The present study examines the immediate impact of empathic attitudes on the receiver, by comparing an empathic conversation (EC) with a neutral one (NC) on experiencing depth (EXP), perceived empathy and vagal tone. We also evaluate if empathy effects depend on personality dispositions relevant to interpersonal functioning. An experimental, counterbalanced, within-subject design was implemented wherein participants (n = 27, age M = 22.6, SD = 4.0, 52% females) talked about a personal, meaningful topic for 20 minutes under both the EC and NC conditions. At the group level, main results indicated that the EC was more effective than the NC in promoting increases in EXP over time (F(1, 25) = 21.04, p < .001, ηp2 = .457) and perceived empathy in women (F(1, 25) = 9.42, p = .005, ηp2 = .264). At the individual level, the NC particularly precluded EXP gains in people expressing a better interpersonal functioning (βs < –.46, ps < .05 for attachment security and empathy and β = .38, p < .05 for aggression), and who also inhibited their vagal tone throughout this very condition (β = .40, p = .024). We conclude that the empathic context has an immediate positive impact on healthy psychological variables, whereas a more impersonal setting would drive people away from this positive effect. Those results are discussed in the light of the role of interpersonal proximity (being empathic to another’s experience and the lack of this attitude) in psychotherapy and healthy functioning.

The objective of the study was to determine the causal effects of school failure (SF) among secondary school students, belonging to five public schools within the region of Girardota, Colombia, through the validation of a psychosocial model with structural equations. A total of 319 students, 25% more males, enrolled in classes between 6th and 11th year, with an average age of 14 years. Furthermore, 265 parents and 200 teachers were also included in the sample. Participants answered the questions raised in 9 instruments. Of the total number of students, 63.8% were surveyed. The instruments were subjected to a pilot test and to the judgment of experts. In order to reduce the amount of data, exploratory and confirmatory factorial analyses were used. Other techniques of multivariate analysis such as decision trees and linear regressions were also used in order to previously evaluate the relationships between the independent variables (IV) and the dependent variable (DV). Afterwards, the Full SEM was calculated, yielding a model consisting of 34 variables (10 latent and 24 observable), with the following indexes of goodness of fit: CMIN/DF = 1.146, p = .058, IFI = 0.974, TLI = .970, CFI = .974, RMSEA = .027 and PCLOSE = 0.998. Theoretically, the model confirms the predictive value of the selected variables, with respect to school failure. The results are applicable to both the design of educational policies and the direct intervention in the classroom. In both contexts, strategies can be developed that reduce factors that negatively affect school performance, actively linking students, teachers and parents.

Studies on the cognitive working mechanism of smoking cessation in high-risk populations are few and much needed, and identifying long-term psychosocial factors to smoking cessation are relevant to improve intervention for cardiac patient groups. This longitudinal study followed patients who smoked and suffered an acute coronary syndrome from hospitalization to 12 months after clinical discharge. Questionnaires were administered to assess nicotine dependence, behavioral dependence, autonomous self-regulation, perceived competence, social support, anxiety, depressive symptoms and meaning in life at baseline, six months and twelve months after clinical discharge. The results showed that anxiety (F(2, 62) = 28.10, p < .001, ηp2 = .48) and depressive symptoms (F(2, 62) = 10.42, p < .001, ηp2 = .25) decreased over time, whereas meaning in life (F(2, 61) = 44.77, p < .001, ηp2 = .59) and social support increased (t(63) = –4.54, p < .001, 95% IC[–11.05, 4.29], η2 =.25). Smoking dependence was negatively predicted by change in perceived competence (B = –2.25, p = .011, 95% IC[.02, .60]) and positively by change in depressive symptoms (B =.37, p = .042, 95% IC[1.01, 2.05]) 12 months after clinical discharge. Nicotine dependence (t(17) = 2.76, p = .014, 95% IC[.39, 2.94], η2 =.31) and the number of cigarettes smoked per day (t(17) = 4.48, p < .001, 95% IC[5.49, 15.29], η2 =.54) decreased over time, whereas behavioral dependence increased among smokers (t(17) = –2.37, p = .030, 95% IC[–4.30, 2.54], η2 =.25). This study suggests that long term abstinence in cardiac patients may be enhanced by psychological interventions addressing perceived competence, depressive symptoms and behavioral dependence.

