Chinese Junior High School Research Articles

Online risk exposure and mental health in Chinese junior high school students: A latent profile analysis

We explored the latent profile of online risk exposure and its relationship with school students’ mental health. Junior high school students (n = 1 178; female = 49.5%, male = 50.5%; Grade 7 = 57.1%, Grade 8 = 42.9%) completed measures of online risk exposure, anxiety, depression, self-esteem, and subjective well-being. Latent profile analysis yielded heterogeneity in online risk exposure, which could be divided into security group, explicit content exposure group, and risk group. Of these groups, the security group had the best mental health status, followed by the explicit content exposure group, and the risk group had the worst mental health status. By demographics, girls, junior high school students with a poor family socioeconomic status and poor academic performance had lower mental health levels. Our findings indicate a need for phased prevention programs by online risk characteristics to improve junior high school students’ mental health.

The Impact of Cyberbullying Victimization on Cyberbullying Among Chinese Junior High School Students: A Longitudinal Moderated Mediation Model

Research suggests that cyberbullying is more harmful than traditional bullying and can cause more profound harm to individuals. The study aimed to examine the effects of cyberbullying victimization on junior high school students’ cyberbullying over time while exploring the mediating role of loneliness and the moderating role of perceived social support. Four self-report questionnaires were administered to 561 middle school students at three time points. Data were analyzed using SPSS for descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analysis. Moderated mediated effects tests were performed on the variables using SPSS Process. T1 cyberbullying victimization in middle school students predicts T2 cyberbullying behavior. T2 loneliness mediates the role of T1 cyberbullying victimization in influencing T2 cyberbullying. T2 perceived social support moderated the second half of the mediating role pathway. First, there are many mediators and moderators of cyberbullying victimization that affect cyberbullying, and others need to be examined. Second, only three middle schools in China were selected as investigators for this study, and future studies could select different populations to verify the applicability of the findings. Cyberbullying victimization can increase cyberbullying. Reducing cyberbullying requires attention to psychological and behavioral changes in cyberbullying victims.

Longitudinal reciprocal relationship between media violence exposure and aggression among junior high school students in China: a cross-lagged analysis.

Increasing evidence has shown that media violence exposure can influence individual aggression. However, the question of whether there is a causal relationship between media violence exposure and aggression remains complex and contentious. This study aims to examine the dynamic reciprocal relations between media violence exposure and aggression among junior high school students in China. Using the Exposure to Violent Media Questionnaire (ETVMQ) and the Buss-Warren Aggression questionnaire (BWAQ), 259 junior high school students were tracked three times over a period of 1 year. A cross-lagged panel model was constructed to analyze the reciprocal relationship between media violence exposure and aggression over time. (1) Media violence exposure and aggression were significantly and positively correlated in all three assessments. (2) Cross-lagged analysis revealed that media violence exposure at Time 1(T1) significantly positively predicted aggression at Time 2(T2), and subsequently significantly positively predicted media violence exposure at Time 3(T3). Additionally, media violence exposure at T2 significantly positively predicted aggression at T3. (3) Multi-group analysis revealed that gender, family economic status, and family location had no significant moderating effects on the cross-lagged effects between media violence exposure and aggression. The cross-lagged effects did not differ by gender, family economic status, or family location. There is a positive reciprocal relationship between media violence exposure and aggression among Chinese junior high school students, and this reciprocal relationship demonstrates stability across gender and family environments. Media violence exposure is not only a risk factor for increasing aggression among Chinese junior high school students but also a negative outcome of high aggression.

Relations between perceived parental acceptance-rejection and adaptive mental health in Chinese junior high school students: a latent profile analysis

Relations between perceived parental acceptance-rejection and adaptive mental health in Chinese junior high school students: a latent profile analysis

Prediction of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) among rural Chinese junior high school students: a machine learning approach

AimsNon-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a serious issue that is increasingly prevalent among children and adolescents, especially in rural areas. Developing a suitable predictive model for NSSI is crucial for early identification and intervention.MethodsThis study included 2090 Chinese rural children and adolescents. Participants’ sociodemographic information, symptoms of anxiety as well as depression, personality traits, family environment and NSSI behaviors were collected through a questionnaire survey. Gender, age, grade, and all survey results except sociodemographic information were used as relevant factors for prediction. Support vector machines, decision tree and random forest models were trained and validated by the train set and valid set, respectively. The metrics of each model were tested and compared to select the most suitable one. Furthermore, the mean decrease Gini index was calculated to measure the importance of relevant factors.ResultsThe prevalence of NSSI was 38.3%. Out of the 6 models assessed, the random forest model demonstrated the highest suitability in predicting the prevalence of NSSI. It achieved sensitivity, specificity, AUC, accuracy, precision, and F1 scores of 0.65, 0.72, 0.76, 0.70, 0.57, and 0.61, respectively. Anxiety and depression were the top two contributing factors in the prediction model. Neuroticism and conflict were the factors that contributed the most to personality traits and family environment, respectively, in terms of prediction. In addition, demographic factors contributed little to the prediction in this study.ConclusionThis study focused on Chinese children and adolescents in rural areas and demonstrated the potential of using machine learning approaches in predicting NSSI. Our research complements the application of machine learning methods to psychiatric and psychological problems.

