The Investigation of Gender Differences in Subjective Wellbeing in Children and Adolescents: The UP&DOWN Study

Social well-being and problematic school absence among Danish adolescents: A nationwide cross-sectional study

AIM

Adolescents' well-being and school absence are important factors for public health. The aim of this study was to examine the association between social well-being and problematic school absence among Danish adolescents in the ninth grade, as well as to examine potential sex differences, using a large cohort of adolescents.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, information on social well-being was obtained from the yearly Danish National Well-being Questionnaire mandatory in compulsory school. Data on school absence was obtained from the Ministry of Children and Education. The study population comprised 203,570 adolescents in the school years 2014/2015 to 2019/2020. The association between social well-being and problematic school-absence was analysed using logistic regression. A stratified analysis was made to investigate potential sex differences.

RESULTS

A total of 17,555 (9.16%) adolescents had problematic school absence, defined as >10% illegal absence and/or sickness absence in the ninth grade. Adolescents with low social well-being had higher odds for having problematic school absence compared with adolescents with high social well-being, adjusted odds ratio=2.22 (95% confidence interval 2.10-2.34). When stratifying for sex, the association was strongest for girls. The results remained after adjustment for parents' educational level and family structure.

CONCLUSIONS

Associations between adolescents' social well-being and problematic school absence were found, where girls had the strongest association. These findings might provide knowledge about social well-being as an important factor for problematic school absence, while underlining the importance of early focus and prevention, which is of importance for both the adolescents and society.

Emotional regulation and self-perceived quality of life in high-performance mountain sports athletes

Emotional regulation is an indispensable capacity for human beings, so that alterations in it can lead to the appearance of psychological, social and/or cognitive disorders. Therefore, possessing adequate emotional strategies is intimately related to the quality of life that a person presents. In this sense, high-level athletes suffer constant setbacks and frustrations due to the performance of their sporting activity, in addition to continuous modifications of their daily life activities. Thus, the objective of this research is to explore the emotional regulation and self-perceived quality of life of high-level athletes in mountain sports, analyzing the possible influences of gender, demographic location, body mass index and age. Fifty-four athletes belonging to the High Performance Technification Center of Cáceres (Extremadura, Spain) completed a sociodemographic questionnaire, as well as the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire and the WHOQOL-BREF. The Shapiro-Wilkins test was used to analyze the normality of the variables collected and nonparametric statistics were used since the assumption was not met. Both gender and demographic location showed significant differences in the dimensions of the two questionnaires. Likewise, age was associated with the dimensions of both scales, but not body mass index, which was only associated with self-perceived quality of life. In addition, the stepwise linear regression model predicted self-perceived quality of life with a value of 60% across self-culpability, gender body mass index and planning. Therefore, it appears that gender, demographic location, age and body mass index could exert modifications on the levels of emotional regulation and self-perceived quality of life of high-level mountain athletes.

The stability and change of wellbeing across the lifespan: a longitudinal twin-sibling study

BACKGROUND

Wellbeing is relatively stable over the life span. However, individuals differ in this stability and change. One explanation for these differences could be the influence of different genetic or environmental factors on wellbeing over time.

METHODS

To investigate causes of stability and change of wellbeing across the lifespan, we used cohort-sequential data on wellbeing from twins and their siblings of the Netherlands Twin Register (NTR) (total N = 46.885, 56% females). We organized wellbeing data in multiple age groups, from childhood (age 5), to adolescence, up to old age (age 61+). Applying a longitudinal genetic simplex model, we investigated the phenotypic stability of wellbeing and continuity and change in genetic and environmental influences.

RESULTS

Wellbeing peaked in childhood, decreased during adolescence, and stabilized during adulthood. In childhood and adolescence, around 40% of the individual differences was explained by genetic effects. The heritability decreased toward old adulthood (35-24%) and the contribution of unique environmental effects increased to 76%. Environmental innovation was found at every age, whereas genetic innovation was only observed during adolescence (10-18 years). In childhood and adulthood, the absence of genetic innovation indicates a stable underlying set of genes influencing wellbeing during these life phases.

