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Objectives: To identify the distribution of suicide rates in Turkey between 2007 and 2016 by gender, age, marital status, and geographical region. Methods: Suicide statistics obtained from the Turkish Statistical Institute and population data were used to calculate suicide rates by gender, age, marital status, and geographical region. An independent two-sample t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to analyze the data. Results: In Turkey, suicide rates are low, but they have slowly risen recently. The suicide rate of men was higher than that of women (p<0.001). The highest suicide rate by age group was among people 75 years and older and the second highest was among people 15 to 24 years old (p<0.001). The suicide rate of divorced people was higher than that of other marital status groups (p<0.001). Average suicide rates in the seven geographical regions of Turkey differed from each other, and suicide rates among men and women in each region varied (p<0.001). Conclusion: The suicide rate between 2007 and 2016 was higher in men, particularly for older ages, the divorced, and those living in both socio-economically developed and underdeveloped regions in Turkey. Socio-demographic characteristics must be taken into consideration in studies focusing on the prevalence and prevention of suicide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 24-item questionnaire was designed to collect specific data in order to determine Omani students‟ attitudes toward agriculture and, specifically, whether or not these attitudes differ according to gender and the geographical regions where students reside. A survey research method based on the use of a questionnaire was employed. The questionnaire items were divided into four domains: participants‟ general knowledge about agriculture, their personal interest about agriculture, the role of government in supporting agriculture, and the role of agriculture in food security. The questionnaire was administered to 394 randomly selected Grade 10 students. Participants consisted of 189 male students and 205 female students in total. Questionnaires were distributed to 130 students from North Al Batinah Governorate, 142 from Al-Dakhiliyah Governorate, and 122 from Muscat Governorate. Questionnaire reliability was calculated using Cronbach‟s alpha, an internal consistency method, which resulted in a value of 0.83 for the instrument. The study was conducted in the 2016/2017 academic year. The findings indicated that students‟ attitudes toward agriculture, overall, were positive and both gender and geographical region had an effect upon their attitudes. The results of this study demonstrate a need to recommend improving students‟ attitudes towards agriculture, especially for students who reside in the Muscat Governorate; for example, schools should be encouraged to include agricultural collaborative learning activities, both inside and outside the classroom. Overall, the study results suggest a benefit in conducting additional research in the area of agriculture education in Oman. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Controversies exist whether season of birth is associated with schizophrenia development later in life, and evidence has mainly come from studies done in developed countries. This study examines the association between season of birth and risk for schizophrenia in China, with special attention to geographical region, urbanity, and gender. Using data from China’s Second National Sampling Survey on Disability, a large-scale, nationally representative sample (N=2,052,694), this study employs discrete-time hazard models to compare the risk for schizophrenia development for people born in different seasons, and conducts subsample analyses by geographical region, urbanity, and gender. People born in the spring have the highest risk when compared to people born in the winter, summer or autumn. Furthermore, the relatively higher risk for people born in the spring is greater in the southern half of the country, in rural areas, and for women. The findings are consistent with results from a robustness check done among people who were conceived and born from 1955 to 1965, periods before, during, and after the 1959–1961 Chinese Famine. This study supports the presence of an association between season of birth and risk for schizophrenia development and of heterogeneity by geographical region, urbanity, and gender. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, it was aimed to investigate the presence of DIF according to sex in 23 items in SBS 2011 8th grade Turkish subtest by using different DIF determination methods. In addition, as a second objective, it has been determined that if items are found which containing DIF, their status by geographical region is determined. Mantel-Haenszel and Logistic Regression methods based on the classical test theory and SIBTEST, Wald Statistic and Likelihood Ratio methods based on Item Response Theory are used to detect DIF in the analysis of data. According to the findings obtained from the research, Mantel-Haenszel, SIBTEST, Wald Statistic and Likelihood Ratio methods determined DIF which was on common items and Logistic Regression method determined DIF on a different item. Mantel-Haenszel and SIBTEST methods detect DIF only on 9th and 21st items; Logistic regression method detect DIF only in the 2nd item. The likelihood ratio method determined DIF on 14th and 18th items in addition to 9th and 21st items, Wald Statistic determined DIF on 14th item in addition to 9th and 21st items. Logistic regression method was not used in the interpretation because the Logistic Regression method did not show any problems in items which DIF detected by other methods. DIF was found in two of the items in favor of the girls and two of items in favor of the men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Objectives: To quantify the relationships between age, sex and country of residence and sleep time (time in bed) in young people aged 9–18 years. Methods: Thirty studies of sleep patterns in healthy adolescents from the last 30 years in 20 countries were reviewed. Monte Carlo simulation generated pseudo-data where only summary statistics were available. Raw and pseudo-data were combined, generating a total of 92,977 data points. A mixed model, clustering on countries, analysed data for school and non-school days separately. Results: Sleep time varied with sex, age and geographical region. School day sleep differed slightly between boys and girls, girls sleeping 11 min/night more than boys (p = 0.003). On non-school days, girls slept 29 min more each day (p = 0.003). Sleep time declined with age, – 14 min/day per year of age (school days), and seven min/night per year of age (non-school days). Large differences between countries, showed adolescents from Asian countries sleeping 40–60 min less each night than Americans, and 60–120 min less than Europeans. Conclusion: Sex, age, geographical region and day type interact and predict sleep patterns in adolescents. One consistent trend is the increasing gap between sleep on school days and non-school days as adolescents get older. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]