The aim of this study was to analyse the contribution of social support from family, friend and school (teacher and classmate) contexts in substance use (tobacco and alcohol use) and well-being (life satisfaction and health-related quality of life). Participants were 5,784 Portuguese and 22,610 Spanish adolescents aged 11 to 16 years, from the 2014 edition of the Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC) study in Portugal and Spain. Results showed that for a higher life satisfaction, family (p < .001, partial η2 = .032), teacher (p < .001, partial η2 = .018) and classmate (p < .001, partial η2 = .031) support were important in Portugal, and family (p < .001, partial η2 = .056) and friend (p < .001, partial η2 = .015) support in Spain. Similarly, for a better health-related quality of life, all the social support variables were relevant in Portugal (family: p < .001, partial η2 = .063; teacher: p < .001, partial η2 = .032; classmate: p < .001, partial η2 = .054; friend: p < .001, partial η2 = .034) and in Spain (family: p < .001, partial η2 = .054; teacher: p < .001, partial η2 = .014; classmate: p < .001, partial η2 = .018; friend: p < .001, partial η2 = .040). In contrast, only family support (p < .001, partial η2 = .014) was relevant in Portugal for tobacco use. Therefore, social support was more relevant for adolescent well-being than for adolescent substance use, and the most relevant source of support was family support, in both Spain and Portugal.

Research carried out in different cultural contexts shows that the use of exclusively coercive disciplinary measures does not improve the behavior of those punished, and may even increase the risks underpinning those behaviors. The aim of this research was to study whether there is a link between repeatedly suffering punishment at school and psychosocial risks in adolescence. A non-experimental design was implemented with selected groups. The participants were 507 adolescents from four groups with different risk levels: in social protection (n = 189); subject to court measures (n = 104); in treatment for drug abuse (n = 25); and comparison group (n = 189). A questionnaire was applied collectively. The variables measured were school punishments, violence, drug consumption and commission of crimes. The mild punishments variable predicted and increased the probability of consuming alcohol, tobacco and cannabis by 34% (95% CI [1.1, 1.5]), and increased the probability of using illegal drugs by 11% (95% CI [1.11, 1.30]). Te severe punishments variable increased the probability of using illegal drugs by 86% (95% CI [1.41, 2.49]) and increased the probability of committing crimes by 40% (95% CI [1.13, 1.73]). School punishments, particularly if severe, stand as a visible indicator of psychosocial risk. Behaviors subjected to punishment should alert us to the need to intervene with individuals who manifest them for which the use of exclusively coercive measures is ineffective. A wider educational intervention is required to help them find their place in school instead of excluding them from it.

Self-regulation on behalf of the student is crucial in learning Mathematics through hypermedia applications and is an even greater challenge in these IT environments. Two aims are formulated. First, to analyze the effectiveness of a hypermedia tool in improving perceived knowledge of self-regulatory strategies and the perceived usage of the planning, executing and assessment strategy on behalf of students with low, medium and high levels of academic performance. Second, to analyze the effectiveness of the hypermedia tool in improving perceived usage of the strategy for planning, monitoring and evaluating on behalf of students with a perceived knowledge (low, medium and high). Participants were 624 students (aged 10–13), classified into a treatment group (TG; 391) and a comparative group (CG; 233). They completed a questionnaire on perceived knowledge (Perceived Knowledge of Self-Regulatory Strategies) and another one on perceived usage of the strategy for planning, performing and evaluating (Inventory of Self-regulatory Learning Processes). Univariate covariance analyses (ANCOVAs) and Student-t tests were used. ANCOVA results were not statistically significant. However, the linear contrast indicated a significant improvement in perceived knowledge of strategies among the TG with low, medium and high academic performance (p ≤ .001). Results are discussed in the light of past and future research.

