Higher Literacy Levels Research Articles

Assessment of Financial Literacy of Public Schools Teachers: Generation X, Y and Z

Financial literacy is an important social skill, especially among teachers who play an important role in shaping the educational environment. This study focuses on three specific generations of teachers, Generation X, Generation Y (Millennials), and Generation Z (iGen), and aims to assess their financial literacy levels. The primary goal is to identify differences in financial literacy by generation by examining conceptual knowledge, financial behavior, and financial attitudes and awareness. A descriptive - comparative research design was used to survey teachers in the Department of Education – School Division Office of Cotabato. The sample consisted of teachers from Generation X, Generation Y and Generation Z. Quota - convenience sampling was used to collect a sample of 150 respondents, with a default quota of 50 respondents from each generation. The study used statistical analysis using one-way ANOVA to identify differences in financial literacy levels across generations. The findings revealed that all three generations exhibit high levels of financial literacy across dimensions of conceptual knowledge, financial behavior, and financial attitudes and awareness. However, there were statistically significant differences between Generations Y and Generation Z in terms of financial attitudes and awareness, while no significant differences were found in Generation X and Y or Generation X and Z. In conclusion, teachers in the Department of Education – School Division Office of Cotabato independently showcase commendable financial literacy across generations.

Financial literacy and mortgage stress

This paper examines the effect of financial literacy on mortgage stress. Using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), we find that borrowers with high levels of financial literacy are over 60 percent less likely to suffer from mortgage stress than borrowers with low levels of financial literacy after controlling for observables. Our findings remain robust to various potential issues, including sample selection bias and functional misspecifications. Moreover, we find that the effect of financial literacy varies across different age groups of borrowers. Further analysis reveals strong cross effects of financial literacy and quantitative reasoning on mortgage stress.

Arab male physicians’ perceptions about their own smoking behaviors: a qualitative study

BackgroundSmoking remains the leading preventable cause of disease, disability, and death worldwide. Although physicians have high levels of health literacy with awareness of the consequences of smoking and their essential role in smoking cessation of patients, some physicians continue to smoke. Rates of smoking among Arab male physicians are high. This study aimed to gain insights into Arab male physician’s perceptions of their own smoking behaviors and their professional role in health promotion.MethodsUsing purposive sampling, we recruited 25 Arab male physicians working in hospital and community clinic settings who currently smoke. Semi-structured, hour-long, interviews were held during January—June 2022. We then performed a thematic analysis of the interview data.ResultsThe analysis revealed three categories, two sub-categories, and 15 emerging themes. The category ‘Antecedents: prior to becoming a physician’ revealed the themes: smoking experience during adolescence; social and ethnic culture; stress during medical studies; and on & off periods of quitting smoking. The category ‘Physicians’ perception of smoking’ was sorted into two sub-categories: (1) Personal aspects, including the themes ‘relaxation from stress’, ‘self-compensation’, ‘addiction’, and ‘enjoyable experience’, and (2) Professional aspects, including the themes ‘lack of knowledge about cessation’, ‘inadequate workplace support’, ‘motivation to consult patients’, and ‘awareness of their role as primary care physicians’. The category’Impacts’ revealed the themes ‘personal health and well-being’, ‘professional competence’, and ‘professional image in public’.ConclusionsThis study provides an in-depth understanding of the personal, socio-cultural, and professional aspects of the phenomenon of Arab male smoking physicians from their perspective. Based on this information, we recommend developing programs that support and empower all physicians to cope better with their personal and professional stress as well as instituting programs that will provide all physicians with specific knowledge and skills related to smoking cessation. These programs should improve the ability of physicians to serve as positive role models for their patients for preventing and ceasing smoking, thus enhancing the image of the medical profession and, most importantly, improving the health of the public.

