Developmental trajectories of emotional disengagement from schoolwork and their longitudinal associations in England

This study identified the varied ways in which emotional disengagement from schoolwork typically developed between 14 and 16 years of age, in the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England. Using growth mixture modelling we found eight main trajectories of (dis)engagement, with four trajectories of either increasing or stable emotional disengagement with schoolwork (41% of the sample). Using propensity score matching to create groups balanced on a wide range of covariates at Wave 1, we compared disengaged students to their engaged counterparts to identify the longitudinal effects of disengagement-trajectory membership on behavioural engagement, psychological wellbeing, substance use, career pathways and achievement. Using linear and binary logistic regressions, we established that students in disengagement trajectories developed lower achievement across compulsory secondary school, and participated less in education and more in employment at age 17 years. In young adulthood (age 19–20 years) they were less likely to attend university and more likely to be unemployed. During secondary schooling, they developed higher levels of substance use and poorer psychological wellbeing, which persisted in the year after compulsory school. However, in young adulthood, the differences in substance use dissipated and students in most of the disengagement trajectories had relatively similar life satisfaction to their counterparts. These findings suggest that students (except perhaps those who became unemployed) were able to develop healthily and happily after leaving the schoolwork environments from which they were emotionally disengaged

The Differences and Similarities between Curiosity and Interest: Meta-analysis and Network Analyses

Three studies on the relationship between curiosity and interest are reported. The first study was a meta-analysis that examined the Pearson correlations between scales assessing curiosity and interest. Based on 24 studies (31 effect sizes), we found that the curiosity scales correlated with the interest scales at a moderate level (r = 0.53), but they had extremely high heterogeneity. The second and third studies applied network analyses (i.e., co occurrence analysis and correlation-based analysis) to data that was collected using experience sampling method. Across the studies, we found that while the feelings of curiosity reflected feelings of inquisitiveness, the feelings of interest were aligned with positive affect such as enjoyment and happiness. Importantly, an asymmetrical pattern also was found in curiosity-interest co-occurrences: when feelings of curiosity occurred, the co occurrence of feelings of interest was highly likely, but not so vice versa. Overall, our findings suggest that feelings of curiosity are special cases of feelings of interest that pertain to knowledge acquisition. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.Peer reviewe

Partners of nulliparous women with severe fear of childbirth: a longitudinal 1 study of psychological well being

Background: Little is known about the psychological status of partners of women with severe fear of childbirth (FOC). In this longitudinal study from Helsinki University Central Hospital, we investigated FOC, depression and post- traumatic stress in the partners of women with severe FOC, and possible effects of group psychoeducation and mode of birth. Methods: During pregnancy, 250 partners of nulliparous women with severe FOC participated, 93 in the intervention group and 157 in the control group. At three months postpartum 52 partners in the intervention group and 93 in the control group participated. Both the partners and the childbearing women filled in the Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale mid-pregnancy as well as three months postpartum, when they also filled in the Traumatic Event Scale. Results: Partners of women with severe FOC reported less antenatal and postnatal FOC and fewer depressive symptoms than the childbearing women. No partner reached the threshold of severe FOC. No partner reported a possible post-traumatic stress disorder. Group psychoeducation with relaxation was not associated with better or worse psychological well being of the partners. An emergency cesarean section 1 was associated with a more fearful delivery experience in the partners. Conclusion: Partners of nulliparous women with severe FOC neither seem to suffer from severe FOC nor reported post-traumatic stress symptoms after childbirth. They reported better psychological well being than the mothers both during pregnancy and after delivery. An unexpected cesarean may be a negative experience even for 6 partners of childbearing women

Dissolving the digital divide : Creating coherence in young people's social ecologies of learning and identity building

This chapter discusses current research on educational efforts to connect school learning with young people’s digital practices in- and out-of-school. Instead of focusing on divides between in-school and out-of-school learning or between the “digital generation” and other age groups, in this chapter we discuss what recent research says about the ways in which school can become a space in which young people’s digital practices can transformatively converge with schooling, and how this convergence is related to their learning and identity building. We begin our narrative reflection of current research by focusing on the myth of digital natives. Next, we will conceptualize recent efforts to researching and understanding young people’s engagement, learning and identity building across sites and contexts. We will then turn to illuminating some key rationales of current educational research on creating convergence in young people’s social ecologies via the use of digital technologies and media. We conclude our reflections by pointing out that although there are some promising findings on how digital technologies and media can create convergence in young people’s engagement and learning across sites and contexts, less research attention is given to young people’s personal sense-making and self-making mediated by their digital practices, and how formal education could build on those practices for academic, vocational and/or civic ends.Peer reviewe