This study explores variables related to teachers’ perception of disruption at school as a function of teachers (sense of personal accomplishment, professional disengagement and depersonalization and emotional exhaustion) and school (overall school management and quality of school rules) factors. Using a questionnaire regarding school climate, data from 4,055 teachers across 187 high schools were analyzed. Hierarchical linear modeling was applied and the results indicate that, taken separately, significant individual teacher predictors (Model 1) explain 26% (95% CI [.23, .29]) of the variability of the perceived disruption, especially depersonalization and emotional exhaustion. Contextual school variables (Model 2) explained 15% (95% CI [.12, .18]) of variance in teachers’ perceived disruption, with a significant negative relationship with the quality of rules. Model 3 included the above factors plus interactions between the emotional exhaustion and depersonalization variables and school indicators (30% of variance explained; 95% CI [.26, .33]). The results indicated the existence of a moderating effect for the quality of school rules, so that fair and properly-applied rules in the school context may be associated with a decrease in the relationship between depersonalization and emotional exhaustion and perceived disruption.

Empathy has been identified as a relevant variable in order to predict burnout in healthcare professionals. In addition, assertiveness and self-esteem have been considered relevant variables to develop empathic capacity. In the other hand, misconceptions surrounding empathy constitute a risk factor for burnout. Two adult samples (N = 252 and N = 275) were used to explore and confirm the underlying structure of two questionnaires. The Exercise of Process of Empathy (EPE) scale (18 items) confirmatory factor analysis including 5 dimensions (cognitive and emotional comprehension, attention, clarity and assertiveness), showed reasonable goodness- of-fit indices χ2(130) = 269.63, p < .001; RMSEA = .069 90% CI [0.058 – 0.079]; CFI = .965; TLI = .959. Alpha coefficient resulted .848. Common Misconceptions (EH) of empathy scale (16 items) confirmatory factor analysis, including 3 dimensions (feeling, confluence and character misconceptions) also obtained reasonable goodness-of-fit indices χ2(101) = 250.59, p < .001; RMSEA = .075 90% CI [0.063 – 0.087]; CFI = .952; TLI = .943. Alpha coefficient for Character resulted .727 (5 items), for Confluence .764 (5 items) and for Feeling .822 (6 items). The SEM model’s R2 resulted .303, being EH (misconceptions) a risk factor (b* = .171), EPE (empathy process) a protection factor (b* = –.183). The model partially explains how misconceptions empathy process and self-esteem (b* = –.334) relate to burnout syndrome in healthcare professionals; what is more, it heralds a potential means to prevent it.

This paper presents abundant empirical evidence to support the view that Santiago Ramón y Cajal was a pioneer of the emerging Psychology of Science discipline. Narrative analysis of his autobiography (Recollections of my Life) and some of his unspecialized works (Advice for a Young Investigator, The World from an Eighty-Year-Old’s Point of View, and Café Chats) revealed that the Spanish histologist’s interest in the psychology of scientists was part and parcel of a high-level, intellectual self-regulation strategy he applied on his path to success. This research led him to document various psychological conclusions about scientists in writing, so as to encourage, guide, and facilitate the work of junior researchers. Current knowledge of the Psychology of Science has confirmed many of the Nobel laureate’s observations about psychosocial aspects of scientists, scientific reasoning, and creativity.