The effect of financial literacy and demographic variable on behavioral biases

The current research investigates the association between demographic factors, including financial knowledge and demographic characteristics like gender, occupation, age, education, and income, and investor behavior biases, including bias against overconfidence, disposition effect, and herding bias. Further enhancement of behavioural finance research is required in Indonesia. This study applied a quantitative analysis technique called structural equation modeling. Stock investors aged 17 and 40 were given questionnaires for this study. Respondent data collection was carried out by distributing questionnaires through several social media sites, such as Line, WhatsApp, and Instagram, to members of the investor’s community. The total number of respondents obtained from distributing this questionnaire was 170. According to the study, overconfidence bias significantly affects income and financial literacy. However, overconfidence bias does not affect gender, occupation, investment experience, education, or age. Furthermore, for behavioral biases, the disposition effect does not affect financial literacy or all demographic factors. Finally, for herding behavior bias, bias significantly affects financial literacy, investment experience, and income, but herding bias does not affect gender, occupation, education, age, or income. These results have implications for investors with a high level of financial literacy, which will help them determine rational investment decisions. This research also has implications for high-income investors who tend not to follow herding behavior.

Digital interventions for adolescents with type 1 diabetes to promote health literacy? A qualitative study on physicians’ perspective in Germany

IntroductionAdolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) require a high level of health literacy (HL) to prevent complications. It remains unclear what potential digital interventions have for promoting HL among...

‘If I behave like the stupidly kind character maybe I will stop being accidentally rude to people’: does reading fiction inform the social understanding and masking behaviours of autistic females?

ABSTRACT Girls are consistently found to have higher literacy levels than their male peers and to consume more social narrative fiction. This study conducted interviews with four autistic girls to better understand how reading fiction can inform the camouflaging behaviours of autistic girls. Participants described how imitating characters embodying desired values, such as kindness, provided them with a practical behavioural template. However, literature is only a simulation of reality, and participants described social “failures” where the tone of the imitated text did not align with their social reality.

The impact of virtual learning environment on future teachers’ professional competence in lifelong learning

The study aimed to empirically test the impact of a virtual learning environment on the professional competence of future computer science teachers in lifelong learning by conducting a survey and comparing the professional competence of bachelor and master students, as well as their opinions on the impact of the virtual learning environment on future teachers’ professional competence in lifelong learning. The surveying methods were cognitive, motivational, activity-based, and value-based. A survey of students found that a virtual learning environment has the most significant impact on the activity component of professional competence, and most students are motivated to use virtual learning environments to improve their professional competence. The survey of teaching staff revealed a positive attitude towards professional development through virtual learning environments, the prevalence among students of high and sufficient levels of professional competence and digital literacy. The obtained results can be used to adjust the virtual educational process of future teachers’ professional training in the system of Ukrainian HEIs.

The Mediating Effect of Financial Literacy on the Relationship between Saving Behavior and Financial Well-being of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises in Babak District

The Mediating Effect of Financial Literacy on the Relationship between Saving Behavior and Financial Well-being of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises in Babak District

Investigation of Financial Literacy Attitudes of University Students in Terms of Some Demographic Characteristics: The Example of Mus Alparslan University Social Sciences Vocational School

Financial literacy enables effective planning of the financial future by accurately analyzing the current financial situation. In our country, which has a young population, high financial literacy levels of university students will contribute to the country's economy. This study aims to determine the financial literacy knowledge levels of university students. In addition, it focuses on examining financial attitudes and behaviors, which are two important components of financial literacy, in terms of demographic characteristics. In addition, the results of the research aim to determine financial literacy training for college students and to develop strategies on the subject. The study consists of 280 university students from different departments of Muş Alparslan University Social Sciences Vocational School in the 2021-2022 academic year. According to the results of the study, it is seen that 41.8 %of university students have a low level of financial literacy, 43.6 % have a medium level of financial literacy, and 14.6 % have a high level of financial literacy. In addition, it is seen that there is a significant difference in the sub-dimensions of expenditure, attitude, perception, and the total score of financial literacy attitude and behavior according to financial literacy knowledge level. According to financial literacy attitude and behavior levels; A significant difference was found in the sub-dimension of expenditure according to gender and education, expenditure according to the time spent at the university, and perception according to attitude and working status. A correlation test was conducted to find the relationship between the age financial literacy attitude, and behavior levels of students. The results revealed a low-level negative significant relationship between the age of the students and the sub-dimensions of expenditure and perception.

