, 15.3 [1.5] years) from forty middle schools participated in the study in 2022 and completed a self-report questionnaire assessing anxiety symptoms, SLEs, and family functioning using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Adolescent Self-rating Life Events Checklist (ASLEC; including five subscales: interpersonal stress, academic stress, punishment-related stress, loss-related stress, and adaptation-related stress), and the adapted Chinese version of the Family Assessment Device (FAD), respectively. Linear mixed-effects models were performed and the moderation role of family functioning was also examined.Results: The fully adjusted model revealed that a 1-SD increase in the overall ASLEC score was associated with higher levels of anxiety symptoms (β = 2.23, 95%CI: 2.15-2.32). Among various SLEs domains, the academic domain shows the most significant association (β = 2.25, 95%CI: 2.17-2.33). Family functioning exerted an independent protective influence on anxiety symptoms, with each 1-SD increase in FAD scores negatively associated with anxiety symptoms (β = -2.11, 95%CI: - 2.29 to - 1.93) in the adjusted model. Moreover, family functioning significantly buffered the impacts of overall SLEs and each domain, except for adaptation-related SLEs, on anxiety symptoms.Conclusion: Higher recent SLEs levels were associated with increased anxiety symptoms among adolescents, with academic SLEs showing the greatest association. Positive family functioning had both direct and buffering influences on anxiety symptoms.

Deep breathing exercises in easing educational stress among Indian high school students

In this educational landscape, the pervasive issue of stress among higher secondary students has emerged as a serious matter. Acknowledging the challenges posed by educational stress, this research explores holistic and accessible interventions, with a focus on the promising avenue of deep breathing exercises known for their effectiveness in promoting relaxation and reducing stress. The study employs a quasi-experimental design, comparing an experimental group engaged in daily deep breathing exercises with a control group following a regular routine. Sixty higher secondary students in Visnagar participate through purposive sampling, adhering to specific inclusion criteria. The intervention includes a pre-tested questionnaire to assess stress levels, the implementation of daily deep breathing exercises in the experimental group, and a post-intervention stress level reassessment in both groups. The findings reveal a notable reduction in stress levels post-intervention, particularly in the experimental group practicing deep breathing exercises. Statistically significant reductions in mean stress scores underscore the effectiveness of this intervention, with the experimental group demonstrating a significantly lower mean stress score compared to the control group. This study contributes vital insights into stress management strategies for higher secondary students, highlighting the efficacy of incorporating deep breathing exercises into their routine. The observed reductions in stress levels emphasize the potential benefits of practical stress reduction techniques within the educational milieu.

Exploring the link between perceived physical literacy and academic performance outcomes: insights from the EHDLA study

Objective

The aim of this study was to verify the relationship between perceived physical literacy (PPL) and academic performance outcomes among Spanish adolescents aged 12-17 years.

Methods

This cross-sectional study is a secondary examination utilizing data derived from the Eating Healthy and Daily Life Activities (EHDLA) project. The Spanish Perceived Physical Literacy Instrument for Adolescents (S-PPLI) was used to evaluate the PPL of the participants. To determine academic performance, the numerical grades for each subject were added together and then divided by the total number of subjects.

Results

Overall, a positive trend in the association between S-PPLI scores and academic performance was observed. We identified two significant ranges within the S-PPLI scores. First, there was a significant range between 9 and 33 points on the S-PPLI, indicating an inverse association with academic performance. Second, another significant range was observed at scores of 34 points or higher on the S-PPLI, suggesting a positive association with academic performance. Participants with low PPL had the lowest academic performance (mean = 6.4; bias-corrected and accelerated (BCa) bootstrapped 95% confidence interval (CI): 6.2-6.6). Conversely, those adolescents with high PPL had the highest academic performance (mean = 6.9; BCa bootstrapped 95% CI: 6.6-7.1). Significant differences were found between low PPL and medium PPL (p-adjusted = 0.031) and between low PPL and high PPL (p-adjusted = 0.031).

