Thesis (MCom)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study recognised the importance of well-being of employees in today’s turbulent working environment. It departed from the notion that the sustainability of organisations is determined by the quality of its workforce and therefore employee well-being is a major priority. The well-being of employees is not a random occurrence, but rather a complex phenomenon. Any attempt to influence or change the well-being of employees should be grounded in a firm understanding of the complexity of the well-being phenomenon. Steyn (2011) developed a Salotogenic Model of Occupational Well-being in an attempt to depict how positive psychological variables can be combined in a dynamic depiction of the nomological net of variables underlying the phenomenon of well-being in the workplace. The rationale for her study was that state-like Optimism and Self-efficacy will have a significant and direct positive effect on their Occupational Well-being, partly because of these psychological resources’ ability to foster positive expectations about the future, and partly because of the heightened sense of Organisational Commitment and Work Engagement facilitated by higher levels of Optimism and Self-efficacy. As a first adaption to the Steyn (2011) study, this study attempted to explicate the arguments that motivated the adaption and expansion of the original Steyn (2011) Salutogenic Model of Occupational Well-being, into the Steyn-Boers Structural Model of Psychological Well-being at Work. Set within the theoretical frameworks of Positive Organisational Behaviour (POB), the Broaden-and-Build theory (Fredrickson, 2001), as well as Hobfoll’s (1989) Conservation of Resource (COR) theory, the focus in this study was on explicating the nomological net ofariables underlying Subjective Well-being (SWB) and Psychological Well-Being at Work (PWBW), as two contemporary constructs well integrated into the Occupational Well-being literature. SWB was defined as both Hedonic Well-being (HWB) and Eudaimonic Well-being (EWB). HWB was further defined as Positive Affect (PA) and Negative Affect (NA). Well-being was contextualised in the work domain with Dagenais-Desmarais and Sovoie’s (2012) Psychological Well-being at Work (PWBW) construct. Hope, Resilience and Gratitude were included as additional psychological resources. Work Engagement was retained in the current study due to its central role in well-being. It was argued that Perceived Organisational Support (POS) and Psychological Ownership should further translate into better well-being and were therefore included in this study. A non-experimental research design (i.e. survey study) was used to explore the relationships between the various constructs. A convenience sample of 199 respondents was recruited via a social media network platform, Facebook, (i.e. non probability sampling technique). The measurement instruments included were the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) (Watson, Clark & Tellegen, 1988); Ryff’s (1989) Psychological Well-being Scale; and the Index of Psychological Well-Being at Work, developed by Dagenais-Desmarais and Savoie (2012). The four constructs that constitute Psychological Capital (Hope, Optimism, Self-efficacy and Resilience) were measured with the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (Luthans, Avey & Avolio 2007a). Gratitude was measured with the Gratitude Questionnaire-Six-Item form (GQ-6), (McCullough, Emmons & Tsang, 2002) and Work Engagement was measured with the 9-item Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9) (Schaufeli & Bakker, 2003). Perceived Organisational Support was measured by the Perceived Organisational Support Scale, (Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchinson & Sowa, 1986) and Psychologocal Ownership was measured with the Psychological Ownership Questionnaire (Pierce, O’Driscoll & Coghlan, 2004). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and item analysis were conducted to evaluate the reliability and validity of the measurement instruments. SEM was used to fit the structural model to the data to investigate the extent to which the abovementioned constructs were significant predictors of SWB and PWBW. The results of the study revealed that different positive psychological resources predicted different aspects of well-being. For example, Hope had an indirect effect on both PA and PWBW, whilst Optimism had a direct effect on EWB and NA, with an indirect effect on PA and PWBW. Self-efficacy had a direct effect on EWB and Resilience a direct effect on PA. Optimism, as found in the Steyn (2011) study, thus played a very central role in overall well-being. Gratitude, although it had no direct effect on any of the well-being constructs, affected NA, PA, EWB and PWBW indirectly by working mainly through Optimism. Strong support that Work Engagement and Perceived Organisational Support contribute to the well-being of employees emerged. Psychological Ownership was the only construct that had no direct or indirect effect on well-being. It was argued that a possible explanation for this may be that Psychological Ownership might not be an antecedent to well-being, but rather a dimension thereof. The importance of this study was thus condensed in the knowledge that there are certain important antecedents to the management of PWBW. The results provide a probable explanation of the complex nomological net of variables and their interrelationships with each other, which influence Psychological Well-being at Work. