Mexican University Research Articles

Reflections on the association between depression and sweet food consumption in Mexican university students.

Reflections on the association between depression and sweet food consumption in Mexican university students.

Collaborative online international learning between Spain and Mexico: a microlearning experience to enhance creativity in complexity

PurposeThe aim of this paper was to analyse the creative competence of students before and after a micro-learning experience carried out in a collaborative online international learning (COIL) environment between Spanish and Mexican university students in the field of education and entrepreneurship.Design/methodology/approachA single-group quasi-experimental design with pre-test and post-test measures was adopted. The composition of the group was natural and included a total of 57 students who participated in the COIL experience. The duration was three weeks, where students from both countries were linked together in the development of a micro-learning project. The creativity self-efficacy scale was used as a data collection instrument.FindingsThe micro-learning activities through COIL developed the creative competence of the participating students. In particular, the groups from both universities improved their scores on the creative competence in the post-test compared to the pre-test measure.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitations of this study were linked to the sample loss of some cases, as some students did not complete the post-test measure. The main implication of the study was to demonstrate that COIL experiences are suitable for developing certain skills in students, such as creative competence or co-operative work.Originality/valueCOIL experiences break down the barriers of physical space and give students an active role, allowing them to fully develop competences and offering an intercultural perspective, which encourages open-mindedness and understanding of the world.

Socio-affective strategies for reducing foreign language anxiety levels in university students

The main objective of the research is to analyse the impact it has the use of socio-affective strategies employed by university students to gain confidence and reduce foreign language anxiety when performing monologues. The participants of the study were students of Basic English of a language centre from a southeast Mexican university. Some authors argue that success in learning a foreign language depends on students’ attitude towards it. Such attitude implies high levels of motivation and low levels of anxiety. Therefore, in order to enhance students’ language performance teachers should employ classroom activities that lower students’ Foreign Language Anxiety levels. The methodological design adopted an action research approach. The stages of the action research were developed since the beginning of the English Basic lessons. Then, it was designed the intervention by applying socio-affective strategies and monologues. The outcomes were that English Basic students reduced their levels of Foreign Language Anxiety.

Reflections on the perceived longer-term impact of an ERPP course

Abstract Research-intensive universities in the global peripheries have begun to mount English for research publication purposes (ERPP) initiatives to increase plurilingual scholars’ publishing success. Though research into pedagogical initiatives is still limited, investigations of such programs can provide researchers with a greater understanding of the broader experiences and perspectives of scholars as well as the potential impact of interventions on course participants’ scholarly writing. Answering the call for more longitudinal work in ERPP, this article outlines a small-scale, qualitative investigation of the perceived impact of an intensive ERPP course at a Mexican university on two environmental scientists’ research writing five years following course completion. Data analysis included systematic review of participant CVs, as well as semi-structured interviews with two plurilingual EAL scientists and two ERPP practitioners connected to the ERPP course. Employing a critical plurilingual lens, this article discusses findings that not only outline the perceived impact of the intervention on these scientists’ research writing at different stages of their academic trajectories, but also highlight the plurilingual nature of their evolving scholarly practices. The article culminates with data-driven suggestions for plurilingual conceptualization and enactment of scholarly writing pedagogies, policies, and research agendas.

Students' Perception about the Use of an Educational Web Application During the COVID-19 Pandemic

SARS-CoV-2 virus has caused universities to update their courses in the distance modality. The general aim of this mixed research was to build and analyse the use of a web application for the educational process about the t-test considering data science. In particular, the professor of the Teaching of Mathematics II course needed to update the school activities because of the new educational demands caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. To facilitate the educational process of math, this teacher decided to build a web application that presents the formulas and calculation of the mean, standard deviation and statistical error to understand the use of the t-test. This technological tool allows the personalisation of learning through the simulation of data. The participants were 42 students from a Mexican university. The results of machine learning indicated that the contents of the web application positively influenced the assimilation of knowledge, satisfaction during the learning process, development of mathematical skills and learning in the distance modality. The decision tree technique allows the construction of four (4) predictive models about the use of the web application for the educational process about the t-test. Finally, educators have the opportunity to improve the teaching-learning conditions during the SARS-CoV-2 virus through the design and construction of web applications.

Validation of a Spanish Adaption of a Questionnaire for Measuring Nomophobia among University Students

Smartphones are highly useful in contemporary society. However, their use can lead to problems, such as dependency and addiction. Nomophobia is a pathological fear of losing connectedness or not being able to access information or communicate with other people. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the four dimensions of the original version of the NMP-Q questionnaire by Yildirim and Correia using the Spanish version of the questionnaire developed by Gutiérrez-Puertas et al. Similarly, this research aims at assessing whether the questionnaire retains its four-dimensional structure when applied to a population of university students in the area of social sciences at a Mexican university. Using confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis techniques, we determined that nomophobia among the study population can be addressed through the first three dimensions of the original questionnaire, namely, not being able to communicate, losing connectedness, and not being able to access information. A fourth dimension, entitled “giving up convenience”, is mentioned in the literature. However, in this study, this dimension could not be clearly identified with the indicators included in the original questionnaire and was, therefore, omitted from the resulting questionnaire. Nomophobia is a modern phenomenon that is becoming increasingly prevalent in our society. Therefore, it must be studied and addressed. The nomophobia questionnaire presented in this article is a reliable way of taking measurements, as indicated by the research results. Further research should deepen the study of measuring nomophobia and improve the questionnaire through other indicators and conceptual dimensions that help explain this phenomenon in a precise and reliable way.