Conclusions

Increased physical literacy could be a relevant factor for achieving greater academic performance in adolescents. This study has potential implications for physical education instructors, school leaders, and healthcare practitioners.

The Effect of Teacher Discrimination Behavior on Adolescent Suicidal Ideation: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Introduction

 Suicidal ideation and suicidal behavior, as the most severe psychological and behavioral problems among adolescents, bring not only significant damage to individual social functioning but also cause enormous economic and social pressure, which will ultimately be detrimental to social development and social stability. This paper aimed to explore the potential relationship between teacher discrimination behavior, peer bullying victimization, anxiety disorders, and adolescent suicidal ideation based on the Vulnerability-Stress Model.

Methods

 From September to November 2022, our research team surveyed 21,017 junior high school students from 12 secondary schools in ten cities in China. Mplus 8.3 software was used to analyze the pathways of teacher discrimination behavior on adolescent suicidal ideation.

Results

 The results showed that teacher preference had a significant negative effect on suicidal ideation, and teacher prejudice significantly positively affected suicidal ideation. Mediation test results indicated that there were significant independent mediating effects of peer bullying victimization and anxiety disorders between teacher discrimination behavior and adolescents' suicidal ideation, as well as significant chain mediating effects.

Conclusion

 Secondary school teachers should improve their self-quality and pay more attention to adolescents' suicidal ideation. Teachers are expected to put love into their education, respect and trust each student, and attend to their emotional needs unbiasedly. Educators should develop targeted prevention and intervention measures according to the actual situation of school bullying and also strengthen adolescents' life-value education to improve the psychological quality of adolescents and create a healthy campus atmosphere.

The influence of internet use frequency, family atmosphere, and academic performance on adolescent depression: Based on the chain mediating effect of self-adjustment and campus deviant behavior

Introduction

Depression has become a prominent psychological problem among young people. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential relationship between the frequency of Internet use, family atmosphere, academic performance, self-adjustment, campus deviant behavior, and depressive symptoms among adolescents.

Methods

Based on the survey data of the fifth wave (2017~2018) and the sixth wave (2019~2020) of the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), this study used LISREL8.8 software to analyze 1,577 10~15 data on adolescents.

Results

In this study, the mean score of self-adjustment was 42.40 (SD = 6.79), the mean score of campus deviant behavior was 12.59 (SD = 4.00), the mean score of depressive symptoms in 2018 was 11.88 (SD = 3.04), and the mean score of depressive symptoms in 2020 was 7.64 (SD = 2.20). Secondly, the frequency of Internet use had no direct effect on the depressive symptoms of adolescents, family atmosphere was negatively correlated with depressive symptoms (p < 0.005), and academic performance was positively correlated with depressive symptoms (p < 0.005). Depressive symptoms in 2020 had a direct effect (β = 0.37, p < 0.001), and also had a negative effect on depressive symptoms in 2020, with a total effect of-0.07 (p < 0.001); self-adjustment had no direct effect on depressive symptoms in adolescents in 2018, However, the total effect was -0.14 (p < 0.001), which had a significant positive effect on 2020 depressive symptoms, and the total effect was 0.18 (p < 0.001), and self-adjustment had a significant negative effect on adolescent campus deviant behavior (β = -0.38, p < 0.001); in addition, the frequency of Internet use, family atmosphere, and academic performance all had indirect effects on adolescents' 2020 depressive symptoms, with total effects of -0.60, 0.01, and 0.02 (p < 0.001), respectively. This study also found depressive symptoms in adolescents have a certain persistence in time.

Discussion

Based on this study, it is necessary to pay more attention to the depression of adolescents, strengthen the training of self-adjustment, improve the anti-frustration ability and psychological resilience, and reduce the campus deviant behavior of adolescents. It is recommended to try to start from emotional self-adjustment to promote the personality health of adolescents.