CONCLUSION

These findings provide insights into the stability and change of wellbeing and the genetic and environmental influences across the lifespan. Genetic effects were mostly stable, except in adolescence, whereas the environmental innovation at every age suggests that changing environmental factors are a source of changes in individual differences in wellbeing over time.

Glow up: does a professional photoshoot intervention affect self-esteem and emotions among adolescent psychiatric patients?-A longitudinal intervention study

Background

Today, online communication is shaped by a billion-dollar social media (SM) and social networking site (SNS) industry. Visual content consumed by children and adolescents has been shown to influence behavioral patterns, state emotions, and self-esteem (SE). In this study, we introduced a novel intervention creating visual content through a professional photoshoot and investigated its impact on state emotions and SE in child and adolescent psychiatric (CAP) patients.

Methods

Standardized and validated self-rating questionnaires were used to assess SE, state emotions, coping mechanisms, psychopathological symptoms, and internet use behavior at baseline. SE and state emotions were monitored at different time points around a professional photoshoot within 45 CAP patients (30 female patients; mean age, 15.1 years) using a longitudinal design.

Results

Within-subject repeated-measures ANOVA and bootstrapped paired-sample t-tests showed a significant fluctuation in state emotions and SE throughout the intervention. Spearman correlations and univariate logistic regressions revealed that internalizing symptomatology and maladaptive coping significantly worsened the outcome of the intervention on state emotions and SE in girls. Internet-related variables heightened the positive effect of the intervention in boys and lowered SE in girls during the intervention.

Conclusion

The photo intervention had various gender-specific effects. Boys did benefit from the intervention in terms of longitudinal outcome on positive state emotions (PE) and SE, even positively influenced by SNS and SM. Thus, it might be concluded that online social comparison was processed more beneficial in boys. In contrast, when working with visual content in girls, psychopathology and coping must be considered. Internet consumption in general, especially SM and SNS, was related to low SE in girls. Nevertheless, when therapeutically accompanied, the "glow up moment" during the shoot (high on PE and SE; low on negative state emotions) could be used as an index moment for therapeutic reflection.

A Close Association between Body Weight, Health-Related Quality of Life, and Risk Behaviors in a Sample of Italian High School Students

INTRODUCTION

Adolescents experience rapid physical, cognitive, and psychosocial growth with different factors contributing to health and well-being. In this view, an important role is played by body weight and related perceptions. The purpose was to determine, in a sample of Italian high school students, whether health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is associated with the different weight status categories (underweight, normal weight, overweight, obese), even considering sex differences.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Data were collected from 1826 adolescents (n = 735 males). HRQOL was analyzed using the Italian version of KIDSCREEN-52.

RESULTS

Overweight adolescents showed reductions in psychological well-being (p < 0.05) and self-perception (p < 0.05) compared with individuals in other BMI categories. Subjects with obesity reported increased bullying victimization (p < 0.05) and reductions in self-perception and eating disorders (p < 0.001), while underweight individuals were characterized by altered adherence to the Mediterranean diet (p < 0.001), eating disorders (p < 0.001), and problematic use of social media (p < 0.05). No sex differences were found, except for socio-economic status perceptions, where underweight girls reported higher economic well-being than boys (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings may suggest that there is an association between weight status categories and HRQoL that is more pronounced in underweight and overweight adolescents. The association between BMI categories and psychosocial dimensions opens the need to define specific domains on which such preventive interventions should focus, always through a personalized perspective.

A sequential mediation model of perceived social support, mindfulness, perceived hope, and mental health literacy: An empirical study on Taiwanese university students

This study explored the mediation of mindfulness and perceived hope between perceived social support and mental health literacy in university students. Of 568 students (205 males, 363 females, average age 20.97) from 70 Taiwanese universities, tools like the Perceived Social Support Scale, General Health Questionnaire, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, and State Hope Scale were used, adapted to Traditional Chinese through back-translation. Confirmatory factor analysis affirmed model validity. Hayes' PROCESS Model 6 analyzed the data. The results showed an indirect effect of social support on mental health literacy via mindfulness and hope (B = 0.091, 95 % CI: 0.0613 to 0.1258). Three mediation paths were: (1) mindfulness (B = 0.035); (2) hope (B = 0.052); and (3) a combined effect (B = 0.003). A direct effect of social support on mental health literacy was significant (B = 0.120). The model explained 33.9 % of the variance in mental health literacy. The research underscores the link between social support, mindfulness, hope, and mental health literacy, identifying mindfulness and hope as mediators. It stresses the mediation impact and suggests strategies to boost mental health literacy in university students. Future research should expand to cross-cultural studies, further examine the evolving dynamics of social support, and incorporate both qualitative and experimental methodologies. The inclusion of factors such as alienation, well-being, and resilience can enrich the theoretical framework.

