Psychological quality of life and employability skills among newly registered first-year students: Opportunities for further university development

In accord with new European university reforms initiated by the Bologna Process, our objective was to evaluate influences on the relationship between psychological quality of life (QoL) and the acquisition of academic employability skills (AES) among first-year students at the University in Luxembourg. At the beginning (2 months in) and the end (9 months) of the academic year, 973 newly registered students participated in this study involving two cross-university surveys. Students who redoubled or who had studied at other universities were excluded. Data were collected with an online questionnaire comprising the psychological Whoqol-bref subscale, AES scale, and questions about other related factors. The AES score decreased from 74.2 to 65.6. At both time points, the psychological Whoqol-bref was positively correlated with environmental and social relations QoL and perceived general health. Multiple regression models including interaction terms showed that a higher psychological QoL was associated with better general health (difference satisfied-dissatisfied 9.44), AES (slope 0.099), social relationships QoL (0.321), and environmental QoL (0.298). No interaction with time effects was significant, which indicates that the effects remain stable with time. If the university could maintain the QoL indicators at appropriate levels or manage decreases as they occur, it would have implications for health promotion and the creation of new student support systems. The SQA- LES project provides valuable information for universities aiming to develop a European Higher Educational Area.

Comparison of vergence mechanisms between university students with good and poor sleep quality

AIM:To compare the vergence mechanisms between good and poor sleepers in university students.METHODS:A total of 64 university students were recruited in this study.The validated Malay version of Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index questionnaire(PSQI-M)was used to measure the participants’sleep quality over the past month.Participants were categorized as good sleepers(n=32)and poor sleepers(n=32)based on the PSQI-M scores.Heterophoria and fusional vergences were measured at distance and near.Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare heterophoria,negative fusional vergence(NFV),and positive fusional vergence(PFV)at distance and near between good and poor sleepers.Spearman correlation analysis was used to study the relationship between PSQI-M score and PFV at distance.RESULTS:Both distance and near heterophorias were not significantly different between good and poor sleepers(P>0.05).There was a difference in distance PFV(P<0.05)between good and poor sleepers,but not in distance NFV,near NFV,and near PFV(P>0.05).Distance PFV was negatively correlated with PSQI-M score(rs=-0.33,P<0.05).CONCLUSION:University students with poor sleep quality demonstrates a reduced ability to maintain fusion with increasing convergence demand at distance.Sleep quality assessment during binocular vision examination in university students is recommended.

The Impact of Binge Drinking among Brazilian University Students on Mental Health and Quality of Life: A Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Study

Background: The restrictive lockdown measures that were introduced as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic imposed constraints that affected university students’ drinking habits and mental health. Methods: The current study evaluated the rate of binge drinking among university students as they returned to normal life post-lockdown and whether binge drinking affected their mental health and quality of life. A cross-sectional study included 1382 university students (18 - 24 years) of one private Southwestern university in Brazil. Alcohol Use Disorders Identification, the Beck Depression Inventory-II, and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief were used. Data were collected after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period (from October 2021 to May 2022). Results: 52.6% of the students reported binge drinking, and 35.6% reported symptoms of depression. Binge drinkers were 1.41 times more likely to experience depressive symptoms when compared with non-binge drinkers, and binge drinking was a risk factor for lower quality of life in all three domains (physical, psychological and environmental). Conclusion: Our study highlights an increased prevalence of binge drinking in university students after the pandemic lockdown. The rise in binge drinking rates was linked to depressive symptoms and worsening of quality of life.

Dynamic Development Characteristics and Driving Factors of High Quality Development Level in China’s Five Major Urban Agglomerations

High-quality development is the primary task of comprehensively building a socialist,modern country,as well as the primary task of building urban agglomerations in China.Based on the five development concepts,this paper used the entropy method to measure the High Quality Development Index(HQDI)of the five major urban agglomerations.The results showed that the HQDI of the five major urban agglomerations shows a fluctuating upward trend.First,using the Dagum Gini coefficient to explore the sources of HQDI development differences in urban agglomerations,we found that the main source of HQDI differences in urban agglomerations was inter-regional differences,while intra-regional differences were not important.Second,kernel density estimation was used to test the dynamic evolution trend of HQDI within urban agglomerations.There was a polarisation phenomenon in the HQDI of urban agglomerations,such as the Pearl River Delta urban agglomeration and the Chengdu-Chongqing urban agglomeration.But overall,the degree of imbalance had decreased.Third,using geographic detectors to examine the driving factors of HQDI in urban agglomerations,we found that the main driving forces for improving HQDI in urban agglomerations were economic growth,artificial intelligence technology and fiscal decentralisation.All the interaction factors had greater explanatory power for the spatial differentiation of HQDI,which can be divided into two types:two-factor improvement and non-linear improvement.This study is conducive to improving and enriching the theoretical system for evaluating the high quality development of urban agglomerations,and provides policy references for promoting the high quality development of urban agglomerations.

