International Journal of School Health
Volume:9 Issue: 3, Summer 2022

COVID-19 pandemic has brought the world many different challenges. One of them is the increase in the traits of mental disorders, especially obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). OCD is one of the most disabling disorders for patients and families. One of the factors associated with OCD is self-regulation strategies. Investigating the associations between selfregulation strategies and OCD symptoms can help us find better ways in order to prevent and treat OCD. Additionally, in this critical period, preventive behaviors play a significant role in reducing COVID-19 cases worldwide. The present research aimed to investigate the association between self-regulation strategies, OCD traits, and preventive behaviors during COVID-19 pandemic. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the relationship between OCD traits and self-regulation strategies, including expressive suppression, cognitive reappraisal, self-control, integrative self-knowledge, self-compassion, and preventive behaviors during COVID-19 pandemic in 2022. We recruited 380 Iranian adolescents aged 12 to 18 (15.32±2.13) through multistage sampling method and among the students in Shiraz schools in 2022. The sample size was determined based on the study primary objective. In order to gather data, Padua obsession and compulsion inventory, integrative self-knowledge questionnaire, self-control scale, preventive behaviors scale, self-compassionate scale, and emotion regulation questionnaire were utilized as research instruments. The data were analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient and stepwise regression analysis. The obtained findings shed light on negative relationships between OCD (65.55±20.61) and self-compassion (35.38±6.35, P=0.001), self-control (39.78±10.83, P=0.001), integrative self-knowledge (38.74±6.72, P=0.01), cognitive reappraisal (27.93±6.01, P=0.01). Moreover, positive relationships were observed between OCD, preventive behaviors (5.95±0.92), and expressive suppression (15.04±4.52, P=0.03). The results also revealed that self-regulation strategies account for 62% of preventive behaviors. Self-regulation strategies were found to be important predictors for adolescents’ preventive behaviors during the pandemic. Therefore, paying further attention to self-regulation strategies in this critical period of life is of great necessity.

Doing physical activity (PA) regularly is connected with better physically and psychologically state among adolescents. The objective of this survey was to enquire the effects of teaching style in physical education (PE) in schools on motivation and objective PA of adolescent-students. This survey employed a cross-sectionally descriptive-correlational manner and was done in Tehran, Iran in 2020. 384 adolescent boys and girls (mean age of 15.76 years-old) participated in the study. Modern accelerometers (ActiGraph GT3X-BT) were used to objectively assess PA, and conventional questionnaires were used to evaluate other factors (autonomy support, needs fulfillment, and intrinsic motivation). We used the Pearson correlation test and structural equation modeling to evaluate the data. Boys (39.68 minutes per day) had significantly higher amount of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) than girls (31.73 minutes per day). Autonomy support was significantly correlated with needs satisfaction (r=0.483, P<0.001) and motivation (r=0.583, P<0.001). Motivation was also significantly associated with PA. Moreover, autonomy support significantly influenced needs satisfaction (T=6.394) and intrinsic motivation (T=5.749) in PE class and subsequently the intrinsic motivation created in PE was significantly conveyed to the intrinsic motivation to PA in leisure time (T=5.209). Finally, intrinsic motivation in leisure-time has significantly influenced MVPA (T=9.587). These findings demonstrate importance of teaching style in physical education class to motivate students for engaging in physical activity in leisure time. These outcomes are very crucial for physical educators.