A latent profile analysis of cognitive emotion regulation strategies in relation to negative emotions and NSSI among Chinese junior high school students

BackgroundLittle is known about the latent profiles of cognitive emotion regulation strategy (CERS) and its relationship with negative emotions and Non-Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI) in Chinese junior high school students, although CERS is thought to be strongly associated with emotional-behavioral problems in adolescents.MethodsA total of 2807 junior high school students in Yunnan Province, China, were selected for the study. They were measured with the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ), the Non-Suicidal Self-Injury Questionnaire, and the Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale. Latent profile analysis was used to explore latent profiles of CERS among students, and the one-way ANOVA or c2 test was used to explore the relationship between the profiles and depression, anxiety, stress or NSSI.Results(1) Latent profile analysis revealed five CERS types: ‘Maladaptive group’ (32.25%), ‘Moderate adaptive-low maladaptive group’ (24.68%), ‘Rigid group’ (19.73%), ‘High adaptive-moderate maladaptive group’ (14.42%), and ‘Sensitive group’ (8.82%). (2) The multivariable logistic regression analyses showed that with increasing age (OR = 0.812, 95% CI = 0.66–0.99, p < 0.05), junior high school students were less likely to be in the ‘Moderate adaptive-low maladaptive group’, and males (OR = 0. 698, 95% CI = 0.52–0.94, p < 0.05) were less likely to be classified as ‘Moderate adaptive-low maladaptive group’; (3) ANOVA and c2 test results showed that the differences between the different latent profiles of junior high school students on anxiety, depression, stress and NSSI indicators were statistically significant (p < 0.05). The ‘Sensitive group’ had the highest risk of emotional-behavioral problems and the ‘Moderate adaptive-low maladaptive group’ had the lowest risk of emotional-behavioral problems.ConclusionNegative emotions and NSSI in junior high school students are closely related to their CERS profiles, and it is important to use targeted strategies to prevent and intervene in emotional-behavioral problems for individuals with different CERS subtypes.

Parental Psychological Control and Interpersonal Trust in Junior High School Students: Serial Mediating Roles of Shyness and Interpersonal Self-Support.

Long-term parental psychological control tends to cause adolescents to become oversensitive in interpersonal relationships, and there is a gap in the mechanism of action between parental psychological control and the interpersonal trust of junior high school students. This study intends to analyze the relationship between parental psychological control and interpersonal trust in middle school students and explore the sequential mediation role of shyness and interpersonal self-support. Based on self-determination theory and object-relations theory, this study administered questionnaires to 542 Chinese junior high school students using the Psychological Control Scale, Interpersonal Trust Scale, Shyness Scale, and Interpersonal Self-support Scale. Afterwards, structural equation modelling was used for testing. The findings revealed that (1) parental psychological control significantly and negatively predicted interpersonal trust and that (2) shyness and interpersonal self-support sequentially mediated the association between parental psychological control and interpersonal trust. The findings suggest that parental psychological control can not only directly influence the interpersonal trust of junior high school students but also indirectly act on interpersonal trust through shyness and interpersonal self-support. This study contributes to an in-depth understanding of the relationship between parental psychological control and the interpersonal trust of junior high school students, which is important for increasing the level of interpersonal trust of junior high school students.

Effect of Growth Mindset on Mathematics Achievement Among Chinese Junior High School Students: The Mediating Roles of Academic Buoyancy and Adaptability.