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie herken die belangrikheid van werknemer welstand in vandag se ontwrigtende werksomgewing. Dit het vertrek vanaf die idee dat die volhoubaarheid van organisasies bepaal word deur die gehalte van sy werksmag en dus is werknemer welstand ‘n belangrike prioriteit. Die welstand van werknemers is nie ‘n ewekansige gebeurtenis nie, maar eerder ‘n komplekse verskynsel. Enige poging om die welstand van werknemers te beïnvloed of te verander, moet gegrond wees in ‘n ferm begrip van die kompleksiteit van die welstand verskynsel. Steyn (2011) het ‘n Salutogeniese Model van Beroepswelstand ontwikkel in ‘n poging om uit te beeld hoe positiewe sielkundige veranderlikes gekombineer kan word in ‘n dinamiese voorstelling van die nomologiese net van veranderlikes, onderliggend aan die verskynsel van welstand in die werksplek. Die rasionaal vir haar studie was dat Optimisme en Self-doeltreffendheid ‘n beduidende en direkte positiewe effek op Beroepswelstand sou hê, deels as gevolg van die sielkundige hulpbronne se vermoë om positiewe verwagtinge vir die toekoms te bevorder, en deels as gevolg van die verhoogte gevoel van Organisasieverbintenis en Werksbetrokkenheid wat gefasiliteer word deur hoër vlakke van Optimisme en Self-doeltreffenheid. As ‘n eerste aanpassing tot die Steyn (2011) studie, het hierdie studie gepoog om die argumente wat die aanpassing en uitbreiding van die oorspronklike Steyn (2011) Salutogeniese Model van Beroepswelstand tot die Steyn-Boers Strukturele Model van Sielkundige Welstand by die Werk, te verduidelik. Met inagneming van die teoretiese raamwerke van Positiewe Organisasie Gedrag (POG), Uitbrei-en-Bou teorie (Fredrickson, 2001) en Hobfoll (1989) se Bewaring van Hulpbronne (BH) teorie, was die fokus van die studie op die uitspel van die nomologiese net van veranderlikes onderliggende aan Subjektiewe Welstand (SW) en Sielkundige Welstand by die Werk (SWW) as twee kontemporêre konstrukte goed geïntegreer in die Beroepswelstand literatuur. SW was omskryf as beide Hedoniese Welstand (HW) en Eudimoniese Welstand (EW). HW was verder gedefinieer in terme van Positiewe Affek (PA) en Negatiewe Affek (NA). Welstand is gekontekstualiseerd in die werk domein met Dagenais-Desmarais en Savoie (2012) se konstruk van Sielkundige Welstand by die Werk (SWW). Hoop, Veerkragtigheid en Dankbaarheid is ingesluit as addisionele Sielkundige Kapitaal. Werksbetrokkenheid is in die huidige studie behou oor sy sentrale rol tot welstand. Dit is aangevoer dat Waargenome Organisasie Ondersteuning (WOO) en Sielkundige Eienaarskap werkers se welstand verder sal bevorder en was dus ingesluit in die studie. ‘n Nie-eksperimentele navorsingsontwerp (d.w.s. ‘n vraelys studie) was gebruik om die verwantskappe tussen die verskillende konstrukte vas te stel. ‘n Gerieflikheidsteekproef van 199 respondente was gewerf via ‘n sosiale media netwerk platvorm, Facebook (d.w.s. ‘n nie waarskynlikheidsteekproefneming tegniek). Die meetinstrumente het ingesluit die Positiewe en Negatiewe Affek Skedule (PANAS) (Watson et al., 1988); Ryff (1989) se Sielkundige Welstand Skaal en die Indeks vir Sielkundige Welstand by die Werk wat ontwikkel is deur Dagenais-Desmarais en Savoie (2012). Die vier konstrukte waaruit Sielkunidge Kapitaal bestaan (Hoop, Optimisme, Self-doeltreffendheid en Veerkragtigheid) was gemeet met die Sielkundige Kapitaal Vraelys-24 (Luthans et al., 2007a). Dankbaarheid was gemeet met die Dankbaarheid Vraelys–Ses-Item vorm (DV-6) (McCullough et al., 2002) en Werksbetrokkenheid was gemeet met die 9-item Utrecht Werksbetrokkenheid Skaal (UWBS-9) (Schaufeli & Bakker, 2003). Waargenome Organisasie Ondersteuning is gemeet deur die Waargenome Organisasie Ondersteuning Skaal (Eisenberger et al., 1986) en Sielkundige Eienaarskap is gemeet met die Sielkundige Eienaarskap Vraelys (Pierce et al., 2004). Bevestigende faktorontleding en item analise is gebruik om die betroubaarheid en geldigheid van die meetinstrumente te evalueer. Strukturele vergelyking modellering was gebruik om die strukturele model op die data te pas om vas te stel tot watter mate die bogenoemde konstrukte beduidende voorspellers van SW en SWW is. Die resultate van die studie het getoon dat die verskillende