Educational stress among Chinese adolescents : measurement, risk factors and associations with mental health

Academic pressure among adolescents is a major risk factor for poor mental health and suicide and other harmful behaviours. While this is a worldwide phenomenon, it appears to be especially pronounced in China and other East Asian countries. Despite a growing body of research into adolescent mental health in recent years, the multiple constructs within the ‘educational stress’ phenomenon have not been clearly articulated in Chinese contexts. Further, the individual, family, school and peer influencing factors for educational stress and its associations with adolescent mental health are not well understood. An in-depth investigation may provide important information for the ongoing educational reform in Mainland China with a special focus on students’ mental health and wellbeing. The primary goal of this study was to examine the relative contribution of educational stress to poor mental health, in comparison to other well-known individual, family, school and peer factors. Another important task was to identify significant risk factors for educational stress. In addition, due to the lack of a culturally suitable instrument for educational stress in this population, a new tool – the Educational Stress Scale for Adolescents (ESSA) was initially developed in this study and tested for reliability and validity. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information from convenient samples of secondary school students in Shandong, China. The pilot survey was conducted with 347 students (grades 8 and 11) to test the psychometric properties of the ESSA and other scales or questions in the questionnaire. Based on factor analysis and reliability and validity testing, the 16-item scale (the ESSA) with five factors showed adequate to good internal consistency, 2-week test-retest reliability, and satisfactory concurrent and predictive validity. Its factor structure was further demonstrated in the main survey with a confirmatory factor analysis illustrating a good fit of the proposed model based on a confirmatory factor analysis. The reliabilities of other scales and questions were also adequate to be used in this study. The main survey was subsequently conducted with a sample of 1627 secondary school (grades 7-12) students to examine the influencing factors of educational stress and its associations with mental health outcomes, including depression, happiness and suicidal behaviours. A wide range of individual, family, school and peer factors were found to have a significant association with the total ESSA and subscale scores. Most of the strong factors for academic stress were school or study-related, including rural school location, low school connectedness, perceived poor academic grades and frequent emotional conflicts with teachers and peers. Unexpectedly, family and parental factors, such as parental bonding, family connectedness and conflicts with parents were found to have little or no association with educational stress. Educational stress was the most predictive variable for depression, but was not strongly associated with happiness. It had a strong association with suicide ideation but not with suicide attempts. Among five subscales of the ESSA, ‘Study despondency’ score had the strongest associations with these mental health measures. Surprising, two subscales, ‘Self-expectation’ and ‘Worry about grades’ showed a protective effect on suicidal behaviours. An additional analysis revealed that although academic pressure was the most commonly reported reason for suicidal thinking, the occurrence of problems in peer relationships such as peer teasing and bullying, and romantic problems had a much stronger relationship with actual attempts. This study provides some insights into the nature and health implications of educational stress among Chinese adolescents. Findings in this study suggest that interventions on educational stress should focus on school environment and academic factors. Intervention programs focused on educational stress may have a high impact on the prevalence of common mental disorders such as depression. Efforts to increase perceived happiness however should cover a wider range of individual, family and school factors. The importance of healthy peer relationships should be adequately emphasised in suicide prevention. In addition, the newly developed scale (the ESSA) demonstrates sound psychometric properties and is expected to be used in future research into academic-related stress among secondary school adolescents.

Hardness of silicon nitride thin films characterised by nanoindentation and nanoscratch deconvolution methods

Plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition silicon nitride thin films are widely used in microelectromechanical system devices as structural materials because the mechanical properties of those films can be tailored by adjusting deposition conditions. However, accurate measurement of the mechanical properties, such as hardness, of films with thicknesses at nanometric scale is challenging. In the present study, the hardness of the silicon nitride films deposited on silicon substrate under different deposit conditions was characterised using nanoindentation and nanoscratch deconvolution methods. The hardness values obtained from the two methods were compared. The effect of substrate on the measured results was discussed.

Measurement of in-service insulated rail joint tie plate response

This paper presents the results of a recent investigation into Insulated Rail Joint Tie Plate fatigue failures. In particular it focuses on the results of data obtained through field strain gauge and accelerometer measurements of in-service Insulated Rail Joint Tie Plates. These measurements have identified a significant variability in the strains present in similar joints operating under identical load conditions. This variability in stress invariably has a significant influence on the life of the joints. The results of rainflow counting and a fatigue analysis are also presented.