A growth mindset is crucial for students' academic development. Many studies have demonstrated the influence of a growth mindset on mathematics achievement, but the mediating mechanisms underlying this relationship still warrant further exploration. This study investigates the mediating roles of students' academic buoyancy and adaptability in the relationship between the student growth mindset and mathematics achievement within the Chinese cultural context. The sample included 1164 junior high school students (49.4% females). Using structural equation modeling, the results showed that, after controlling for gender, school type, and family socioeconomic status, the student growth mindset was positively related to mathematics achievement. Furthermore, the student growth mindset was significantly associated with the student academic buoyancy, cognitive-behavioral adaptability, and affective adaptability, but only cognitive-behavioral adaptability further mediated the relationship between the student growth mindset and mathematics achievement. The multi-group analysis demonstrated that the model exhibited invariance across the genders, school types, and SES levels, indicating that the associations were applicable to both boys and girls, to both boarding and day students, and to students from low-, middle-, and high-SES backgrounds. We discuss the findings by considering the Chinese cultural characteristics and provide insights that may help in the development of interventions to improve students' mathematics performance.

Unraveling depressive symptom networks: A three-year longitudinal study among Chinese junior high school adolescents.

Adolescence is the peak period for the occurrence of mental health issues, particularly in the stage of junior high school. Depressive symptoms are among the most frequently experienced psychological problems. However, little is known about the symptom-level interaction features of depressive symptoms and the roles of different symptoms across the junior high school stage. To address these gaps, this study conducted a three-year longitudinal study that recruited 1301 Chinese junior high school adolescents (48.2% females; mean age = 12.46 ± 0.62, ranging from 11 to 14 in the first year). The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale was used to assess depressive symptoms. The regularized partial correlation network and the cross-lagged panel network models were used to explore the symptom-level interaction pattern. In regularized partial correlation networks, "I felt depressed" was a stable central symptom throughout the junior high school stage. Besides, "I felt lonely" and "I felt that people disliked me" were the other central symptoms in grade 7 and grade 8, and "I felt everything I did was an effort" played a central role in grade 9. Within cross-lagged panel networks, "I felt that people disliked me" and "I felt hopeless about the future" had important effects on predicting other depressive symptoms from grade 7 to 8 and from grade 8 to 9. By investigating the longitudinal interaction patterns of depressive symptoms among junior high school adolescents, the current study identifies core symptoms that could be potential prevention or intervention targets and provides a novel insight for understanding depressive symptoms during adolescence in depth.

Are Peer-rejected Adolescents More Likely to Become Bullies or Victims? A Longitudinal Social Network Analysis.

Although many studies have explored the effects of peer rejection on bullying and victimization, the specific targets of bullying and victimization in adolescents after experiencing rejection have not been identified. This study adopts longitudinal social network analysis to examine whether the effects of peer rejection on bullying and victimization are only for peers in the rejecting relationship or involve other peers. This two-wave longitudinal study included 2,223 Chinese junior high school students. Students reported rejection, bullying, and victimization at the end of the first semester of eighth grade (Mage = 13.93 years, SD = 0.60, 48.6% girls) and the end of the second semester of eighth grade (Mage = 14.38 years, SD = 0.59, 49.0% girls). After fitting the data to stochastic actor-oriented models, the results revealed that rejected adolescents are more likely to be victimized by peers who reject them but not by others. Conversely, rejected adolescents tend to bully peers who do not reject them. These findings suggest that rejected adolescents simultaneously are at risk of both developing as bullies and being forced to become victims. They target different peers in each context, reflecting the complexity of bullying and victimization among adolescents after being rejected by peers.

Reading Assessment Literacy: Investigating Knowledge, Skills, and Conceptions of Chinese Junior High School EFL Teachers

Although assessment plays a critical role in English reading teaching, studies exploring teachers’ reading assessment literacy are comparatively rare. This study investigated 199 Chinese junior high school EFL teachers’ knowledge, skills, and conceptions of reading assessment through a questionnaire, which was validated through structural equation modeling (SEM). Results showed that the teachers reported pertinent knowledge, professional skills, and positive conceptions about English reading assessment, but some teachers still lacked certain educational assessment knowledge, failed to effectively select English reading materials and design reading assessment tasks, and neglected the impact of English reading assessment on the macro social environment. Implications were discussed concerning how to improve teachers’ assessment literacy in English reading teaching.

