Influence of Physical Self-Concept in Drug Use in Adolescent Students Athletes

Drug use in Spain is one of the most serious problems faced by society today, and is particularly relevant in adolescence. Practicing physical sport activity is considered one of the most representative habits of a healthy lifestyle, and can act as a preventive factor in drug use. The physical self-concept of the people who practice sport plays a key role in drug adherence. This study aims to analyze the relation and influence of physical self-concept in drug, tobacco, and cannabis use in a sample of 682 adolescent athletes (M = 15.85; SD = 1.404). The results suggest significant influences on the competition perceived in different drug uses. Some practical implications can be deduced for coaches and instructors to bear in mind for their athletes, who aim to acquire a more adaptive and self-determined behavior away from drug use

The relationship between eudaimonic wellbeing, emotional intelligence and affect in early adolescents

This study aims to analyse the relationship between eudaimonic well-being, emotional intelligence and affects in early adolescents. Eudaimonic well-being is based on the development of personal skills, based on the premise that people are happy if they have a life purpose, challenges and growth. Emotional intelligence and affects can play a key role in this. The sample analysed comprised 344 first- and second-year secondary school students, aged 12 to 15 years (49.13% boys; M age = 12.86 years), and the relationship between the three target constructs – eudaimonic well-being, affects and emotional intelligence – was analysed. The survey was designed as a lateral study based on natural groups. The instruments used were the Eudaimonic well-being questionnaire, the Emotional intelligence questionnaire and the Positive and negative affect scale for children and adolescents. The results show that these constructs are related to one another. One in three participants yielded low scores in terms of eudaimonic well-being, emotional intelligence and positive affects. One in three yielded high values. The study also analysed the mediating role that emotional intelligence plays in well-being, which is increased when affects play a mediating role. According to our research, the emotional intelligence has a direct positive effect on well-being of 0.31 (p < 0.001), with a total effect (direct + indirect effects) mediated by positive and negative affects of 0.48 (p < 0.001), which suggests that positive and negative affects directly mediate the relationship between EI and eudaimonic well-being. Regression analysis revealed that three of the components of emotional intelligence (emotional self-awareness, emotional regulation and the use of emotions in problem-solving) and positive and negative affects can be used to predict eudaimonic well-being, with an aggregate variance of 70.2%. It is concluded that emotional intelligence and affects play a role in eudaimonic well-being in early adolescents. Therefore, early emotional and affective training can lead to an increase in eudaimonic well-being, which opens interesting avenues for future research

The relationship of internalizing problems with emotional intelligence and social skills in secondary education students: gender differences

Internalizing problems (depression, anxiety, social anxiety, somatic complaints, post-traumatic symptoms, and obsession-compulsion) are very important in adolescents’ development. These problems can be related with people who lack social skills and poorly handle their emotions. This study assessed 1358 secondary education students (12–17 years) to analyze the relationship linking internalizing problems, emotional intelligence, and social skills. The results showed not only how these constructs were related, but how students’ internalizing problems varied according to their emotional intelligence and social skills. They also indicated that two in every three males, and just over one in every two females, obtained high scores for internalizing problems. The model showed a good fit: ¿2(85) = 201.161 p &lt; 0.001; ¿2/gl = 2.367; CFI = 0.919; NFI = 0.869; TLI = 0.900; RMSEA = 0.075, IC 95% (0.062–0.089). Finally, gender influenced the way that internalizing problems, emotional intelligence, and social skills were related, and an inverse relation appeared to link internalizing problems, emotional intelligence (r = -.77), and social skills (r = -.52) for females, while this relationship was poorer for males. By way of conclusion, we state that internalizing problems are related with emotional intelligence and social skills in secondary education students, but this relationship differs according to gender

The Mediating Role of Positive and Negative Affects in the Relationship Between Self-Esteem and Happiness

Background: Affects, both positive and negative, can act as mediators between self-esteem and happiness. The present study is undertaken among 812 university students in order to examine the relationship between these variables. Methods: The sample included 812 university students - 361 men (44.46%) and 451 women (55.54%) - who participated voluntarily. The Positive and Negative Affect Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale and Self-Esteem Scale were the instruments used in this study. Results: The results revealed that men have greater self-esteem and positive affects, while women scored higher in terms of subjective happiness. The analysis revealed a significant correlation between the variables under analysis. Positive affects show a strong positive correlation between self-esteem and happiness, while negative affects show a negative correlation. Mediation analysis suggests that affects, both positive and negative, mediate the relationship between self-esteem and subjective happiness. The results of this study may present us with new perspectives concerning the role that affects play between self-esteem and happiness. Conclusion: The data present evidence of the mediating role-played by affects, both positive and negative, in the relationship between self-esteem and happiness. More research is needed to examine to what extent these results can be extrapolated, and how to design measures to improve psychological health and well-being

Burnout, goal orientation and academic performance in adolescent students

During their school years, students can have different experiences and go through various emotional and motivational states that can affect their learning experience and play a key role in their personal and academic development. The goal of this paper is to analyse the relationship between goal orientation, burnout and academic performance. Material and methods: The study comprised a sample of 2652 students aged between 12 and 19 years (M = 14.55; DT = 1.70), both male (n = 1.368; 51.58%) and female (N = 1.284; 48.41%), from 14 secondary schools. The instruments used were the Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ), the Maslach Burnout Inventory—Student Survey (MBI-SS) and academic performance, which was measured using the students’ average school marks. Results: Results indicate a significant relationship between task orientation (and, to a lesser extent, ego orientation), efficacy and academic performance in line with adaptive behaviours. In addition, it was demonstrated that task orientation, efficacy and cynicism (burnout) can be used to predict academic performance in adolescents. Conclusion: It is argued that goal orientation plays a key role in promoting adaptive behaviours in an academic context and in the personal and academic development of adolescent students