Diagnostic values of questionnaires of Convergence Insufficiency Symptom Survey and College of Optometrists Vision Development Quality of Life in the screening of convergence insufficiency

AIM:To compare and analyse the diagnostic efficacy of the College of Optometrists Vision Development Quality of Life Questionnaire(COVD-QOL)and the Convergence Insufficiency Symptom Survey(CISS)in detecting convergence insufficiency and to compare their diagnostic value in clinical applications.METHODS:Using the diagnostic test method,62 adult patients with convergence insufficiency(age:24.74±3.75y)and 62 normal participants(age:23.61±3.13y)who visited the Optometry Clinic of West China Hospital of Sichuan University from April 2021 to January 2023 were included.All subjects completed the CISS and COVD-QOL.Statistical analysis of the sensitivity and specificity of the CISS and COVD-QOL and comparison and joint experimental analysis of their diagnostic efficacy were performed.RESULTS:The sensitivity of the CISS and COVD-QOL for convergence insufficiency was 64.5%and 71.0%,respectively,while the specificity was 96.8%and 67.7%,respectively.Compared to the CISS alone,the combination of the CISS and COVD-QOL demonstrated lower sensitivity and specificity.The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve of CISS,COVD-QOL and CISS combined with COVD-QOL were 0.806,0.694 and 0.782,respectively.CONCLUSION:Considering the low sensitivity of the CISS and the low specificity of the COVD-QOL,it is recommended to supplement these questionnaires with other screening tests for the detection of convergence insufficiency.

Association of spiritual well-being with quality of life among undergraduate nursing students

Objective:The study was conducted with the aim of determining the spiritual well-being(SWB)of nursing students and its association with quality of life(QOL).Materials and Methods:A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted with a sample size of 504 nursing students collected from January 2023 to March 2023 in the nursing institutes of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,Pakistan,using convenient sampling techniques.A Spiritual Health and Life-Orientation Measure(SHALOM)questionnaire for SWB and K-27 QOL(K-27 QOL)instrument were used for data collection that contains three parts.Results:The number of female participants was in the majority(50.4%)compared to male nurses(49.6%).The overall mean score of SWB of the students was 3.79±0.48,while the mean K-27 QOL score was 3.73±0.57.There were significant differences between the groups of gender(P=0.001),while no significant difference within the groups of semester(P=0.061)and college status(0.285).In QOL,there were significant differences within the groups of semester(P=0.000)and college status(P=0.036)while no significant difference in gender category(P=0.480).SHALOM score is positively and moderately correlated with QOL score(r=0.597,P<0.05).Conclusion:Spiritual practices are one of the important factors that are associated positively with QOL,therefore to enhance the QOL,it will require spiritual practices.

Evaluation of Sleep Quality in Undergraduated Medical Students

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the sleep quality of medical students to identify the main factors that affect sleep patterns. Methods: According to the methodology, 154 students participated in the research, attending from the first to the sixth year of the course. The Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index questionnaire and the Epworth sleepiness scale were applied. Descriptive statistics techniques were applied and demonstrated in the form of tables and graphs. The comparison of variables was carried out using statistical tests. Results: The results showed that most students do not sleep very well. It was observed that 68.83% of a total of 106 students are bad sleepers. Conclusion: It is concluded that medical students sleep a low number of hours by period, which could interfere in impairment of attention, learning and memory formation, interfering in academic performance. On the other hand, they showed greater daytime sleepiness compared to the general population.

Effects of Water-retaining Agents on Growth, Development, Yield and Quality of Soybean under Drought Stress

[Objectives]The paper was to explore the effects of different doses of water-retaining agent on the growth and development indicators,yield and quality of soybean plants subjected to drought stress.[Methods]The effects of drought stress(MDS)and drought stress with low(MDS-L),medium(MDS-M)and high doses(MDS-H)of the water-retaining agent on the growth and development indicators,root activity,MDA content,antioxidant enzyme activity,yield and quality of soybean were studied by field plot test,with the normal water supply serving as the control(CK).[Results]In response to drought stress,the plant height,stem diameter,and yield of soybean exhibited a notable decline.Additionally,the contents of protein,fat,linoleic acid,and linolenic acid in seeds demonstrated a significant reduction.Conversely,the root activity and antioxidant enzyme activity exhibited a noticeable decline,while the MDA content exhibited an increase.The application of varying doses of the water-retaining agent was found to significantly enhance soybean growth,stimulate root activity,and elevate antioxidant enzyme activity,while concurrently reducing MDA content.The observed effects were found to be dose-dependent,with the greatest effects observed at the highest dose.In comparison to MDS,the yields of soybean in the MDS-L,MDS-M,and MDS-H treatments exhibited a 18.38%,25.58%,and 46.26%increase,respectively.Additionally,the content of protein,fat,linoleic acid,and linolenic acid in seeds demonstrated a notable enhancement.[Conclusions]The application of the water-retaining agent has been demonstrated to significantly promote the growth of soybean plants under conditions of drought stress,resulting in an improvement in both the yield and the quality of the soybean crop.The recommended dosage of the water-retaining agent is 3.3 kg/667 m 2.