Entrepreneurs’ age, institutions, and social value creation goals: a multi-country study

This study explores the relationship between an entrepreneur's age and his/her social value creation goals. Building on the lifespan developmental psychology literature and institutional theory, we hypothesize a U-shaped relationship between entrepreneurs’ age and their choice to create social value through their ventures, such that younger and older entrepreneurs create more social value with their businesses while middle age entrepreneurs are relatively more economically and less socially oriented with their ventures. We further hypothesize that the quality of a country’s formal institutions in terms of economic, social, and political freedom steepen the U-shaped relationship between entrepreneurs’ age and their choice to pursue social value creation as supportive institutional environments allow entrepreneurs to follow their age-based preferences. We confirm our predictions using multilevel mixed-effects linear regressions on a sample of over 15,000 entrepreneurs (aged between 18 and 64 years) in 45 countries from Global Entrepreneurship Monitor data. The findings are robust to several alternative specifications. Based on our findings, we discuss implications for theory and practice, and we propose future research directions

Medical students’ preparedness for professional activities in early clerkships

Background Sufficient preparedness is important for transitions to workplace participation and learning in clinical settings. This study aims to analyse medical students’ preparedness for early clerkships using a three-dimensional, socio-cognitive, theory-based model of preparedness anchored in specific professional activities and their supervision level. Methods Medical students from a competency-based undergraduate curriculum were surveyed about preparedness for 21 professional activities and level of perceived supervision during their early clerkships via an online questionnaire. Preparedness was operationalized by the three dimensions of confidence to carry out clerkship activities, being prepared through university teaching and coping with failure by seeking support. Factors influencing preparedness and perceived stress as outcomes were analysed through step-wise regression. Results Professional activities carried out by the students (n = 147; 19.0%) and their supervision levels varied. While most students reported high confidence to perform the tasks, the activity-specific analysis revealed important gaps in preparation through university teaching. Students regularly searched for support in case of difficulty. One quarter of the variance of each preparedness dimension was explained by self-efficacy, supervision quality, amount of prior clerkship experience and nature of professional activities. Preparedness contributed to predicting perceived stress. Conclusions The applied three-dimensional concept of preparedness and the task-specific approach provided a detailed and meaningful view on medical students’ workplace participation and experiences in early clerkships

Moving forward during major goal blockage: situational goal adjustment in women facing infertility

Individuals confronting chronic medical conditions often face profound challenges to cherished life goals. The primary aim of this study was to examine the associations of goal adjustment with psychological adjustment in the context of infertility. At study entry (T1; n = 97) and 6 months later (T2; n = 47), women in fertility treatment completed measures of goal blockage, goal adjustment ability, and psychological adjustment. At T1, greater perceived and actual goal blockage were related to negative psychological adjustment. Ability to disengage from the goal of biological parenthood was associated with less infertility-specific thought intrusion, whereas engagement with other goals was related to fewer depressive symptoms and greater positive states of mind. Greater general goal engagement was protective against the negative relationships between low goal disengagement and the dependent variables. Promoting letting go of the unattainable and investing in the possible may be a useful intervention to foster well-being among individuals experiencing profound goal blockage

The Impact of Having a Baby on the Level and Content of Women’s Well-Being

The primary objective of this study was to more fully understand the impact of having a baby on women’s well-being by attending to both the level and the content of well-being. To cover the judgemental and affective aspects of well-being we included global measures of life satisfaction and well-being and affective experience measures derived from the day reconstruction method. In a sample of 19 first-time mothers no differences between pre and postnatal reports of general life satisfaction, depression, anxiety, and experienced positive and negative affect were found, suggesting that the arrival of the newborn baby does not universally impact on women’s level of well-being. Changes in the content of well-being were studied by examining changes in the way women experience specific activities and interactions with various social partners. There appeared to be an upward shift in experienced positive affect during active leisure and a slight decrease in negative affect during time spent with relatives. The results are discussed in light of previously documented changes across the transition to motherhood in negative mood states, time use, women’s evaluation of various aspects of daily life, and relational satisfaction