Determining the detection capabilities of existing real time measurement techniques for different engineered nanoparticles

The application of nanotechnology products has increased significantly in recent years. With their broad range of applications, including electronics, food and agriculture, power and energy, scientific instruments, clothing, cosmetics, buildings, biomedical and health, etc (Catanzariti, 2008), nanomaterials are an indispensible part of human life.

Field measurement of wheel-rail impact force at insulated rail joint

When wheels pass over insulated rail joints (IRJs) a vertical impact force is generated. The ability to measure the impact force is valuable as the force signature helps understand the behaviour of the IRJs, in particular their potential for failure. The impact forces are thought to be one of the main factors that cause damage to the IRJ and track components. Study of the deterioration mechanism helps finding new methods to improve the service life of IRJs in track. In this research, the strain-gage-based wheel load detector, for the first time, is employed to measure the wheel–rail contact-impact force at an IRJ in a heavy haul rail line. In this technique, the strain gages are installed within the IRJ assembly without disturbing the structural integrity of IRJ and arranged in a full wheatstone bridge to form a wheel load detector. The instrumented IRJ is first tested and calibrated in the lab and then installed in the field. For comparison purposes, a reference rail section is also instrumented with the same strain gage pattern as the IRJ. In this paper the measurement technique, the process of instrumentation, and tests as well as some typical data obtained from the field and the inferences are presented.

Real-time measurement of F-Actin remodelling during exocytosis using lifeact-EGFP transgenic animals

F-actin remodelling is essential for a wide variety of cell processes. It is important in exocytosis, where F-actin coats fusing exocytic granules. The purpose of these F-actin coats is unknown. They may be important in stabilizing the fused granules, they may play a contractile role and promote expulsion of granule content and finally may be important in endocytosis. To elucidate these functions of F-actin remodelling requires a reliable method to visualize F-actin dynamics in living cells. The recent development of Lifeact-EGFP transgenic animals offers such an opportunity. Here, we studied the characteristics of exocytosis in pancreatic acinar cells obtained from the Lifeact-EGFP transgenic mice. We show that the time-course of agonist-evoked exocytic events and the kinetics of each single exocytic event are the same for wild type and Lifeact-EGFP transgenic animals. We conclude that Lifeact-EGFP animals are a good model to study of exocytosis and reveal that F-actin coating is dependent on the de novo synthesis of F-actin and that development of actin polymerization occurs simultaneously in all regions of the granule. Our insights using the Lifeact-EGFP mice demonstrate that F-actin coating occurs after granule fusion and is a granule-wide event.

Meaning or measurement? Researching the social contexts of health and settlement among newly-arrived refugee youth in Melbourne, Australia

What are the most appropriate methodological approaches for researching the psychosocial determinants of health and wellbeing among young people from refugee backgrounds over the resettlement period? What kinds of research models can involve young people in meaningful reflections on their lives and futures while simultaneously yielding valid data to inform services and policy? This paper reports on the methods developed for a longitudinal study of health and wellbeing among young people from refugee backgrounds in Melbourne, Australia. The study involves 100 newly-arrived young people 12 to 18 years of age, and employs a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods implemented as a series of activities carried out by participants in personalized settlement journals. This paper highlights the need to think outside the box of traditional qualitative and/or quantitative approaches for social research into refugee youth health and illustrates how integrated approaches can produce information that is meaningful to policy makers, service providers and to the young people themselves.

Measurement of structural changes to a food material during dehydration

Rates of dehydration/rehydration are important quality parameters for dried products. Theoretically, if there are no adverse effects on the integrity of the tissue structure, it should absorb water to the same moisture content of the initial product before drying.The purpose of this work is to semi-automate the process of detection of cell structure boundaries as a food is dehydrated and rehydrated. This will enable food materials researchers to quantify changes to material’s structure as these processes take place. Images of potato cells as they were dehydrated and rehydrated were taken using an electron microscope. Cell boundaries were detected using an image processing algorithm. Average cell area and perimeter at each stage of dehydration were calculated and plotted versus time. The results show that the algorithm can successfully identify cell boundaries.