Does green finance drive high-quality economic development?-Based on empirical evidence from China

Green finance,as an important branch of modern finance,has far-reaching significance that is not limited to the financial sector.By promoting green investment and optimizing resource allocation,green finance plays a crucial role in reducing environmental pollution and carbon emissions.At the same time,it can also promote the quality of economic growth and achieve the harmonious development of economy,society and environment.Based on China's provincial panel data from 2008 to 2022,the direct impact and indirect transmission mechanism of green finance on high-quality economic development are analyzed by constructing a dynamic panel model and a mediation effect model.It is found that green finance not only directly promotes the high-quality development of the economy,but also indirectly promotes the sustainable and healthy growth of the economy through the transmission channel of technological innovation.This mediating effect of technological innovation is as high as 78.65%,which shows the close connection between green finance and high-quality economic development.In addition,the study also found that the direct promotion effect of green finance on high-quality economic development has significant regional heterogeneity.The results of this study suggest that when formulating relevant policies,it is necessary to fully consider the actual situation of each region and tailor them to the local conditions to ensure the in-depth promotion of green finance and the overall development of the economy.

Curriculum Development and Teachers for Cultivating OECD Student Agency in Japan:From an Examination of Educational Thought,Educational System,History,and Contemporary Science and Mathematics Education Practices

The purpose of this paper is to examine the development of a curriculum in Japan to foster the agency(OECD Student Agency)necessary for children living in the future,as outlined in the OECD Education2030 Project,and the role of teachers who implement this curriculum.Therefore,I aim to achieve this goal by taking an overview of educational thought,educational systems and history,and examining several initiatives in the OECD Project and the situation of a Japanese high school that practices science and mathematics education.As a result of analyzing previous research and the narratives obtained from interviews with Teacher A(pseudonym)of a certain F High School(pseudonym),it was found that school education should not simply teach subjects,but should aim to enable student to help student exercise agency in the future.It was suggested that it is not necessary to add content to the curriculum,but rather to prepare to provide students with competencies that will enable them to use the content in various contexts,situations,and circumstances,suggesting that in order to discover such important competencies,teachers and other related parties are required to implement curricula that allow students to slowly and carefully explore the competencies surrounding the content,and to conceive and build curricula that include both hidden and intended curriculum that allows student to reflect on the curriculum they have achieved.

Status Quo and Countermeasures of Humanities Quality Education in Clinical Teaching for Medical Students

In recent years,frequent conflicts between doctors and patients have attracted widespread attention from various sectors of society.The reasons for the tense doctor-patient relationship involve three major factors,namely social,medical,and patient factors.In the process of building social harmony,the people’s demand for daily health knowledge and basic medical security is increasing day by day.Among them,medical humanities quality education plays a particularly important role in building a harmonious doctor-patient relationship.Strengthening the humanities quality education of medical students and creating a harmonious doctor-patient environment can better improve the tense doctor-patient relationship and reduce the occurrence of doctor-patient conflicts,ultimately promoting social stability.This requires medical schools not only to cultivate medical students’clinical diagnosis and treatment abilities,but also to enhance their humanistic qualities,strengthen medical humanities education,and face the requirements of medical development and the task of Healthy China.It is of great significance to improve the humanities quality education program for medical students.This article aims to explore the status quo of humanities quality education in clinical teaching for medical students and propose countermeasures to address the issues.

Intercultural Competence Development of Chinese Students After a Short-Term Study Abroad Experience

This study investigated Chinese students’ intercultural competence and linguistic growth during a six-week study abroad program. The students and their professor participated in pre- and post-tests covering written and oral language competency as well as intercultural competence. The Global Scale of English assessed student language development to determine linguistic growth and the Assessment of Intercultural Competence of Chinese College Students (AIC-CCS) was used to determine student growth of intercultural competence skills, specifically related to cultural knowledge, skills, attitudes, and awareness as a result of their experiences in a non-Western context. Results indicated that students experienced a change in the salience of intercultural knowledge themes over their period abroad, as well as improved their individual language abilities. This study provides suggestions for future programming focused on the development of Chinese student intercultural competencies during short-term study abroad experiences in Western university environments.