Gender difference in the change of adolescents' mental health and subjective wellbeing trajectories

Gender differences in adolescents' mental health problems have been extensively reported. Yet, there is limited research in exploring longitudinal trends in mental health and wellbeing between boys and girls. This study investigated any emerging developmental trends of gender differences in mental health problems and subjective wellbeing for young people from early to mid-adolescence in England. A longitudinal group of 8612 young people's mental health and subjective wellbeing trajectories were investigated between the period of ages 11/12 and 13/14. Mental health difficulties and subjective wellbeing were measured using the child self-report Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and Short Warwick and Edinburgh Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS), respectively. Any gender difference in the change of adolescents' mental health and subjective wellbeing over 3 year period were estimated using multi-level regression while accounting for various socio-demographic and resilience factors. Young people are at increased risk of mental health problems between the ages of 11 and 14, particularly girls. The overall difficulty levels reported by girls were significantly higher than boys across a range of mental health problems and subjective wellbeing. These developmental trends persisted after controlling for a broad range of potential confounders. Young people has shown clear signs of mental distress as they get older. This escalation was particularly evident among girls. Distress can come at the time of significant physical, emotional, and social changes in an adolescents' life, and can be heightened during secondary school transition. This evidence highlights the importance of early intervention to reduce risk of distress.

Ability Emotional Intelligence and Subjective Happiness in Adolescents: The Role of Positive and Negative Affect

Adolescence is an increasingly vulnerable period for the onset of affective disorders and other mental health issues that can significantly impact an individual's subjective well-being. This study aims to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence (ability EI), measured with a performance-based instrument, and Subjective Happiness in adolescents. It also explores the mediating role of positive (PA) and negative affect (NA) in this association and the moderating role of gender. The sample consisted of 333 first-year secondary school students from five centers in Spain, with an average age of 12.11 years (SD = 0.64), ranging from 11-14 years. Path analysis revealed an indirect effect (through NA and PA jointly) of Total Ability EI on Subjective Happiness and a positive direct effect that was observed only in females. Furthermore, this association was explored through various branches of ability EI. The results of this study suggest that interventions aimed at improving emotional abilities in adolescents while modulating the intensity of their emotions could significantly impact their overall well-being.

Leisure Time Activities and Subjective Happiness in Early Adolescents from Three Ibero-American Countries: The Cases of Brazil, Chile and Spain

(1) Background: The aim of the present study is to analyze subjective happiness in relation to leisure time in 10-year-old boys and girls from Brazil, Chile and Spain and to determine which leisure time activity has a greater effect on their subjective happiness and whether there are differences according to gender. (2) Methods: Data from the third wave of the Children's Worlds Project was used, which was collected by administering self-report measures to representative samples in each country. The sample was composed of 4008 early adolescents from Brazil (22.1%, n = 886), Chile (22.8%, n = 913) and Spain (55.1%, n = 2209). The mean age of the sample was 10.17 years (SD = 0.57), and 51.7% were girls. (3) Results: In terms of subjective happiness, moderate to high means were observed, with higher scores in boys and the Spanish sample. The results showed some differences in leisure time activities among children from Brazil, Chile and Spain. Furthermore, the results highlighted the importance of relaxation time with the family to promote happiness in pre-adolescence across genders and countries. Additionally, playing outdoors and doing homework were also found to be protective factors for subjective happiness. (4) Conclusions: In Brazil, Chile and Spain the most consistent result was the positive effect of spending time relaxing with the family on subjective happiness.