A school-based health centre (SBHC) in Toronto, Canada, supports students with academic, developmental, and behaviour-related challenges. The educators in this centre complete a referral form to provide information to the SBHC. The present study aimed to a) collaborate with the educators to co-design the existing SBHC referral form and b) provide the educators with a resource on a common pediatric disorder. The current quality improvement study was performed using a Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle. Data was collected from November 2020 to January 2021. Twenty-three educators rated their understanding of the original SBHC referral form using a 6-point Likert scale. The symptom descriptors flagged by >10% of the educators as unclear were updated and re-evaluated through a second survey. The educators voted on a common medical issue for which a pamphlet was created and evaluated for its effectiveness. Statistical analysis was performed using GraphPad Prism. Paired data were assessed by Wilcoxon rank-order test, unpaired data with Fischer’s exact, and proportions via Chi-squared test. The original referral form had 13/48 (27%) presenting symptoms identified for revision. After this revision, significantly fewer presenting symptoms met the criteria for revision (3/50, 6%; P<0.01). Most educators (10/23, 43%) requested an educational pamphlet on childhood anxiety. The majority of them (13/16, 81%) strongly agreed that they knew more about childhood anxiety after reviewing the resource and all of them (16/16, 100%) thought the resource would be helpful and could be shared with parents. Collaboration with the educators to co-design a SBHC referral form clarified its descriptors, enhancing the communication between the two parties in the referral process. Physician-created educational resource enhanced the educators’ knowledge about anxiety.

Academic well-being can stimulate students’ interest, increase their desire to search, and enhance their curiosity to discover new ideas and expanding beliefs and ideas. Students’ academic resilience was examined as a mediating factor in the relationship between a healthy academic lifestyle and academic well-being in high school. The study method was descriptive-correlational. The statistical population comprised all high-school male students in Khorramabad (Iran) in 2021, of whom a sample of 400 was selected using multistage random cluster sampling. The suggested model was put to the test using structural equation modeling (SEM). Data analysis was performed in SPSS and AMOS 23. It was discovered that students’ well-being in school was correlated with their health in school, as well as their resilience in school. There was a negative association between academic inhibiting behaviors and academic well-being (β=-0.09; P=0.041) in the students. Academic resilience and academic well-being were shown to have a direct correlation (β=0.61; P0.001) in the students. Also, students’ academic resilience was associated with both health-promoting (β=0.12; P=0.011) and health-inhibiting (β=-0.18; P=0.002) activities. Academic resilience had a mediating role in the association between health-oriented academic lifestyle and academic well-being in high school students (P<0.001). Moreover, the model had a good fit to the data. School principals and teachers should improve students’ healthpromoting behaviors by increasing motivational and emotional variables (resilience).

Special Learning Disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder which is considered to be from biological origin and causes abnormalities at the cognitive level. This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of emotion regulation-based cognitive therapy and transcranial direct current stimulation on impulsivity of students with special learning disorders. This study was quasi-experimental and based on a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The participants were the second elementary school (fourth, fifth, and sixth grades) pupils with particular learning difficulties and were enrolled in Tabriz schools, Tabriz, Iran during the academic year 2019–2020. 54 students with unique learning difficulties who were randomly chosen from among those with exceptional learning disorders and allocated to three groups made up the study sample. The first experiment group underwent cognitive regulation therapy based on the emotion regulation for eight sessions of 45 minutes per week; the second experiment group received 20 sessions of direct transcranial Current stimulation on a daily basis, and the control group did not receive any treatment. Colorado Learning Disorder Questionnaire and the Barratt Impulsivity Scale were used to collect data. The collected data were analyzed using a Univariate analysis of covariance with SPSS version 22. Based on the demographic findings, the mean age and standard deviation of the cognitive therapy group based on emotion regulation was 11.05±0.872, in the direct transcranial electrical stimulation group was 10.83±0.83 and in the control group was 11.11±0.8. The results showed that both cognitive emotion regulation treatments and transcranial direct electrical stimulation had an effect on the components of impulsivity, motor impulsivity (P=0.012), impulsivity Cognitive (P=0.001), and lack of planning (P=0.001). However, transcranial direct electrical stimulation had a greater effect on the cognitive impulsivity component of students with specific learning disorders. It can be concluded that direct transcranial stimulation can have a greater effect on cognitive impulsivity.