Comparing ChatGPT With Experts’ Responses to Scenarios that Assess Psychological Literacy

Progress in understanding students’ development of psychological literacy is critical. However, generative AI represents an emerging threat to higher education which may dramatically impact on student learning and how this learning transfers to their practice. This research investigated whether ChatGPT responded in ways that demonstrated psychological literacy and whether it matched the responses of subject matter experts (SMEs) on a measure of psychological literacy. We tasked ChatGPT with providing responses to 13 psychology research methods scenarios as well as to rate each of the five response options that were already developed for each scenario by the research team. ChatGPT responded in ways that would typically be regarded as displaying a high level of psychological literacy. The response options which were previously rated by two groups of SMEs were then compared with ratings provided by ChatGPT. The Pearson's correlations were very high ( r's = .73 and .80, respectively), as were the Spearman's rhos (rho's = .81 and .82, respectively). Kendall's tau were also quite high (tau's = .67 and .68, respectively). We conclude that ChatGPT may generate responses that match SME psychological literacy in research methods, which could also generalise across multiple domains of psychological literacy.

Investigation of clinical medicine undergraduates’ recognition of narrative medicine

BackgroundNarrative Medicine (NM), a contemporary medical concept proposed in the 21st century, emphasizes the use of narrative as a literary form in medicine. This study aims to explore the understanding about NM and willingness to learn NM among medical students in our hospital.MethodsA questionnaire survey was conducted among 130 students at Xiangya Medical College of Central South University.ResultsThe findings revealed that a small percentage of students (3.1%) were familiar with narrative medicine and its training methods. Knowledge about the treatment skills (77.7%) and core content (55.4%) of narrative medicine was limited among the students. Despite this, a majority (63.1%) expressed a lack of interest in further understanding and learning about narrative medicine. Surprisingly, the survey indicated that students possessed a high level of narrative literacy, even without formal training in narrative medicine. Additionally, over half of the surveyed students (61.5%) believed that narrative medicine could benefit their clinical practice.ConclusionsThis study serves as a preliminary basis for the future development of narrative medicine education in China. It highlights the need to prioritize medical humanities education and provide medical students with more opportunities to access information on narrative medicine. By doing so, we can strive to enhance the visibility and promote the integration of narrative medicine into medical humanities education in China.

EXPLORING THE DIGITAL LITERACY OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS: A STUDY ON THE TEACHING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

In today's educational landscape, digital literacy has emerged as a critical skill for pre-service teachers, enabling them to effectively utilize technology in classrooms and provide students with valuable information technology resources. This study aims to investigate the digital literacy levels of pre-service teachers participating in a teaching assistance program at school. Employing descriptive statistics, the research analyzed data collected from pre-service teachers enrolled in the Teaching Assistance Program, using a framework designed to assess teacher digital literacy across five key dimensions: information management, team-based learning, information processing and presentation, digital integrity, and social responsibility. The findings reveal that pre-service teachers demonstrated a high level of digital literacy across all dimensions. While highlighting their readiness to employ information and communications technology (ICT) for educational purposes, the results also underscore an ongoing need for further development in digital literacy skills. Importantly, these findings contribute significantly to providing insightful data regarding the level of digital literacy of pre-service teachers. Next, future research endeavors should address the limitations of this study by employing diversified methodologies and ensuring broader sample representations.