Measurement constructs to explore innovation diffusion in construction

Although the drivers of innovation have been studied extensively in construction, greater attention is required on how innovation diffusion can be effectively assessed within this complex and interdependent project-based industry. The authors draw on a highly cited innovation diffusion model by Rogers (2006) and develop a tailored conceptual framework to guide future empirical work aimed at assessing innovation diffusion in construction. The conceptual framework developed and discussed in this paper supports a five-stage process model of innovation diffusion namely: 1) knowledge and idea generation, 2) persuasion and evaluation; 3) decision to adopt, 4) integration and implementation, and 5) confirmation. As its theoretical contribution, this paper proposes three critical measurements constructs which can be used to assess the effectiveness of the diffusion process. These measurement constructs comprise: 1) nature and introduction of an innovative idea, 2) organizational capacity to acquire, assimilate, transform and exploit an innovation, and 3) rates of innovation facilitation and adoption. The constructs are interpreted in the project-based context of the construction industry, extending the contribution of general management theorists. Research planned by the authors will test the validity and reliability of the constructs developed in this paper.

Dynamic equivalent state estimation for multi-area power systems with synchronized phasor measurement units

This paper proposes a new approach for state estimation of angles and frequencies of equivalent areas in large power systems with synchronized phasor measurement units. Defining coherent generators and their correspondent areas, generators are aggregated and system reduction is performed in each area of inter-connected power systems. The structure of the reduced system is obtained based on the characteristics of the reduced linear model and measurement data to form the non-linear model of the reduced system. Then a Kalman estimator is designed for the reduced system to provide an equivalent dynamic system state estimation using the synchronized phasor measurement data. The method is simulated on two test systems to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed method.

Destination branding performance measurement : a non-technical discussion for practitioners

While academic interest in destination branding has been gathering momentum since the field commenced in the late 1990s, one important gap in this literature that has received relatively little attention to date is the measurement of destination brand performance. This paper sets out one method for assessing the performance of a destination brand over time. The intent is to present an approach that will appeal to marketing practitioners, and which is also conceptually sound. The method is underpinned by Decision Set Theory and the concept of Consumer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE), while the key variables mirror the branding objectives used by many destination marketing organisations (DMO). The approach is demonstrated in this paper to measure brand performance for Australia in the New Zealand market. It is suggested the findings provide indicators of both i) the success of previous marketing communications, and ii) future performance, which can be easily communicated to a DMO’s stakeholders.

Measurement of alcohol craving

Despite considerable research activity and application in treatment, the construct of craving remains poorly understood. We propose that cravings and urges are cognitive–emotional events in time, characterised by frequency, duration, intensity and salience. Commonly used measures of alcohol craving are reviewed, and their strengths and weaknesses identified. Most measures confound craving with behaviours, or with separable cognitive phenomena such as expectancies, intentions, or perceived behavioural control. These confounds have limited our advances in understanding the determinants and consequences of craving. Based on the criteria applied in this review, among the better performing multi-item measures are the Penn Alcohol Craving Scale and Obsessive subscale of the Obsessive–Compulsive Drinking Scale. Optimal assessment strategies are likely to involve daily assessments of peak intensity of cravings, desires or urges and of the frequency and duration of craving episodes. Of particular interest are measures of intensity at times when individuals are at risk of drinking or of other functional impacts from craving.

Organisational culture in airworthiness management programs : developing a measurement model

All civil and private aircraft are required to comply with the airworthiness standards set by their national airworthiness authority and throughout their operational life must be in a condition of safe operation. Aviation accident data shows that over twenty percent of all fatal accidents in aviation are due to airworthiness issues, specifically aircraft mechanical failures. Ultimately it is the responsibility of each registered operator to ensure that their aircraft remain in a condition of safe operation, and this is done through both effective management of airworthiness activities and the effective program governance of safety outcomes. Typically, the projects within these airworthiness management programs are focused on acquiring, modifying and maintaining the aircraft as a capability supporting the business. Program governance provides the structure through which the goals and objectives of airworthiness programs are set along with the means of attaining them. Whilst the principal causes of failures in many programs can be traced to inadequate program governance, many of the failures in large scale projects can have their root causes in the organisational culture and more specifically in the organisational processes related to decision-making. This paper examines the primary theme of project and program based enterprises, and introduces a model for measuring organisational culture in airworthiness management programs using measures drawn from 211 respondents in Australian airline programs. The paper describes the theoretical perspectives applied to modifying an original model to specifically focus it on measuring the organisational culture of programs for managing airworthiness; identifying the most important factors needed to explain the relationship between the measures collected, and providing a description of the nature of these factors. The paper concludes by identifying a model that best describes the organisational culture data collected from seven airworthiness management programs.