positiewe sielkundige hulpbronne, verskillende aspekte van welstand voorspel. Hoop het, byvoorbeeld, ‘n indirekte uitwerking op beide PA en SWW gehad; terwyl Optimisme n direkte invloed op EB en NA, met ‘n indirekte effek op PA en SWW getoon het. Self-doeltreffendheid het ‘n direkte invloed op EB, en Veerkragtigheid ‘n direkte invloed op PA, gehad. Optimisme, soos gevind in die Steyn (2011) studie, het ‘n baie sentrale rol in algehele welstand gespeel. Alhoewel Dankbaarheid geen direkte invloede op enige van die welstand konstrukte gehad het nie, het dit wel ‘n indirekte effek op PA, NA, EB en SWW gehad, meestal deur Optimisme. Sterk steun het na vore gekom dat Werksbetrokkenheid en Waargenome Organisasie Ondersteuning tot die welstand van werknemers bydra. Sielkundige Eienaarskap was die enigste konstruk wat geen direkte of indirekte invloed op welstand gehad het nie. Dit was geargumenteer dat ‘n moontlike verduideliking hiervoor mag wees dat Sielkundige Eienaarskap moontlik nie ‘n voorspeller van welstand is nie, maar eerder ‘n dimensie daarvan. Die belangrikheid van hierdie studie is dus gekonsentreerd in die wete dat daar sekere belangrike voorspellers tot die bestuur van SWW is. Die resultate verskaf ‘n moontlike verduideliking van die komplekse nomologiese net van veranderlikes en hul onderlinge verbande met mekaar, wat sodoende Sielkundige Welstand by die Werk beïnvloed.

La santé psychologique des personnes âgées est maintenant une préoccupation majeure. Cette thèse s‘inscrit dans une perspective interculturelle. Elle a pour objectif d‘examiner les déterminants du bien-être psychologique des personnes âgées gabonaises et françaises à travers les facteurs individuels (par exemple, la personnalité et la motivation), les facteurs environnementaux (par exemple, la culture et les relations sociales) et la manière dont la personne âgée interagit avec son environnement social. La théorie d‘autodétermination(Deci et Ryan, 2002) a servi d‘appui, car elle explique comment les buts personnels et les facteurs environnementaux peuvent influencer la satisfaction des besoins psychologiques fondamentaux et le bien-être de la personne, quel que soit son âge.Les résultats ont indiqué que le bien-être psychologique chez les personnes âgées gabonaises et françaises est déterminé par les dimensions de la personnalité, les relations aux autres (soutien social et amour compassionnel) et la motivation extrinsèque (études 1 et 2).Dans l‘étude 3, nous avons validé une échelle de mesure de la satisfaction des besoins psychologiques chez la personne âgée. Enfin, les résultats de l‘étude 4 ont indiqué que le bien-être psychologique est influencé par la culture et la satisfaction des besoins psychologiques fondamentaux. Pour autant, les effets de l‘individualisme et du collectivisme semblent plus significatifs chez les personnes âgées gabonaises.Globalement, ces résultats sont en ligne avec les travaux antérieurs. Ils apportent des connaissances supplémentaires pour ce qui de l‘importance des relations aux autres sur le bien-être psychologique des personnes âgées. De plus, ils soutiennent le point de vue de la théorie d‘autodétermination concernant l‘universalité des besoins psychologiques d‘autonomie, de compétence et d‘appartenance sociale. / Psychological health of older people is now a major concern. This thesis is part of cross-cultural perspective in two countries : Gabon and France. It aims to examine the determinants of the psychological well-being of Gabonese and French older people through individual factors (for example, personality and motivation), environmental factors (forexample, culture and social relations) and how the elderly person interacts with their socialenvironment. The Self-Determination Theory (Deci and Ryan, 2002) served as support, as itexplains how personal goals and environmental factors can influence satisfaction of basicpsychological needs and personal well-being, regardless of their age.The results in studies 1 and 2 indicated that psychological well-being among Gaboneseand French older people is determined by personality dimensions, relationships with others(perceived social support and compassionate love) and extrinsic motivation. In Study 3, wevalidated a scale for measuring the satisfaction of psychological needs in the elderly. Finally, the results of Study 4 indicated that psychological well-being is influenced by culture and the satisfaction of basic psychological needs. However, effects of individualism and collectivismseem more significant among Gabonese older people.Overall, these results are in line with previous studies. It bring additional knowledge regarding the importance of relationships with others on older people psychological wellbeing.Moreover, our results support the self-determination theory perspective concerning the universality of the psychological needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness.

