Search

Abstract Background Significant consequences of COVID-19 within academic/professional life are, at the psychological level, related to worry, tension, stress; coping strategies and lifestyle changes. This study describes the process of design and validation of an inventory (QPIC), which aims to assess the psychological impact that a situation of confinement can produce among university students and teachers. Methods Design of the instrument and psychometric tests. A sample of 862 students and 229 professors affiliated to Spanish and Colombian universities was used. Data were collected in April 2020 with the request of the favourable Bioethics Committee IR/2020. Results Six experts carried out the content validation. A confirmatory factor analysis of the theoretical dimensions proposed for the scales was performed and the internal consistency of each of the three initial scales was confirmed (0.866, 0.813 and 0.834). Conclusion A rigorous and reliable instrument is achieved, consisting of two final scales: (a) Worry, tension and stress scale (b) Coping scale, which helps to measure individual psychological effects in housebound situations. It is an instrument designed, constructed ad hoc to assess the impact of confinement and subjected to validation. The factor structure and reliability of the instrument are examined and good psychometric properties are obtained. The application of this inventory will make it possible to assess the impact on people’s mental health during a period of confinement.

The use of serious games on virtual learning platforms as a learning support resource is increasingly common. They are especially effective in helping students acquire mainly applied curricular content. However, a process is required to monitor the effectiveness and students’ perceived satisfaction. The objectives of this study were to (1) identify the most significant characteristics; (2) determine the most relevant predictors of learning outcomes; (3) identify groupings with respect to the different serious game activities; and (4) to determine students’ perceptions of the usefulness of the simple and complex serious game activities. We worked with a sample of 130 university students studying health sciences and biomedical engineering. The serious game activities were applied in a Moodle environment, UBUVirtual, and monitored using the UBUMonitor tool. The degree type and the type of serious game explained differing percentages of the variance in the learning results in the assessment tests (34.4%—multiple choice tests [individual assessment]; 11.2%—project performance [group assessment]; 25.6%—project presentation [group assessment]). Different clusters were found depending on the group of students and the algorithm applied. The Adjusted Rang Index was applied to determine the most appropriate algorithm in each case. The student satisfaction was high in all the cases. However, they indicated complex serious games as being more useful than simple serious games as learning resources for the practical content in both health sciences and biomedical engineering degrees.

Monitoring the learning process during task solving through different channels will facilitate a better understanding of the learning process. This understanding, in turn, will provide teachers with information that will help them to offer individualised education. In the present study, monitoring was carried out during the execution of a task applied in a self-regulated virtual environment. The data were also analysed using data fusion techniques. The objectives were as follows: (1) to examine whether there were significant differences between students in cognitive load (biomarkers: fixations, saccades, pupil diameter, galvanic skin response—GSR), learning outcomes and perceived student satisfaction with respect to the type of degree (health sciences vs. engineering; and (2) to determine whether there were significant differences in cognitive load metrics, learning outcomes and perceived student satisfaction with respect to task presentation (visual and auditory vs. visual). We worked with a sample of 31 university students (21 health sciences and 10 biomedical engineering). No significant differences were found in the biomarkers (fixations, saccades, pupil diameter and GSR) or in the learning outcomes with respect to the type of degree. Differences were only detected in perceived anxiety regarding the use of virtual laboratories, being higher in biomedical engineering students. Significant differences were detected in the biomarkers of the duration of use of the virtual laboratory and in some learning outcomes related to the execution and presentation of projects with respect to the variable form of the visualisation of the laboratory (visual and auditory vs. visual). Also, in general, the use of tasks presented in self-regulated virtual spaces increased learning outcomes and perceived student satisfaction. Further studies will delve into the detection of different forms of information processing depending on the form of presentation of learning tasks.

Advances in technology and artificial intelligence (smart healthcare) open up a range of possibilities for precision intervention in the field of health sciences. The objectives of this study were to analyse the functionality of using supervised (prediction and classification) and unsupervised (clustering) machine learning techniques to analyse results related to the development of functional skills in patients at developmental ages of 0–6 years. We worked with a sample of 113 patients, of whom 49 were cared for in a specific centre for people with motor impairments (Group 1) and 64 were cared for in a specific early care programme for patients with different impairments (Group 2). The results indicated that in Group 1, chronological age predicted the development of functional skills at 85% and in Group 2 at 65%. The classification variable detected was functional development in the upper extremities. Two clusters were detected within each group that allowed us to determine the patterns of functional development in each patient with respect to functional skills. The use of smart healthcare resources has a promising future in the field of early care. However, data recording in web applications needs to be planned, and the automation of results through machine learning techniques is required.

Resumen La ansiedad y la insatisfacción corporal son factores de riesgo para los trastornos de conducta alimentaria y de la ingesta de alimentos. La presente investigación busca analizar los niveles de ansiedad e insatisfacción corporal, y su relación con las diferencias en función del género, curso y centro de estudios en 516 universitarios de Burgos, España -el 42.8 % fueron varones y el 57.2 %, mujeres; M = 21.7 años (DT = 4.1)-, utilizando un muestreo aleatorio estratificado. Para ello, se realizó un estudio descriptivo transversal en el que se aplicó el Cuestionario de Ansiedad Estado-Rasgo y la subescala Insatisfacción Corporal del Inventario de Trastornos de Conducta Alimentaria. Como resultados, alrededor del 20 % de los participantes presentó niveles altos de ansiedad, aunque no se encontraron diferencias por género, curso o centro; adicionalmente, el 61.4 % presentó alta o moderada insatisfacción corporal, principalmente si eran mujeres, personas ansiosas, o de segundo curso en la universidad. También se encontró interrelación entre estos factores, por lo cual en algunos universitarios se pudo identificar determinado riesgo para la aparición de trastornos de la conducta alimentaria y de la ingesta de alimentos.