The Padua Inventory (PI) of obsessions and compulsions is one of the most usually applied tests to assess obsessive-compulsive symptomatology in research contexts as well as for clinical and screening purposes. A reliability generalization meta-analysis was accomplished to estimate the average reliability of the PI scores and to search for characteristics of the samples and studies that can explain the variability among reliability estimates. An exhaustive literature search enabled us to select 39 studies (53 independent samples) that reported alpha and/or test-retest coefficients with the data at hand for the PI total score and subscales. An excellent average coefficient alpha was found for the PI total score (M = .935; 95%CI = .922–.949) and for Impaired Mental Control subscale (M = .911; 95%CI = .897–.924), being good for Contamination (M = .861; 95%CI = .841–.882) and Checking (M = .880; 95%CI = .856–.903), and fair for Urges and Worries (M = .783; 95%CI = .745–.822). The average test-retest reliability for PI total score was also satisfactory (M = .835; 95%CI = .782–.877). Moderator analyses showed larger coefficients alpha for larger standard deviation of the PI total scores (p = .0005; R2 = .46), for adapted versions of the test (p = .002; R2 = .32), and for samples composed of clinical participants (p = .066; R2 = .10). The practical implications of these results are discussed as well as the need for researchers to report reliability estimates with the data at hand.

This study uses ecological momentary assessment (EMA) with smartphone devices to examine community adolescents’ perceptions regarding both the intensity of and variability in their daily sadness/depression, anxiety, and somatic problems over the period of one week. Participants were 90 high-school students (Mage = 14.61, SD = 1.64; range 12–18). The sample was divided according to gender (61.1% girls), migratory status (68.5% Spanish nationals and 31.5% Latin American immigrants), and level of psychological symptoms (17% risk group). Sadness/depression, anxiety, and somatic problems were examined using a smartphone app, five times per day, semi-randomly, for seven days (35 possible moments). A high proportion of adolescents did not report feelings of sadness (80.0%) or worry (79.3%) or physical symptoms on a daily basis (84.9%). Girls and the risk group reported greater intensity levels for the three analyzed problems than did boys and the normal group, respectively (p < .001 in all cases). Migratory status was not associated with any significant differences in the analyzed problems over the one-week period (p > .05 in all cases). Day-to-day fluctuations in mood during the week were statistically significant but not meaningful (b = 0.0004, 95% CI [0.0001, 0.0008], p = .001).

This longitudinal study examined the early word and nonword repetition abilities of monolingual Spanish speaking children. We explored the role that word status, word length, and time play in repetition performance of children with different vocabulary levels. We also examined the predictive value of vocabulary level in repetition abilities. Thirty-seven children participated in this study: 15 late talkers and 22 typically developing children. Families completed the Spanish version of the MacArthur Communicative Developmental Inventory (MCDI) at age 2; children performed a word and nonword repetition task at three different moments, with a temporal interval of 6 months between Time 1 and Time 2, and eight months between Time 2 and Time 3, periods during which linguistic development takes place. We found significant effects for word status, word length, vocabulary level and time: words are repeated better than nonwords; one syllable items are easier to repeat than two and three syllable ones; the performance of late talking children is lower compared to typically developing children throughout the study; and repetition abilities improve longitudinally. In addition, early vocabulary level predicts subsequent repetition abilities and early nonword repetition abilities predict future nonword repetition performance.

Inconsistent condom use in young people is related to the perceived barriers to their use. The psychometric properties and factor structure of the new Condom Use Barriers Scale for Adolescents (CUBS-A) are analyzed. Concurrent validity was assessed by the Attitude towards condom use subscale of the validated HIV-AS test and the percentage of condom use variable. A total of 629 Spanish adolescents whose mean age was 15.17 (SD = 1.09; 51.5% boys) participated. Exploratory factor analysis supported a 15–item instrument with four factors: negotiation skills, perceived feelings, negative aspects of condoms, and disruption of the sexual experience, which explained 41.89% of the total variance (KMO = .84; χ2 = 1071.93; p < .001). The results show high internal consistency (α = .86) and a good fit of the data to the model (NNFI = .93; CFI = .95; IFI = .95; RMSEA = .04). Its total score and most of its factors show acceptable correlation with the percentage of condom use, values that support the criterial validity (p ≤ .05). Gender differences were found in most subscales (p ≤ .001). The CUBS-A is a valid and reliable new instrument for assessing perceived barriers in adolescents for using condoms to protect themselves during sexual intercourse.