Orientador: Anita Liberalesso Neri / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Educação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-13T00:07:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Queroz_NelmaCaires_D.pdf: 1223986 bytes, checksum: f4c2cf38bfba47a3b67ea07b2920776f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / Resumo: Estudo 1: investigou bem-estar psicológico em amostra de conveniência de 300 homens e 300 mulheres de 25 a 35 e de 45 a 55 anos por meio da Escala de Desenvolvimento Pessoal (EDEP), com 5 fatores. Os itens da EDEP e Fator 1 (auto-realização, crescimento pessoal e ajustamento psicológico) mostraram consistência interna satisfatória. Independentemente da idade, as mulheres tiveram maior pontuação do que os homens no Fator 1. As mulheres adultas tiveram médias mais altas do que os homens adultos nos Fatores 1, 2 (produtividade), 4 (preocupações com as próximas gerações); os homens de meia-idade tiveram maior pontuação no Fator 5 (compromisso com o outro do que as mulheres de meia-idade); os adultos pontuaram mais alto do que o grupo de meia-idade no Fator 4; o grupo de meia-idade pontuou mais alto do que os adultos no Fator 3 (cuidado) e no Fator 5. Conclusão: A EDEP total e o Fator 1 mostraram alta consistência interna. As mulheres independentemente da faixa etária e o grupo de meia-idade apresentaram mais autos-relatos positivos sobre o bem-estar psicológico. Estudo 2: investigou relações entre bem-estar psicológico, personalidade e enfrentamento em homens e mulheres adultos e de meia-idade. Foram selecionados os 40 participantes que tiveram maior pontuação e os 40 que tiveram menor pontuação na EDEP no Estudo I. Foram aplicadas as Escalas Fatoriais de Neuroticismo, Extroversão e Socialização e a Escala Modo de Enfrentamento Problemas e a EDEP. O bem-estar psicológico correlacionou-se negativamente com neuroticismo e positivamente com extroversão, socialização e estratégias de enfrentamento focalizadas no problema. As mulheres apresentaram mais ansiedade e utilizaram mais estratégias focalizadas na emoção e em práticas religiosas do que os homens. Os adultos pontuaram mais alto em neuroticismo e utilizaram mais estratégias focalizadas na emoção do que os de meia-idade; estes pontuaram mais alto em socialização do que os adultos. Os participantes que tiveram maior pontuação na 1ª avaliação na EDEP, apresentaram menor neuroticismo, traços de socialização (amabilidade,confiança),extroversão (comunicação, assertividade e interações sociais) e utilizavam estratégias focalizadas no problema. Conclusão: As mulheres e os adultos apresentaram mais traços de neuroticismo e usuários de estratégias de enfrentamento focadas na emoção. Quanto maior o senso de ajustamento de bem-estar psicológico, menor o neuroticismo, mais traços de extroversão, socialização e a utilização de estratégias focalizadas no problema. / Abstract: Study I: Psychological well-being was investigated in convenience samples in 300 men and 300 women from 25 to 35 years old and 45 to 55 years old through Personal Development Scale (EDEP) with 5 factors. EDEP items and Factor 1 (self actualization, personal growth and psychological adjustment) showed satisfactory internal consistence. Regardless the age women made more points than men in Factor 1. Adult women had their averages higher than adult men in Factors 1 and 2 (productivity), 4 (worry about next generations); middle-aged men had higher punctuation in Factor 5 (commitment with the other) than middle-aged women; adults made more points than the middle-aged group in Factor 4; the middle-aged group made more points than the adults in Factor 3 (care) and in Factor 5. Conclusion: EDEP total and Factor 1 showed high internal consistence. Women regardless the age bracket and the middle-aged group presented more positive self-reports about the psychological well being. Study II: investigated relations among psychological well-being, personality and coping in both adults and middle-aged men and women. The 40 participants who made more points and the 40 who made fewer points in EDEP in Study 1 were selected. The Neuroticism Factorial Scales, Extroversion and Socialization were applied as well as Ways of Coping Problems Scale and EDEP. The psychological well-being correlated negatively with neuroticism and positively with extroversion, socialization and coping strategies based on the stressor. Women presented more anxiety and used more coping strategies based on the emotion and on religious practices than men. Adults made more points in neuroticism features and used more strategies focused on emotion than the middle-aged ones; the latter made more points in socialization than adults. The participants who made more points on the first EDEP evaluation, presented less neuroticism, socialization traces (tenderness, trust), extrovert (communication, assertiveness and social interactions) and used strategies focused on the problem. Conclusion: Women and adults presented more neuroticism traces and showed they are users of coping strategies focused on emotion. The biggest the adjustment of the psychological sense of well being, the smallest the neuroticism, more traces of assertiveness, socialization and use of strategies focused on the problem. / Doutorado / Psicologia Educacional / Doutora em Educação