School motivation, goal orientation and academic performance in secondary education students

Background: In the students' school stage can appear many psychological variables that can positively or negatively affect the academic life of the students as well as their learning process. Therefore, the present study aims to explore the relation between school motivation, goal orientation and academic performance in adolescent students. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on adolescent students (N=3512) from 18 public Secondary Education (ESO) centers. The Scale of School Motivation (EME-S), the Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ) and academic performance, quantified by each student’s mean mark, were instruments used. Results: The results revealed significant relations among, on the one hand, intrinsic school motivations, task-oriented goal orientations and academic performance in a more adaptive pattern behavior and, on the other hand, relations between extrinsic motivations and ego-oriented goal orientations. The influence of intrinsic motivations, task-oriented goal orientations and low amotivation indices on predicting academic performance was deduced. Conclusion: The importance of promoting adaptive behaviors that improve adolescent students’ academic lives focus on adequate levels of school motivation and task-oriented goal orientations at their education centers was revealed

Personality disorders and treatment drop out in the homeless

The homeless drop out of treatment relatively frequently. Also, prevalence rates of personality disorders are much higher in the homeless group than in the general population. We hypothesize that when both variables coexist - homelessness and personality disorders - the possibility of treatment drop out grows. The aim of this study was to analyze the hypotheses, that is, to study how the existence of personality disorders affects the evolution of and permanence in treatment. One sample of homeless people in a therapeutic community (N = 89) was studied. The structured clinical interview for the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-IV-TR) was administered and participants were asked to complete the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-II (MCMI-II). Cluster B personality disorders (antisocial, borderline, and narcissistic) avoided permanence in the treatment process while cluster C disorders, as dependent, favored adhesion to the treatment and improved the prognosis. Knowledge of these personality characteristics should be used to advocate for better services to support homeless people and prevent their dropping out before completing treatment

Cognitive differences in the older adults living in the general community: gender and mental occupational state study

Older adults are particularly vulnerable to cognitive impairment with age, and gender differences are remarkable. However, there is very little evidence to identify both baseline cognitive and occupational gender differences prior to older adults’ retirement to design more efficient personalized cognitive interventions. This descriptive observational study examined gender differences in initial cognitive performance in 367 older adults with subjective memory complaints from a primary healthcare center in Zaragoza (Spain). To evaluate initial cognitive performance, the Spanish version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MEC-35) and the set test were used to measure verbal fluency. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics were evaluated, and cognitive and occupational differences were analyzed per gender. Men had higher educational and occupational levels, were older and more of them were married (p < 0.001) than women. Regarding cardiovascular risk factors, diabetes and cerebrovascular accidents were more frequent in women, while hypercholesterolemia and obesity were more frequent in men (p < 0.001). High blood pressure was more frequent in women, but not significantly so (p = 0.639). Global cognition was higher in men (p < 0.001) for attention, calculation, and language (p < 0.001). Verbal fluency was higher in women, but the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.105). These results could be gen-eralized to other health centers in the province and other Spanish autonomous communities as their sociodemographic variables are similar. Individualized interventions that adapt to gender, cognitive and initial occupational performance should be developed and adapted to elderly populations living in the general community to maintain their cognitive capacity and prevent their cognitive impairment and the social health costs this would imply

The mediating role of goal orientation (Task) in the relationship between engagement and academic self-concept in students

Some students many not possess the necessary strategies and skills to meet the demands of academic life and develop negative attitudes, physical and mental exhaustion, and other attitudes that will undermine their personal and academic development. This study analyses the relationship and possible role of goal orientation as a mediator between engagement and academic self-concept. Methods: The study concerned a population of 1756 subjects from 12 secondary schools (ESO). The instruments used included the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale—Student (UWES-S), the Perception of Success Questionnaire (POSQ), and the Academic Self-Concept Scale (ASCS). Results: The results revealed significant correlations between academic engagement, task-oriented goal orientation, and academic self-concept. In addition, task orientation was found to play a positive mediating role between academic engagement and academic self-concept, leading to adaptive models in secondary school students. Conclusion: These results highlight the need to promote goal orientation in order to stimulate self-determined behaviours in the school environment and improved levels of academic self-concept, which in turn will facilitate the psychological and personal development of the student and increase the chances of academic success

Differences in happiness and coping with stress in Secondary Education students

The objective of this study was to describe the coping strategies adopted by adolescents in different situations of stress that occur in their daily-to-day lives, and their perception of happiness. To go about this, first-and four-year students of Spanish compulsory Secondary Education (ESO in Spanish), who went to different Secondary Schools, were evaluated. The study sample was formed by 1, 402 students (711 males and 691 females) aged 11-18 years. The results showed differences for gender and year of studies in the strategies they adopted to cope with stress. Happiness reduced as age increased. The coping strategies that address others and unproductive coping strategies influenced happiness, while productive coping strategies did not