PENGARUH LITERASI KEUANGAN, DIGITAL PAYMENT DAN KEMAMPUAN MENYUSUN LAPORAN KEUANGAN TERHADAP KINERJA UMKM

MSMEs can drive the country's economic growth, however, the performance of MSMEs has experienced a slowdown due to the Covid 19 pandemic. So, this research aims to find out what factors can encourage the performance of MSMEs. This research uses internal and external organizational factors that can influence MSME performance, such as financial literacy, digital payment, and the ability to prepare financial reports. The population of this research is MSMEs in Bantul Regency. The sampling method uses a purposive sampling technique with the criteria of MSMEs that have used digital payments and financial records. The samples that can be used are 108 MSMEs in Bantul Regency. Data collection was carried out using a questionnaire method which was distributed offline by visiting MSMEs and online using Google from. Data processing uses the SPSS Statistics 26.0 application. Data were analyzed using multiple linear regression analysis. The research results show that financial literacy and the use of digital payments have no effect on MSME performance, while the ability to prepare financial reports has a positive effect on MSME performance. High or low levels of financial literacy and the use of digital payments do not affect the performance of MSMEs. Meanwhile, the higher the ability to prepare financial reports, the higher the performance of MSMEs will be. MSMEs that prepare financial reports can evaluate their business performance.

A health literacy analysis of online patient-directed educational materials about mycobacterium avium complex

IntroductionMycobacterium avium complex (MAC) is a complex lung infection requiring multi-disciplinary approach and management. Due to limited clinician-patient interactions, clinicians may refer patients to online resources to learn about the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of MAC. The American Medical Association (AMA) recommends educational materials be written at a sixth-grade reading level and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommends that patient education materials be written at an eighth-grade reading level; however, several evaluations found these materials inaccessible due to high literacy levels. To date, there has never been a health literacy assessment of MAC patient education materials. The study aims to assess the health literacy of online patient education materials about MAC. MethodsThe patient education materials were evaluated for readability, actionability, understandability and clarity. Readability was assessed through the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level Scale (FkGL), SMOG Index, Coleman Liau Index (CLI), Gunning Fog Index (GFI), and Automated Readability Index (ARI). Actionability and understandability was evaluated using the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT). The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Clear Communication Index (CCI) was used to assess clarity. ResultsTen patient education resources were evaluated: CDC, Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, JAMA, American Thoracic Society (ATS), National Jewish Health, UpToDate, CHEST, WebMD, and Medline. The mean readability scores were as follows: FkGL (9.76), SMOG index (9.82), CLI (13.54), GFI (11.66), ARI (9.15). Four patient education materials were written at a sixth-grade reading level and eight patient education materials were written at an eighth-grade reading level. The majority of the materials received a passing score for understandability but failed to achieve a passing score for actionability. Cleveland Clinic, JAMA, and ATS all received a passing clarity score, indicating that they are easy to read. No patient education materials were available on UpToDate. ConclusionMost patient education materials scored poorly for actionability and clarity while scoring highly for readability and understandability. This study should serve as a guide for clinicians interested in offering online education materials to their patients. Increasing access to readable MAC educational materials should be a priority for those working at the intersection of public health, clinical care, and communications.

Health Literacy and Demand for Medical Cannabis use among Colorectal Cancer Patients in Northern Thailand: A Cross-Sectional Study.

This study aimed to explore health literacy and factors associated with demand for medical cannabis (MC) use among colorectal cancer (CRC) patients in Northern Thailand as a target group. This cross-sectional analytical study administered multistage random sampling to recruit 439 CRC patients in northern Thailand. Ethical approval and signed written informed consents were obtained from the patients, prior to the study. A standardized, self-administered structured questionnaire was used to obtain the sociodemographic characteristics, clinical characteristics, social support, attitudes toward MC, knowledge about MC, health literacy about MC, and questions on demand for MC use. The scores from all questionnaires were converted to percentages before analysis. A total of 146 (33.26%) of patients with CRC reported demand to use MC. The multivariable analysis revealed that factors associated with demand for MC among CRC patients included: had high levels of health literacy about MC (adj.OR = 7.71; 95% CI: 4.28 to 13.87), aged less than 45 years (adj.OR =5.09; 95% CI: 2.78 to 9.34), positive attitudes toward MC use (adj.OR = 4.66; 95% CI: 2.68 to 8.10), and higher levels of social support (adj.OR =4.14; 95% CI: 2.39 to 7.17) when controlling effect of other covariates. Health literacy is an important factor affecting the demand for MC use of CRC patients. Therefore, improving health literacy, social support, and attitudes about MC especially among younger CRC patients, could help increase demand for MC as a complementary and alternative medicine alongside cancer treatment.