The thesis deals with the personality sources, defined as personality traits by five-factor model, of well-being in the both approaches - hedonic and eudaimonic - and with all its components and dimensions. The assumptions of the research are stronger relationship of personality with the subjective well-being at younger adults than at middle-aged adults and stronger relationship of personality with the psychological well-being at middle-aged adults that at younger adults. The sample consists of 103 respondents at the younger adulthood and 149 respondents at the middle adulthood. The relationships and the comparison between the both age cohorts is analyzed by correlations and multiple linear regression. Results bring the evidence of the relationship between the personality traits with the subjective and the psychological well-being. The personality sources are the strongest at the level of all components and most of the dimensions at the middle-aged adults. The results are discussed with the limits of the research and with the topics of follow-up research.

Extensive research on the psychological benefits of psychological skills training in sport has been conducted in Sport Psychology, with unambiguous positive results. However, psychological skills training has not yet been fully applied in the Psychology of Music. Mindfulness training, and specifically the mindfulness, acceptance and commitment (MAC) approach, has been applied in sport, but thus far no MAC intervention on musicians has been published. The combination of Psychological Skills Training (PST) and mindfulness (the MAC approach) training is more rare and has not yet been used in music studies. The configuration of mindfulness (MAC) and PST has been applied in a sport setting, but has never been tested in a proper intervention programme for music students. This study fills this gap. The primary aim of this research was to implement and evaluate the effect of PST, in combination with mindfulness, on undergraduate music students. The second aim was to determine whether the intervention programme had an impact on the students’ psychological well-being and the management of music performance anxiety. The third aim was to evaluate whether the students’ psychological skills and mindfulness have improved. The fourth aim was to determine whether the combination of PST and mindfulness training was successful. The fifth aim was to evaluate whether the cross-over from Sport Psychology to the Psychology of Music in terms of the knowledge base, intervention PST protocols and psychometric measuring instruments was meaningful. The sixth aim was to determine whether the correlations between the psychological constructs (subscales) of the pre-intervention test measurements on all the respondents were meaningful. A convenience sample of 36 undergraduate music students from the Department of Music at the University of Pretoria was selected. The students were asked to participate voluntarily. The experimental group consisted of 21 students, and the remaining 15 students formed the control group. A quasi-experimental design was implemented in this research to address problems that might occur because of the voluntary selection method employed. Voluntary participation was adopted to ensure that the participants were fully engaged in and committed to this study. The aspects of motivation and commitment were essential prerequisites for this research to be successful, because full commitment and maximum attendance of the intervention sessions were crucial to be able to determine the impact of this intervention programme. The results indicated a significant improvement in positive relationships with others within the experimental group, as measured by Ryff’s Psychological Well-being Scale. Pre- and postintervention test results within the experimental group indicated a statistically significant improvement in all three subscales of the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (cognitive state anxiety, somatic state anxiety and self-confidence). A statistically significant improvement on five of the seven subscales of Bull’s Mental Skills Questionnaire (self-confidence, anxiety and worry management, concentration ability, relaxation ability and levels of motivation) were reported, and on the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire, the subscales of “describe” items and “non-judge” items improved significantly from the pre-intervention test to the postintervention test in the experimental group. Interestingly, the growth mindset within the experimental group also increased significantly, while the fixed mindset decreased significantly. This significant positive increase in the scores of the experimental group might be an indication that the intervention programme had a moderately significant impact on important psychological dimensions of the participating undergraduate music students. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Psychology / unrestricted