Perceived emotional intelligence and subjective well-being during adolescence: The moderating effect of age and sex

Studies focusing on subjective well-being during adolescence are relatively scarce yet necessary, due to the drop in well-being that occurs during this developmental stage. The aim of the present study is therefore: (1) to analyze the variability of perceived emotional intelligence (PEI) and subjective well-being in accordance with sex and age; and (2) to explore the moderating effect of sex and age on the association between PEI and subjective well-being. The sample comprised 1542 students aged between 11 and 18 years, divided into two age groups: younger (11–14 years) and older (15–18 years). All participants completed the Trait Meta Mood Scale and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Several ANOVAs and MANOVAs were performed using the SPSSv.28 statistical package. The simple moderation models were analyzed using the PROCESSv.4 macro. Age was the socio-personal variable that most significantly affected emotion repair and life satisfaction, whereas sex had a greater effect on the other variables studied. Sex moderated the predictive effect of emotional clarity on negative affect among girls, the predicted the effect of emotional attention on positive affect among boys, as well as the predictive effect of emotional clarity on life satisfaction in both groups. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.

COVID-19-related future anxiety is associated with the health-related quality of life in school-aged children and adolescents-A cross-sectional study

Background

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, previous studies have shown that the physical as well as the mental health of children and adolescents significantly deteriorated. Future anxiety caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and its associations with quality of life has not previously been examined in school children.

Methods

As part of a cross-sectional web-based survey at schools in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, two years after the outbreak of the pandemic, school children were asked about COVID-19-related future anxiety using the German epidemic-related Dark Future Scale for children (eDFS-K). Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was assessed using the self-reported KIDSCREEN-10. The eDFS-K was psychometrically analyzed (internal consistency and confirmatory factor analysis) and thereafter examined as a predictor of HRQoL in a general linear regression model.

Results

A total of N = 840 8-18-year-old children and adolescents were included in the analysis. The eDFS-K demonstrated adequate internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.77), and the confirmatory factor analysis further supported the one-factor structure of the four-item scale with an acceptable model fit. Over 43% of students were found to have low HRQoL. In addition, 47% of the students sometimes to often reported COVID-19-related fears about the future. Children with COVID-19-related future anxiety had significantly lower HRQoL (B = - 0.94, p < 0.001). Other predictors of lower HRQoL were older age (B = - 0.63, p < 0.001), and female (B = - 3.12, p < 0.001) and diverse (B = - 6.82, p < 0.001) gender.

Conclusion

Two years after the outbreak of the pandemic, school-aged children continue to exhibit low HRQoL, which is further exacerbated in the presence of COVID-19-related future anxiety. Intervention programs with an increased focus on mental health also addressing future anxiety should be provided.

Assessment of Physical Well-Being and Leisure Time of Polish Students during the COVID-19 Outbreak

This project aims to recognize the school experiences of Polish students during the COVID-19 outbreak; we focused on the area of assessment of physical well-being and leisure time. Nearly two thousand primary or secondary school students aged 9 to 20 participated in the survey. Running descriptive statistics, frequency analysis, and significant difference tests, we found that 45% of students thought their physical well-being during the COVID-19 outbreak worsened compared to pre-pandemic times. Boys declared they felt better in their physical well-being than girls (p < 0.001). Most students noticed changes in the quality of their leisure time activities; boys were happier than girls in their free time during the outbreak (p < 0.001). Learners’ ages also differentiated the assessment of their physical well-being (p < 0.001) and leisure time (p < 0.001). The youngest students more often assessed their experiences in the researched fields as good or increased, while the older groups more often noticed a decrease. Multinomial logistic regression proved that the differences in the assessments of physical well-being and leisure time could be explained to the greatest extent by age and gender, whereas the place of residence and school location were insignificant. All in all, our study confirms the dominance of the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical well-being and changes in leisure time. As such, it is advisable (during and after outbreaks) to support children and adolescents by targeting individual and institution levels. We recommend developing techniques to reduce stress and information overload, increasing creative ways of spending leisure time, supporting families in navigating children’s free time, and expanding social support networks.

