Effect of Psychoeducational Programme on Stress Level and Coping Responses Among College Students

This study consisted of two parts. In the first part of the study, the descriptive correlational research method was used to explore the different ways of coping and level of stress among college students at two different points of time in a semester. Apart from that, the relationship between these two variables as well as their differences in terms of sex, level, year, and course of study were also explored. In the second part of the study, pretest-post test design was used. A pre-test was administered to all subjects of the study to measure the level of stress before treatment condition was introduced. They were measured again after the treatment was given to determine the effect of such a psychoeducational programme on the level of stress. The treatment condition was in the form of six group sessions, 50 minutes each, every week conducted by the researcher.The overall number of subjects who participated and completed all questionnaires during week 3 was 395. The size of the sample used in the data analysis for the experimental and control group was 32 each. Results showed that the majority of TAR College students experience moderate to high levels of stress at the beginning of an academic semester. There was no significant increase in the level of stress experienced by students from week 3 to week 11. The level of stress among college students did not differ in terms of sex, level, year, and course of study. The most frequently used coping response among students was positive reinterpretation and growth. Male and female students differed in the use of various coping responses. Certain ways of coping were related to the level of stress among students. Experimental study showed that the psychoeducational programme had a positive effect on the level of stress among students. The decrease in the level of stress was greater among subjects who had undergone group sessions as compared to those who had not in the control group. As a conclusion, the study has provided some insights to the effectiveness of using psychoeducational programme to help students cope with their stress, the level of stress among students, and their coping responses used by college students. This information will be helpful to student counsellors in helping students to cope with their stress

Fears of Psychological Treatment and Attitudes Towards Seeking Professional Help Among Students

The rate of utilisation of the counseling and guidance services in schools is minimal in spite of the availability of these services No extensive studies have been done in Malaysia to show the relationship of factors that are related to psychological help-seeking among school students The present study is a combination of correlational and causal-comparative research The relationships of fears of psychological treatment, attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help, and the likelihood of seeking counseling were investigated besides that, the differences in terms of sex, ethnicity, prior contact With a counsellor and help seeking history With regards to the three variables mentioned earlier were also examined

Roles of Adipokines in Digestive Diseases: Markers of Inflammation, Metabolic Alteration and Disease Progression

Adipose tissue is a highly dynamic endocrine tissue and constitutes a central node in the interorgan crosstalk network through adipokines, which cause pleiotropic effects, including the modulation of angiogenesis, metabolism, and inflammation. Specifically, digestive cancers grow anatomically near adipose tissue. During their interaction with cancer cells, adipocytes are reprogrammed into cancer-associated adipocytes and secrete adipokines to affect tumor cells. Moreover, the liver is the central metabolic hub. Adipose tissue and the liver cooperatively regulate whole-body energy homeostasis via adipokines. Obesity, the excessive accumulation of adipose tissue due to hyperplasia and hypertrophy, is currently considered a global epidemic and is related to low-grade systemic inflammation characterized by altered adipokine regulation. Obesity-related digestive diseases, including gastroesophageal reflux disease, Barrett\u27s esophagus, esophageal cancer, colon polyps and cancer, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, viral hepatitis-related diseases, cholelithiasis, gallbladder cancer, cholangiocarcinoma, pancreatic cancer, and diabetes, might cause specific alterations in adipokine profiles. These patterns and associated bases potentially contribute to the identification of prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic approaches for the associated digestive diseases. This review highlights important findings about altered adipokine profiles relevant to digestive diseases, including hepatic, pancreatic, gastrointestinal, and biliary tract diseases, with a perspective on clinical implications and mechanistic explorations

Discovering Weighted Patterns in Intron Sequences Using Self-Adaptive Harmony Search and Back-Propagation Algorithms

A hybrid self-adaptive harmony search and back-propagation mining system was proposed to discover weighted patterns in human intron sequences. By testing the weights under a lazy nearest neighbor classifier, the numerical results revealed the significance of these weighted patterns. Comparing these weighted patterns with the popular intron consensus model, it is clear that the discovered weighted patterns make originally the ambiguous 5SS and 3SS header patterns more specific and concrete

Contractors’ Attitude towards Enhancing Safety Performance: Case Study on Construction Firms in Penang

A qualitative study was conducted to investigate the contractors’ attitude towards enhancing the safety performance in construction site. Despite the fact that there are many safety initiatives established by the government, the rates of accidents are still in a critically high condition. Thus the purpose of this research is to study the contractors’ attitude towards enhancing the implementation of safety management system in construction site in order to increase the safety awareness of construction practitioners in construction site and improve the safety condition of construction sites. This study is conducted through oral interviews with the construction practitioners, and visual inspection of construction sites. The attitudes of contractors are evaluated from 3 aspects: Contractors’ efforts in implement and enforce the safety rules, Contractors efforts in overcoming the rate of accidents, and Reasons given by the contractors for not implement safety law

Regenerative Medicine Strategies for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), the most severe and common form of single ventricle congenital heart lesions, is characterized by hypoplasia of the mitral valve, left ventricle (LV), and all LV outflow structures. While advances in surgical technique and medical management have allowed survival into adulthood, HLHS patients have severe morbidities, decreased quality of life, and a shortened lifespan. The single right ventricle (RV) is especially prone to early failure because of its vulnerability to chronic pressure overload, a mode of failure distinct from ischemic cardiomyopathy encountered in acquired heart disease. As these patients enter early adulthood, an emerging epidemic of RV failure has become evident. Regenerative medicine strategies may help preserve or boost RV function in children and adults with HLHS by promoting angiogenesis and mitigating oxidative stress. Rescuing a RV in decompensated failure may also require the creation of new, functional myocardium. Although considerable hurdles remain before their clinical translation, stem cell therapy and cardiac tissue engineering possess revolutionary potential in the treatment of pediatric and adult patients with HLHS who currently have very limited long-term treatment options.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/140239/1/ten.teb.2016.0136.pd