In the South African public health care system, HIV Counselling and Testing (HCT) has become a function that is routinely entrusted to lay counsellors. These counsellors are expected to educate clients about HIV and AIDS, encourage them to be tested and convince them to change risky behavioural practices. They have to convey the clients’ test results and assist those who test HIV-positive and their families to cope with the psychological challenges associated with the diagnosis. The counsellors occupy the front line of HIV and AIDS service delivery, even though they are not formally employed in the health care system. They only have basic training and are not adequately remunerated. The counsellors are confronted with psychological and structural stressors in their work. Psychological stressors include the impact of emotionally challenging work, the lack of appropriate training, debriefing and supervision. Because they are not formally employed in the health care system, there is a lack of formal supervision or channels to discuss their frustrations. This research focuses on the stressors which HIV counsellors experience, how they cope, and the impact it has on their psychological well-being. As part of the mixed methods approach 50 HCT counsellors working at the City of Tshwane clinics completed the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory, the Maslach Burnout Inventory for Human Services Survey (MBI- HSS), the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (CES-D), and the Brief COPE scale to assess their psychological well-being. In addition, they participated in focus group discussions. EQ-i scores indicated that counsellors reported below average emotional skills, with the overall group score of (88.76). Scores that indicated average emotional skills were Self-Regard (101), Interpersonal Relationships (100.12), and Impulse Control (102.66). Scores that indicated low emotional skills were Independence (86.66), Self-Actualization (88.28), and Reality Testing (83.94). Although they reported high levels of Emotional Exhaustion (27.66), they also have a sense of high Personal Accomplishment (38.64) (MBI-HSS). Counsellors reported an overall CES-D score which was indicative of mild depression (26.08). Counsellors used mostly positive coping skills that included religion, planning, and direct action in coping with stressors in their lives. In a regression analysis with depression as the dependent variable, there was a positive relationship between depression and depersonalization and a negative relationship with positive or active coping and assertiveness. It was concluded that counsellors experienced some depression, emotional exhaustion, and lower than average levels of emotional well-being. Despite that, they reported positive ways of coping and high levels of personal accomplishment. Counsellors were motivated by their sense of altruism, compassion towards their clients, the positive changes they see in client’s lives as well as the reciprocal relationships they have formed with their clients. Counsellors thus have strengths to cope with the high level of stressors and challenges related to their work. It can be concluded that their state of mental health is in line with Keyes’ proposal that mental health forms a continuum. They fluctuate between mental well-being and mental ill-being. However, it is necessary to assist HCT counsellors to develop their emotional capacities to enable them to enhance their ability to counsel their clients effectively. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Psychology / unrestricted

This study examined whether first-generation South Asian American college students are different from continuing-generation South Asian American college students in their college adjustment, as measured by the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire and their psychological well-being (PWB), as measured by the Scales of Psychological Well-Being (SPWB). The Asian population is one of the fastest growing minority groups in the United States. Despite being the third largest Asian subgroup, South Asians continue to be underrepresented within the educational and psychological literature. A review of studies shows that compared to continuing-generation college students (CGCS), first-generation college students (FGCS) are disadvantaged in terms of their demographic characteristics, pre-college preparation, knowledge about higher education, non-cognitive variables (e.g., self-esteem), and adjustment to college. Additionally, existing research shows that FGCS experience higher levels of psychological distress and lower levels of PWB. This study found that FGCS were significantly more likely to live and work off campus, have lower household incomes, and spend fewer hours per week participating in co-curricular activities than their CGCS peers. Furthermore, FGCS had lower levels of social and academic adjustment compared to their counterparts. Finally, while FGCS had lower mean scores on the SPWB than their peers, only the scores on the Personal Growth subscale were significantly different. Understanding and contextualizing the experiences of racial/ethnic minority students who are first in their family to pursue higher education will help educators and psychologists to identify, develop, and implement culturally appropriate instructional strategies, programs, services, and treatments. Consequently, this would help nontraditional youth transition successfully into college and thrive psychologically.