The study of orthographic errors in a transparent language such as Spanish is an important topic in relation to writing acquisition because in Spanish it is common to write pseudohomophones as valid words. The main objective of the present study was to explore the possible differences in activation patterns in brain areas while processing pseudohomophone orthographic errors between participants with high (High Spelling Skills (HSS)) and low (Low Spelling Skills (LSS)) spelling orthographic abilities. We hypothesize that (a) the detection of orthographic errors will activate bilateral inferior frontal gyri, and that (b) this effect will be greater in the HSS group. Two groups of 12 Mexican participants, each matched by age, were formed based on their results in a group of spelling-related ad hoc tests: HSS and LSS groups. During the fMRI session, two experimental tasks were applied involving correct and pseudohomophone substitution of Spanish words. First, a spelling recognition task and second a letter searching task. The LSS group showed, as expected, a lower number of correct responses (F(1, 21) = 52.72, p <.001, η2 = .715) and higher reaction times compared to the HSS group for the spelling task (F(1, 21) = 60.03, p <.001, η2 = .741). However, this pattern was reversed when the participants were asked to decide on the presence of a vowel in the words, regardless of spelling. The fMRI data showed an engagement of the right inferior frontal gyrus in HSS group during the spelling task. However, temporal, frontal, and subcortical brain regions of the LSS group were activated during the same task.

Basic numerical processing has been regularly assessed using numerical nonsymbolic and symbolic comparison tasks. It has been assumed that these tasks index similar underlying processes. However, the evidence concerning the reliability and convergent validity across different versions of these tasks is inconclusive. We explored the reliability and convergent validity between two numerical comparison tasks (nonsymbolic vs. symbolic) in school-aged children. The relations between performance in both tasks and mental arithmetic were described and a developmental trajectories’ analysis was also conducted. The influence of verbal and visuospatial working memory processes and age was controlled for in the analyses. Results show significant reliability (p < .001) between Block 1 and 2 for nonsymbolic task (global adjusted RT (adjRT): r = .78, global efficiency measures (EMs): r = .74) and, for symbolic task (adjRT: r = .86, EMs: r = .86). Also, significant convergent validity between tasks (p < .001) for both adjRT (r = .71) and EMs (r = .70) were found after controlling for working memory and age. Finally, it was found the relationship between nonsymbolic and symbolic efficiencies varies across the sample’s age range. Overall, these findings suggest both tasks index the same underlying cognitive architecture and are appropriate to explore the Approximate Number System (ANS) characteristics. The evidence supports the central role of ANS in arithmetic efficiency and suggests there are differences across the age range assessed, concerning the extent to which efficiency in nonsymbolic and symbolic tasks reflects ANS acuity.

Bullying and cyberbullying are highly prevalent in today’s society. However, the personality profiles of different roles involved in this phenomenon remain little known. This study aims (1) to examine the association between bullying and cyberbullying in adolescents; and (2) to analyze the relationship between bullying and cyberbullying in terms of the domains and facets of the five-factor model (FFM). A total of 910 adolescents aged 12 to 19 years old participated. They were administered self-report assessments of aggression and victimization in bullying and cyberbullying, as well as the JS-NEO-S questionnaire. The results provide evidence of co-occurrence between bullying and cyberbullying (p < .001). We observed higher neuroticism in victims and aggressor-victims, higher openness in victims, higher agreeableness in victims and non-aggressor non-victims and higher conscientiousness in non-aggressor non-victims as compared with the rest of the groups (p < .001). Comparison of the four cyberbullying groups showed that cybervictims score higher in neuroticism and openness, cybervictims and non-cybervictims non-cyberaggressors score higher in agreeableness and non-cybervictims non-cyberaggressors score higher in conscientiousness (p < .001) In conclusion, this study provides a broad, systematic view of the personality traits associated with different roles implicated in traditional bullying and cyberbullying.