Predicament of College Students with Economic Difficulties in Career Development and Assistance Strategies

College students with economic difficulties are the vulnerable groups who are easy to fall into the predicament of career development. They are mainly characterized as weak career awareness,unclear self-awareness,lack of social resources,and poor comprehensive quality. This paper comprehensively analyzed the predicament of college students and causes. On the basis of causes,it came up with strategies including establishing a perfect whole-process education mechanism,strengthening psychological health and ideological and political education,actively expanding social practice internship platform,and vigorously cultivating employment competitiveness,so as to help students with economic difficulties to get out of their predicament and realize sustainable and comprehensive career development.

Thoughts on Promoting the Development of Students’ Personality Using English Community

Language learning has certain difficulties,especially English as an important second language.Junior high school students will encounter certain obstacles in the process of learning.The establishment of English associations and the attraction of students to participate have a clear distinction due to classroom teaching and community activities.They are based on the interests of students,so they can motivate students to participate.This paper discusses the significance and methods of the English community to promote the development of students’personality.

The Development and Operation Mechanism of the Colleges’E-class Network Ideological and Political Education Platform——Based on post-95 college students’social behavior characteristics

Based on the investigation and analysis of the social behavior characteristics of post-95undergraduates, this paper puts forward the principle of sharing and building e-class platform and analyzes thedevelopment of the functions of the four platforms such as the teacher-student service system, instant interactionsystem, SNS community system and vertical segmental pushing system and the realization of the function of modularoperation. Finally, in order to ensure the stable operation of the E-class platform, four measures are put forward suchas the systematic construction of the system, the innovation of team work, the assessment of key performances and thecomprehensive guarantee, thus providing an external guarantee for the stable operation of the E-class platform.

Research on the Development of Ideological and Political Education Resources for College Students Based on the Data Mining Technology

With the rapid development of the computer technologies, the rapid spread and development of the network resources have a significant impact on people's thinking and lifestyle. The ideological and political education in colleges and universities should keep pace with the times, and examine the new ways and resources of the ideological and political education in colleges and universities from the perspective of the times. The high-tech has been applied to the development of the modem education, expanding the teaching space-time, improving the teaching methods of the ideological and political course, and enriching the teaching contents of the ideological and political theoretical courses. The development mechanism of the ideological and political education resources for college students based on the data mining technology is not only in line with the trend of the times, but can also play an ideal role in optimizing the ideological and political education mechanism for college students.

Research on mental health benefits of sports development of college students

The issue of students＇ mental health has become a common concern for the students, parents, universities and even the society. Using literature to analyze the causes and types of students＇ psychological barriers and to explain the impacts of sports on the mental health of students, the writer considers that sports can not only improve the body＇ s healthy state of college students, but also improve their mental health and play a very significant role in treating students＇ mental illness.

Students＇ Healthy Mental Development Is Promoted by a Harmonious Relationship between Teachers and Students

The harmony of a relationship between teachers and students is a powerful promotion to the students＇ mental health. A ＂shared＂ relationship between teachers and students is advocated now. In the construction of a harmonious relationship between teachers and students, the positions of the teachers and students in teaching should be first made clear, and then an effective mental communication between teachers and students is necessarily available.

Clinical Supervision and Non-Technical Professional Development Skills in the Context of Patient Safety—The Views of Nurse Specialist Students

The aim of the study was to evaluate nurse specialist students’ views of clinical supervision (CS) and its influence on their professional competence development. An additional aim was to interpret the results and link them to non-technical skills and Patient Safety (PS) topics. The research question was: What are the benefits of clinical supervision focusing on non-technical skills in the area of PS? A cross-sectional study of 46 nurse specialist students was conducted by means of questionnaires and exploratory factor analysis. Factors that influenced the nurse specialist students’ competencies were: interpersonal, professional and communication skills in addition to awareness of ethical skills, the importance of teamwork and the benefit of involving patients and their family members in safe care. The results were linked to non-technical skills and PS competencies. Clinical supervision is crucial for the development of non-technical skills and PS competencies among nurse specialist students. However, finding time to reflect and learn from the supervision was reported to be a problem. Over half of the students stated they did not have enough time for supervision. Thus, there is a potential for quality improvement. We recommend that universities should provide formal educational programmes for supervisors focusing on the professional development of students, especially in the area of non-technical skills. In conclusion, CS should be prioritised by management and clinical leaders as it enhances PS.