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om samband fanns mellan respondenters känsla av sammanhang (mätt genom KASAM-13) och psykiska välbefinnande (mätt genom General Health Questionnaire) beroende på om individerna upplevt att de utsatts för mobbning eller inte under grundskoleåren. En kvantitativ studie utfördes med hjälp av en enkät där de 121 deltagarna besvarade frågor gällande KASAM och psykiskt välbefinnande. 74 respondenter rapporterade att de utsatts för mobbning och 47 respondenter att de inte upplevt sig utsatt för mobbning under grundskoleåren. Resultatet visade att KASAM kunde predicera psykiskt välbefinnande, vilket innebar att individer med högre KASAM även hade högre psykiskt välbefinnande. Medelvärdet för KASAM i gruppen med mobbade individer var signifikant lägre än medelvärdet i gruppen med respondenter som inte upplevt sig bli mobbade. Gällande psykiskt välbefinnande var medelvärdet något lägre för mobbad-gruppen än vad det var för icke mobbad-gruppen, men inte signifikant skild från icke mobbad-gruppen. / The purpose of this study was to investigate whether there was a relationship between respondent’s Sense of Coherence (measured by SOC-13), and psychological well-being (measured by the General Health Questionnaire) depending on whether the individuals were bullied during the years they spent in elementary school or not. A quantitative study was conducted with the help of a questionnaire in which 121 participants answered questions about Sense of Coherence and psychological well-being. 74 respondents reported being bullied and 47 responded not being bullied during the elementary school years. The result showed that Sense of Coherence can predict psychological well-being which means that individuals with higher Sense of Coherence also had higher psychological well-being. The mean value of Sense of Coherence in the group of bullied individuals was significantly lower than the mean value in the group of respondents who did not have the same experience. Regarding psychological well-being, the mean was slightly lower for the bullied group than it was for the non-bullied group, but not significantly different from the non-bullied group.

There is a lack of anxiety relief methods used in the hospitality workplace. This study examines the effectiveness of two forms of anxiety relief through four different methods. The data collection took place in classroom environments at the University of North Texas and the University of New Orleans, both of which are located in southern USA. The independent variables are the recovery method, the mediator variables are restorativeness and emotional improvement, and the dependent variables are negative job affects, positive job affects, turnover intention, and job commitment. Professors were asked for some time during their lecture to conduct the experiment in a classroom environment during the students' class time. Eight classes were visited, with each class being exposed to a designated anxiety relief method. The anxiety relief methods consisted of using a virtual reality headset with sound, virtual reality headset without sound, nature pictures with sound, and nature pictures without sound. Results of 206 usable surveys indicated virtual reality recovery method evoked higher levels of restorativeness than picture recovery method. Restorativeness partially mediated the effects of positive job affects and job commitment. lastly, emotional improvement partially mediated the effects of negative job affects, positive job affects, and turnover intention.

The Hispanic population is the largest and fastest growing population in the United States, which necessitates research on the acculturation process, especially because of the current events regarding the Texas–Mexico border. Although research has indicated the need to develop coping skills to support positive mental health during acculturation, there is a lack of empirical information regarding acculturation and mental health among Mexican alumni of U.S. colleges and universities. Based on social identity theory and acculturation theory, this quantitative, correlational study was conducted to examine the relationship between acculturation and psychological well-being (PWB) among Mexican alumni of colleges and universities in the United States. Forty-seven participant surveys were obtained via an online survey on acculturation, as measured by the Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans-II, and PWB, as measured by the Ryff Scales of Psychological Well-Being. An ANCOVA was implemented with a hierarchical multiple regression with gender and amount of time spent at the U.S. college or university as covariates. However, the results were statistically nonsignificant regarding relationships between levels of acculturation and PWB, gender, and number of years at the college or university. Thus, the results promote positive social change by encouraging the development of updated instruments and inclusion of additional demographic information in the research of Mexican alumni.