Students with academic flourishing can deal with stressful situations with a positive and optimistic view. The present study aimed to investigate the mediating role of academic hope in the association of ambiguity tolerance and academic flourishing with academic engagement in students. This research was a descriptive correlational study using structural equation modeling. The research population comprised female senior high school students of Ahvaz in the school year of 2020-21. Herein, we recruited 216 female senior high school students selected through random cluster sampling. Data were collected with the Schoolwork Engagement Inventory, the Ambiguity Tolerance Scale, the Academic Flourishing Questionnaire, and the Academic Hope Scale questionnaires. The proposed model was analyzed using the path analysis method. The results indicated a correlation between academic engagement and tolerance of ambiguity (r=0.41), academic flourishing (r=0.47), and academic hope (r=0.48). Moreover, there was a correlation between tolerance of ambiguity and academic flourishing (r=0.51) and academic hope (r=0.48). According to the results, the association of academic flourishing with academic engagement and academic hope was significant in the students (P<0.001). There was also a close association between tolerance of ambiguity and academic hope in the students (P<0.001). Additionally, the association between academic hope and academic engagement was significant in the subjects (P<0.001). Academic hope had a mediating role in the association between tolerance of ambiguity and the academic engagement of the female students (P<0.001). The indirect path of academic flourishing to academic engagement was significant with the mediating role of academic hope (P=0.003). The results indicated that the proposed model is of the desired fitting. It is a great step toward understanding the factors associated with students’ academic engagement and achievement. Furthermore, it is an appropriate model, through the use of which various programs can be developed and designed to prevent academic failure and demotivation in students.

A possible influential factor in participation of physical activity can be playground availability. The current study aimed to assess the effects of playground availability on participation of children in physical activity, considering parental socioeconomic status as a mediator. This study employed a cross-sectional method based on structural equation modelling. We recruited 384 children (145 girls, mean age of 11.92±1.72 years) from primary schools in Tehran, Iran in 2021. They completed the questionnaires related to playground availability, physical activity, and parental socioeconomic status. For data analysis, we used structural equation modelling. Generally, the physical activity of our sample was low (2.24±1.35). Both playground availability (T=9.129) and parental socioeconomic status (T=6.564) had significant effects on children participation in physical activity. Moreover, parental socioeconomic status has not significantly mediated the association between playground availability and children participation in physical activity (β=0.221, P=0.684). These findings indicated that playground availability and socioeconomic status of parents affect children participation in physical activity; however, these factors do not necessarily work together to strengthen children participation in physical activity.

Specific learning disabilities are known as the neurodevelopmental problems affecting the brain’s ability to receive and process verbal and nonverbal information effectively, leading to some persistent problems in students’ academic skills. The present study aimed to study the counseling needs of students with dyslexia and investigate the effect of counseling on psychological well-being of these students. This is a mixed method study conducted quantitatively and qualitatively. The statistical population comprised all the dyslexic students aged 8 to 12 years old in Kerman, Iran who had referred to learning disorders centers in the academic year of 2019-2020. The research sample included 40 students with dyslexia selected using a purposive sampling method. We randomly assigned them to experimental and control groups. The children in the experimental group received eight 90-minute sessions of education based on consulting needs. For data collection, students’ reading impairment test and students’ psychological wellbeing test were utilized. The data were analyzed using the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). The qualitative findings resulted in an educational package consisting of a three-stage assessment of educational needs of students with learning disabilities, namely the identification of counseling needs in the phases of identification, coordination, action and control. Additionally, ANCOVA indicated that among the components of dyslexia, word reading test (0.40±0.50 vs. 0.80±0.41; P=0.001), rhyme test (0.20±0.41 vs. 0.75±0.44; P=0.001), word comprehension test (0.10±0.30 vs. 0.55±0.51; P=0.021), and voice removal test (0.05±0.22 vs. 0.65±0.48; P=0.001 (had significant changes. Based on the quantitative and qualitative results of the research, it can be inferred that identifying counseling needs, preparing counseling packages, and providing rehabilitation interventions based on those needs can be effective in reducing students’ dyslexia-related problems.