Subjective Well-Being of Primary and Secondary School Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Latent Profile Analysis

This study employs a person-oriented approach to examine the heterogeneity of samples of primary school students (N = 2,333; 56.5% girls) and secondary school students (N = 2,329; 62.9% girls) in terms of levels of subjective well-being (SWB) in five domains: family, friends, school experience, body, and the local area. The study was conducted in Poland during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The latent profile analysis revealed five profiles among primary school students and six profiles among secondary school students. The profiles identified among primary school students had their counterparts among secondary school students and included "highly satisfied," "moderately satisfied," "highly dissatisfied," "satisfied with their family life and local area and dissatisfied with their friends," and "satisfied with their family life and friends and dissatisfied with their local area" profiles. In both samples, the profile with high levels of satisfaction in all domains was the most numerous. Moreover, in secondary school students, we identified the sixth profile, which was highly satisfied with their friends and dissatisfied in other domains. We also noted that gender, age, type of school and positive relationships with others predicted the latent profile membership. The results of this study indicate the need to utilize the person-oriented approach to gain insight into various patterns of children's SWB. Moreover, the study provides some practical recommendations for preparing tailored interventions aimed at improving children's SWB.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12187-022-09952-2.

Association between Life Skills and Academic Performance in Adolescents in the Autonomous Community of Aragon (Spain)

BACKGROUND

Learning and socio-emotional development is promoted through the creation and nurturing of an optimal school climate. This study aims to analyze the relationship between life skills and academic performance in a large sample of adolescents from the autonomous community of Aragón (Spain).

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted on the life skills and academic performance of a sample of 7th and 8th grade middle school students during the academic year 2018-2019. A sample of 43 middle schools were randomly selected; the final sample comprised 1745 students. The following data were collected through an anonymized, previously validated questionnaire: sociodemographic variables, social skills, self-efficacy, affective balance, and academic performance.

RESULTS

We found a statistically significant association between life skills and academic performance (p < 0.001) in our sample. We also observed significant gender differences in life skills, with boys obtaining higher scores in cognitive skills and affective balance, and with girls achieving higher scores in social skills.

CONCLUSION

We argue that life skills should be integrated into educational policies in order to improve the academic performance and health outcomes of students.

The Mediating Role of Different Types of Parental Support in the Social Disparity of Hope in Young Adulthood

Research has shown hope to be associated with a person's well-being, but how it is affected by family factors is unclear. This study investigates whether family socio-economic status (SES) affects young adults' hope, and to what extent and how different types of parental support mediate this social disparity. The data is collected from a sample of Hong Kong youth (N = 760; 54.6% girls) which participated in a 7-year longitudinal study during age 15-22. The results from multiple regression models indicate that family SES significantly predicts hope. However, cultural and academic communication and career encouragement from parents in early years, and current parental emotional support fully mediate the relationship between family SES and hope, with parental emotional support being the strongest mediator. Implications for hope theory, practices for nurturing hope and further research are discussed to suggest possible actions.

A longitudinal gender perspective of well-being and health in spanish youth: the UP&DOWN study

Previous studies have observed a link between gender and well-being and health in young populations. The purpose of this research was twofold: (1) to analyse the cross-sectional relationship between gender status with well-being indicators and self-perceived health in adolescents at baseline and at 2-year follow-up and (2) to evaluate the prospective associations between gender at baseline and well-being indicators/self-perceived health assessed at 2-year follow-up. Well-being was measured using the KIDSCREEN-10 questionnaire (as a measure of health-related quality of life (HR-QoL)), the Children's Hope Scale and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule. Health status of the adolescents was assessed using self-perceived health. Multilevel mixed-effects linear/logistic regression models were carried out to assess the associations between gender status and well-being and health of a sample of 1590 Spanish adolescents. Adolescent girls were shown to have lower HR-QoL scores and higher negative affect scores, and had a higher risk of reporting poor health than boys, in both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. Adolescent girls seem to be more vulnerable to poorer well-being and self-reported health than boys. When looking at hedonic and eudemonic well-being separately, longitudinal differential evolution of boys and girls seems to indicate greater deterioration of hedonic well-being among girls as compared to boys. Overall, gender may have a relevant impact on mental and physical health during adolescence.