The construction of a physical literacy assessment index system for junior high school students: a Chinese study

In recent years, the internalisation of education in China has led to an increase in the prevalence of a highly competitive, test-focused approach to learning. This has had a detrimental impact on the physical health and wellbeing of children and adolescents in China, resulting in a concerning lack of physical literacy among junior high school students. Accordingly, the objective of this study is to construct an evaluation index system for physical literacy in junior high school students with Chinese characteristics, quantify the relative importance of each domain, and provide a framework for students to assess and self-evaluate the sustainable development of their physical literacy. The indicator system was modelled on CAPL-2, and valid indicators were extracted from the literature. A pre-selected indicator system for physical literacy in junior high school students was constructed through three rounds of Delphi expert questionnaire surveys (48 questionnaires were distributed in total). A total of 16 experts participated in all three rounds of the surveys until a consensus was reached on the indicators, resulting in the establishment of a hierarchical analysis-based theoretical model. This was developed using the experts’ opinions and determined the items to be subdomains and weights. The AHP was employed to ascertain the relative importance of the subdomains and items within the assessment system. The index weight scores of the Chinese junior high school students’ physical literacy assessment index system are aligned with the core tenet of the physical literacy concept, comprising four primary indicators, eight secondary indicators, and 26 tertiary indicators. The weights of the physical literacy evaluation indexes for junior high school students in China were calculated using the AHP to establish a progressive hierarchical model and the consistency test. The primary indicators were found to be in the following order of importance: Physical Competence (29.82%) > Motivation and Confidence (29.64%) > Knowledge and Understanding (20.27%) = Daily Behavior (20.27%). The system is an effective means of evaluating the impact of physical activity and health promotion among junior high school students, and it effectively addresses the needs of this age group in these areas. It provides a comprehensive assessment of the effects of physical activity and health promotion among junior high school students, and it offers a scientific foundation for the development of precise and individualized physical activity and health promotion programs.

The effect of grit on L2 willingness to communicate among Chinese junior high school students: an analysis of the differential roles of foreign language enjoyment and anxiety.

With the burgeoning research on positive psychology, grit has gradually attracted scholarly attention in the field of L2 acquisition, and it has been shown to be a significant positive predictor of L2 achievements and outcomes. However, despite being an important factor in L2 acquisition, grit has rarely been incorporated as a research variable in prior research on willingness to communicate in a second language (L2 WTC), especially among Chinese teenagers who find themselves in a foundational stage of developing their L2 communicative competence. Based on a survey among 238 Chinese junior high school students, this study analyzed the effect of their grit on their L2 WTC, and explored the differential roles of foreign language enjoyment (FLE) and anxiety (FLA) in their interactions. The results revealed that: (1) perseverance of effort (PE), consistency of interest (CI) and FLE had significantly positive correlations with L2 WTC, whereas FLA was found to have a significantly negative correlation with L2 WTC; (2) PE and CI served as significant positive predictors of L2 WTC; (3) FLE mediated the interactions between PE and L2 WTC and between CI and L2 WTC, while the mediating effects of FLA were found to be statistically non-significant. The findings can provide theoretical implications for furthering L2 WTC research, as well as practical reference for its development among Chinese junior high school students.

Association between autistic traits and sleep quality among Chinese junior high school students: The chain mediating roles of self‐control and mindfulness

AbstractTo explore the relationships between autistic traits, self‐control, mindfulness, and sleep quality, and the mechanism underlying these relationships, we recruited a sample of 972 junior high school students who completed a survey consisting of the Chinese version of the Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory‐short form, Self‐Control Scale, Child and Adolescent Mindfulness Measure, and Sleep Condition Indicator. The correlation analyses revealed that autistic traits were significantly negatively correlated with self‐control, mindfulness, and sleep quality. Conversely, self‐control was significantly positively correlated with mindfulness and sleep quality in junior high school students. Mediation analyses indicated that self‐control and mindfulness play a chain‐mediating role in the association between autistic traits and sleep quality among junior high school students. In conclusion, enhancing levels of self‐control and mindfulness is essential for improving sleep quality among junior high school students with high levels of autistic traits.

Development and validation of China’s Environmental Citizenship Questionnaire: evidence from junior high school students

The cultivation of environmental citizens has become an important measure to cope with the environmental crisis, and the research on the knowledge, conceptions, skills, attitudes, values, and actions of environmental citizens using the Environmental Citizenship Questionnaire (ECQ) is becoming a research focus. The research on environmental citizenship in China mainly staying at the level of theoretical research and descriptive research due to the accuracy of the ECQ. The emergence of the ECQ-China Version is helpful to promote the empirical research on environmental citizenship in China.This study verifies the effectiveness of the ECQ by removing 16 ECQ items which are not suitable for Chinese culture and evaluating environmental citizen-related knowledge among 550 Chinese junior high school students. The ECQ-China Version, consisting of 75 items, showed convincing results for all measurements: students’ past and present environmental citizenship behavior and the essential skills, values, attitudes, and competence that an environmental citizen should be equipped with had a significant impact on students’ future environmental citizenship behavior. This study suggests that: (1) Environmental citizenship education should not only focus on knowledge education, but also include skills education. (2) Environmental citizenship education should adhere to comprehensive principles, focusing on innovative practice of ideas and methods. (3) China’s environmental citizenship education should focus on the cultivation of citizens’ ability to participate, so that environmental citizenship can become the driving force for sustainable environmental development.