Anxiety and body dissatisfaction are risk factors for eating behavior disorders (ACT). This research analyzes the levels of anxiety and body dissatisfaction, the relationship between these variables, and the differences according to gender, course and center in 516 university students of Burgos (Spain), using a stratified random sampling. 42.8 % were males and 57.2 % females, M = 21.7 years (SD = 4.1). Was carried descriptive study a cross-sectional. The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the subscale Body Dissatisfaction of the Eating Disorders Inventory are applied. About 20 % of participants have high levels of anxiety, not finding differences by gender, course and center. 61.4 % present high and median body dissatisfaction, mainly women, the more anxious and those of 2nd. In addition, there is an interrelation between factors. Therefore, in some students there are conditioning factors that are risk factors for the appearance of eating behavior disorders.

Background: The passage through university is a complex experience that can heighten personal susceptibility to eating disorders. The objective of this research is to determine how gender, age, course, educational faculty, and body mass index (BMI) can influence the risk of eating disorders among university students. Method: A transversal and descriptive study is conducted with a sample of 516 Spanish students (57.2% female, 42.8% male; Mage = 21.7, SDage = 4.1) following 26 university degrees. The Inventory Eating Disorder-Reference criterion (EDI-3-RF) was administered to the students. Contingency tables were used between categorical variables with the chi-squared statistic, at a significance level of p < 0.05. The Student t-test was used for two independent samples and a one-way ANOVA test with the post hoc Bonferroni test for more than two groups. Pearson’s correlation and a simple linear regression analysis were used to analyze the relationship between the variables in its quantitative version. Results: It was found that the female students enrolled in the second year presented a greater obsession with thinness and body dissatisfaction (p = 0.029; d = 0.338); the male students practiced more physical exercise to control their weight (p = 0.003); and that students under the age of twenty (p < 0.010; d = 0.584) and students from both the Health (p = 0.0.13) and Law (p = 0.021) educational faculties showed greater bulimic behavior (d = 0.070). More females are underweight (z = 2.8), and more men are overweight (z = 2.4). Normal-weight students scored significantly higher in thinness obsession (p = 0.033). Overweight students scored significantly higher on thinness obsession (p < 0.001) and body dissatisfaction (p < 0.001). Obese students scored significantly higher on body dissatisfaction (p = 0.04). Conclusions: The data obtained in this study, reinforce the hypothesis that the female gender, at an age within the limits of early adolescence, in the first year of the degree courses, with specific university qualifications, and a high BMI constituted factors that could provoke an eating disorder. Consequently, it is necessary to implement preventive measures adapted to the circumstances of each university student.

The repercussions of the pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus over recent years have posed an unprecedented challenge for the whole of society, affecting the well-being of everyone. Among all the variables affected in relation to well-being, Anxiety, Emotional Intelligence, and Effective Personality (Self-Esteem, Academic Self-Realisation, Resolute Self-Efficacy, Social Self-Realisation) have been highlighted. The aim of this study is to assess the evolution of those variables across three temporal phases: pre-pandemic, during the pandemic, and up until the end of the study in April 2022. A study was conducted during these temporal phases with three cohorts from Spanish Universities. The cohorts were formed of people assessed for Anxiety (660 pre-pandemic, 460 during the pandemic, and 311 at the end of the study), Emotional Intelligence (355 pre-pandemic, 91 during the pandemic, 311 at the end of the study), and Effective Personality (708 pre-pandemic, 174 in 2018, 311 at the end of the study). Anxiety was assessed with the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory, Emotional Intelligence with the Trait Meta-Mood Scale and TMMS-24, and Effective Personality with the Cuestionario Personalidad Eficaz-Universidad (the Effective Personality Questionnaire-University). The results showed a rise in the state of anxiety during COVID-19, with a subsequent reduction two years into the pandemic; however, anxiety rates remained higher than before the pandemic. Emotional intelligence increased in the emotional attention factor, but diminished as regards both clarity and regulation. Effective Personality was at lower levels for all factors (Self-Esteem, Academic Self-Realisation, Resolute Self-Efficacy, Social Self-Realisation). The main conclusion was the need for assistance with the dimensions under study, in order to improve the well-being of university students after the serious effects caused by COVID-19.

Background/ObjectiveSocial skills are essential in adolescence, both for their relational dimension and for their influence on other areas of adolescent life, so it is essential to include Social skills in the formal education of students.MethodThis paper presents the results of an experimental mixed factorial design pilot study in which an Interpersonal Skills Training Program for Adolescents (PEHIA1) was applied. The convenience sample consisted of 51 adolescents. An evaluation was carried out before and after the intervention, using the CEDIA (Adolescent Interpersonal Difficulties Assessment Questionnaire) and SAS-A (Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents) questionnaires.ResultsThe mixed factorial ANOVA show significant differences in the overall measures and in most of the subscales of both questionnaires, indicating that PEHIA is effectiveness, at least in the short term.ConclusionsThe results obtained in assertiveness, interpersonal relationships and public speaking suggest that the program is feasible and shows promising results in reducing anxiety. However, a larger scale study should be conducted.