Necessary prerequisites for evidence-based practice: results of investigating nurses’ informatics competency and information literacy skills

Abstract This study aimed to evaluate the correlation between nursing informatics (NI) competency and information literacy skills for evidence-based practice (EBP) among intensive care nurses. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 184 nurses working in intensive care units (ICUs). The study data were collected through demographic information, Nursing Informatics Competency Assessment Tool (NICAT), and information literacy skills for EBP questionnaires. The intensive care nurses received competent and low-moderate levels for the total scores of NI competency and information literacy skills, respectively. They received a moderate score for the use of different information resources but a low score for information searching skills, different search features, and knowledge about search operators, and only 31.5% of the nurses selected the most appropriate statement. NI competency and related subscales had a significant direct bidirectional correlation with information literacy skills for EBP and its subscales (P < 0.05). Nurses require a high level of NI competency and information literacy for EBP to obtain up-to-date information and provide better care and decision-making. Health planners and policymakers should develop interventions to enhance NI competency and information literacy skills among nurses and motivate them to use EBP in clinical settings.

The Relationships between Pedagogical and Technological Competence and Digital Literacy Level of Teachers

With the use of technology in education, the integration of digital literacy and technological skills with pedagogy has become one of the important competencies that teachers need to master. Thus, the study investigated the digital literacy, technological and pedagogical competencies of primary school teachers in Kazakhstan on a relational basis. The study was conducted with 223 primary school teachers working in various schools in Almaty. 'Digital Literacy Scale', 'Pedagogical Competence Scale' and 'Technological Competence Scale' were used to collect the data. T and F tests were used to compare school teachers' digital literacy, pedagogical and technological competencies based on gender and professional seniority. 'Multiple Regression Technique' was used to analyze the relationships between the variables of school teachers' digital literacy, pedagogical and technological competencies. The findings revealed that the pedagogical competencies of primary school teachers were high, while their digital literacy and technological competencies were at a moderate level. Pedagogical and technological efficacy and digital literacy of primary school teachers differed significantly based on gender and professional seniority. Male primary school teachers had high levels of technological competence and digital literacy, whereas female primary school teachers had high levels of pedagogical competence. Multiple regression analysis indicated that teachers' digital literacy significantly predicted their pedagogical and technological competencies.

Evaluating financial literacy and behavior among online sellers in Zambales

This study was solely focused on the financial literacy level and financial behavior of the online sellers in Iba, Zambales as to their cash management; expenditure; savings; and investments. The researchers utilized the quantitative descriptive correlational research design with questionnaire as the main instrument in gathering data from the one hundred forty (140) online sellers in Iba, Zambales who were randomly selected. The researchers found out that the majority of the respondents are female in their early adulthood, single, college undergraduate major in business, with meagre income, had monthly expenses more than the income and saving, and neophyte in online selling business. The respondents stood well-educated on the dimensions towards the factors of financial literacy as to cash management, expenditures, savings and investment. The respondents strongly agreed on the dimensions towards the factors of financial behavior as to cash management, expenditures, savings and investment. There were significant differences on the perceptions of the respondents when grouped towards dimensions on financial literacy as to their monthly income, monthly expenses and monthly savings, highest educational attainment, and years in online selling respectively. There are significant differences on the perceptions of the respondents when grouped towards dimensions on financial behavior as to their monthly income, monthly expenses and monthly savings, and area of specialization respectively. There is positive moderate relationship between financial literacy and financial behavior. Based on the summary of the investigations conducted, and the conclusions arrived at, the researchers recommended that online sellers are still encouraged to attend financial management seminars to maintain a high level of financial literacy and behavior to prevent losses, financial squander, and misuse; establish a family savings culture; have a financial record management to sustain the monitoring of their inventory and future decisions; and lastly, future researchers may conduct a replication of this study.