Second Language Identity of Chinese Junior High School EFL Learners: Its Construction and Sources

Second Language Identity of Chinese Junior High School EFL Learners: Its Construction and Sources

Exploring How Story-Focused Peer Counselling Impacts Sense of Purpose and Achievement Motivation

The problem of insufficient counseling service among high schools augments students need for peer mental support. The present study utilized quantitative and qualitative research methods to explore how applying peer counseling using counselors experiences about challenges and future directions results in Chinese junior high school students shift in Sense of Purpose and Achievement Motivation by analyzing 173 questionnaire results and coding 10 interviewees records. The findings suggest the following: 1) story-focused peer counseling has the potential to improve students Sense of Purpose and Achievement Motivation; 2) perceiving peer counselors as role models helps students internalize and apply the insight gained from counselors disclosure to their real-life situations; 3) self-projection influences how students leverage peer counselors stories to address the academic challenges they face. Overall, this study contributes to understanding the effect of self-disclosure stories on peer counseling and provides practical implications for organizing peer counseling among high school students.

Stay behind children's differential educational performance: The impact of parental migration arrangements in China

Millions of children live apart from their parents who migrate for work. This dynamic raises questions about parental migration's impact on children's schooling. This paper investigated how Chinese junior high school students’ educational performance was shaped by the specific patterns of parental migration: whether it was only the mother, only the father, or both who migrate. The study analyzed data from 4204 students through a nationally representative panel survey, comparing children who experienced parental migration between two survey waves and those who did not. Difference-in-differences models were paired with propensity score weighting to estimate the immediate effects of parental migration. Results indicated that children's educational performance was heterogeneously affected by different arrangements of parental migration. Children's academic performance declined when mothers migrated alone, a pattern not mirrored when only fathers or both parents migrated. The findings indicate that the adverse effects of parental absence outweigh the financial benefits from migration, particularly in the scenario of mother-only migration.

Brief Meditation on Test Anxiety of Eighth Grade Chinese Students: Chain-Mediating Roles of Mindfulness and Self-Efficacy

Numerous studies have revealed an alarming prevalence of test anxiety among Chinese junior high school students. Prevention of test anxiety in this population has become crucial. Brief meditation intervention (BMI) has shown promising results for promoting students’ well-being and reducing test anxiety, but its mechanism for reducing test anxiety remains unknown. This study examined the effects of BMI and the roles mindfulness and self-efficacy play in mediating between the intervention and test anxiety. The BMI was optimized in content and form and culturally tailored for Chinese eighth graders. It includes guided meditation with relaxation music, mindful breathing and body scanning, and positive suggestions that promote self-efficacy. Six eighth grade classes at an urban junior high school in Beijing (N = 202, Mage = 14.14, 102 males) were assigned to either a BMI group (3 classes, N = 103) or a control group (3 classes, N = 99). Test anxiety, mindfulness, and self-efficacy measures were administered before, in the middle of, immediately after, and one month after the intervention. Repeated measures ANOVA and mediation analysis indicated that BMI had a significant effect on reducing test anxiety and enhancing mindfulness and self-efficacy over time. The study also found that mindfulness and self-efficacy played a chain of mediating roles in the relationship between BMI and test anxiety. The mediation effect value accounted for 68.35% of the intervention effects.

The selections and differences in mathematical problem-posing strategies of junior high school students

To illustrate the selections and differences in mathematical problem-posing (MPP) strategies of junior high school students, this study constructs a theoretical framework for mathematical problem-posing strategies and then conducts an empirical study through a survey of 1653 Chinese junior high school students. The results show that students prioritize accepting the given information to pose mathematical problems, while few choose to change the given information. Most students used chaining, and very few students used symmetry to pose mathematical problems. From a developmental perspective, excluding the number of problems, there were grade differences in the selectivity of MPP strategies among students in grades 7, 8, and 9. Still, for each grade, accepting the given information and chaining were the most used strategies in the category therein. More than 77.56% (1282 students) chose category B to pose further mathematical problems after accepting or changing the given information to pose mathematical problems. The results of path analysis illustrate that there are two main routes of the evolution of the selections of the strategies of MPP of junior high school students: the first one is from category A to category B, and the second one is after the students use changing the given information, they are present with the selection of strategies, either use symmetry or chaining. The results may have important implications for the teaching and learning of problem-posing.