Racial Differences in Shared Decision-Making About Critical Illness

Shared decision-making is the preferred method for evaluating complex tradeoffs in the care of patients with critical illness. However, it remains unknown whether critical care clinicians engage diverse patients and caregivers equitably in shared decision-making. To compare critical care clinicians' approaches to shared decision-making in recorded conversations with Black and White caregivers of patients with critical illness. This thematic analysis consisted of unstructured clinician-caregiver meetings audio-recorded during a randomized clinical trial of a decision aid about prolonged mechanical ventilation at 13 intensive care units in the US. Participants in meetings included critical care clinicians and Black or White caregivers of patients who underwent mechanical ventilation. The codebook included components of shared decision-making and known mechanisms of racial disparities in clinical communication. Analysts were blinded to caregiver race during coding. Patterns within and across racial groups were evaluated to identify themes. Data analysis was conducted between August 2021 and April 2023. The main outcomes were themes describing clinician behaviors varying by self-reported race of the caregivers. The overall sample comprised 20 Black and 19 White caregivers for a total of 39 audio-recorded meetings with clinicians. The duration of meetings was similar for both Black and White caregivers (mean [SD], 23.9 [13.7] minutes vs 22.1 [11.2] minutes, respectively). Both Black and White caregivers were generally middle-aged (mean [SD] age, 47.6 [9.9] years vs 51.9 [8.8] years, respectively), female (15 [75.0%] vs 14 [73.7%], respectively), and possessed a high level of self-assessed health literacy, which was scored from 3 to 15 with lower scores indicating increasing health literacy (mean [SD], 5.8 [2.3] vs 5.3 [2.0], respectively). Clinicians conducting meetings with Black and White caregivers were generally young (mean [SD] age, 38.8 [6.6] years vs 37.9 [8.2] years, respectively), male (13 [72.2%] vs 12 [70.6%], respectively), and White (14 [77.8%] vs 17 [100%], respectively). Four variations in clinicians' shared decision-making behaviors by caregiver race were identified: (1) providing limited emotional support for Black caregivers, (2) failing to acknowledge trust and gratitude expressed by Black caregivers, (3) sharing limited medical information with Black caregivers, and (4) challenging Black caregivers' preferences for restorative care. These themes encompass both relational and informational aspects of shared decision-making. The results of this thematic analysis showed that critical care clinicians missed opportunities to acknowledge emotions and value the knowledge of Black caregivers compared with White caregivers. These findings may inform future clinician-level interventions aimed at promoting equitable shared decision-making.

A survey of mental health literacy in parents and guardians of teenagers.

Parents and guardians (hereafter caregivers) of teenagers need high levels of mental health literacy (MHL) to manage mental health problems arising in teenagers in their care. Previous studies assessing MHL levels in caregivers of teenagers have reported mixed results, making it difficult to clearly estimate caregiver MHL levels. This study aimed to investigate MHL levels in Japanese caregivers of regular teenagers. Responses from caregivers (n = 1,397) of students entering junior and senior high schools to a self-administered online questionnaire were analyzed. The questionnaire assessed (a) knowledge about mental health/illnesses and (b) attitudes towards mental health problems in teens in their care (e.g., recognition of depression as a medical illness and intention to engage in helping behaviors). The average proportion of correct answers to the knowledge questions (n = 7) was 55.4%; about one tenth (9.2%) of caregivers correctly answered only one or none of the questions. Few caregivers correctly answered about the life-time prevalence of any mental illnesses (46.1%) and appropriate sleep duration for teenagers' health (16.5%). The proportions of caregivers who had the intention to listen to the teen in their care, consult another person, and seek professional medical help if the teen suffered from depression were 99.5%, 91.5% and 72.7%, respectively. Many teenagers' caregivers appeared to be willing to help the teens in their care if they were suffering from mental health problems. However, there was much room for improvement in knowledge on mental health/illnesses and intention to seek help from medical professionals. Efforts toward better education should be made.