Post-COVID-19 Transition in University Physics Courses: A Case of Study in a Mexican University

The extended confinement imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns resulted in the imposition of online education for two years. Many students experienced their transitions to higher educative levels during this time, surely losing some academic learning as a consequence. On the other hand, this context could have promoted different types of competencies, until recently not explored, as a function of students’ personalities or academic profiles. Physics teaching is among those areas which have changed from its traditional methods during this period. The return to school during the ‘New Normal’ has resulted in certain concerns about students’ adaptability due to their possible lack of learning over this time. We analyse, in the current research, the transitions of three generations crossing several pandemic stages during their time participating in university physics courses during the first year, a common entry point for engineering programs. In addition, we analyse several academic traits as causal factors of academic success in order to understand how performance could be affected during online education and during the ‘New Normal’. The results highlight a general high level of adaptation for the most of the students, but still, some of them were affected in terms of the functioning of their learning styles or regarding their personality profiles. Notably, no meaningful losses were detected among the last transition; instead, several interesting aspects were found relating to academic profile appearing to have an effect on the students’ performance during the first transition to online education, and then during the second transition back to face-to-face education in the ‘New Normal’.

Impacto de la dismenorrea primaria en el rendimiento académico de estudiantes universitarios

ObjectivePrimary dysmenorrhea has a high prevalence among the student population. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of dysmenorrhea, its severity and its impact on academic performance in Mexican university students. MethodsCross-sectional study. An anonymous multiple-choice questionnaire was applied in class hours in the classrooms. The visual pain scale (VAS) was used for the measurement of pain. A descriptive and inferential analysis of the variables studied was carried out using the program SPSS® IBM. ResultsA total of 2154 (n=2154) students were surveyed. The average age of the women was 20.4 ±1.9years. The general prevalence of dysmenorrhea was 78.9%, with psychology students having the highest value (83.7%). The VAS mean pain score was of 64.0. The severity of menstrual pain in students was reported as mild in 9.0%, and moderate-severe in 91.0%. The VAS mean pain scores and intensity of pain of gerontology students were significantly higher than those reported by dentistry and medicine students (P<.05). Limitation of daily activities was reported in 90.4% of women, with medical students reporting the highest percentage (93.3%). Women reported school absenteeism in 37.0%, with medical students presenting the highest percentage (41.4%). The severity of menstrual pain as a risk factor (independent variable) positively influenced various dependent variables involved in students’ academic performance (P<.05), including: stop doing their activities due to pain in 1 to 6 menstruations a year, minor concentration, absenteeism, low school performance, and lower grades during dysmenorrhea. ConclusionA high prevalence of dysmenorrhea was observed and it is concluded that the severity of the symptomatology significantly interferes with the academic performance of the participants.

Association of achievement motivation and biopsychosocial factors of medical school students in a Mexican university: A cross-sectional study

Association of achievement motivation and biopsychosocial factors of medical school students in a Mexican university: A cross-sectional study

Study habits and academic performance of Law and Education students from a State Mexican University

The main objective of this research was to identify and characterize the differences in study habits based on personal and academic variables in students of two bachelor's degree (Law and Education Sciences) of Faculty of Administrative and Social Sciences (FCAYS), Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC), Mexico. The sample of this study was 347 students from both programs. The main source of data was the instrument Study Habits Inventory (SHI) which has the following dimensions: environmental conditions, study planning, use of materials, and content assimilation. Descriptive, comparative (ANOVA) and correlation analyses were performed to analyze the data. In the correlation analysis between the variables associated with students' study habits and the grade point average, results show that there are statistically significant connections the dimension of materials. Results show that characterizing and comparing study habits of university students in both programs provides empirical evidence about best study practices and their connection with academic performance, both aspects related to the improvement of the quality of education. It is recommended to carry out more studies considering students from other fields of knowledge

Psychometric properties of the Rosenberg self-esteem scale in Mexican university students

This work aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Rosenberg self-esteem scale in Mexican university students. The research was carried out under an instrumental design, with an incidental sample of 675 students from three institutions. From the literature review, three factorial configurations were evaluated: (1) univariate, (2) bifactorial, and (3) bifactorial with a general factor, with the maximum likelihood method. Results confirmed that the bifactorial model with a general factor presented the best psychometric properties (X2 [24] = 34.71; p = 0.073; CFI = 0.99; TLI = 0.99; RMSEA = 0.02 [0.00-0.04]; SRMR = 0.02; AIC = 96.71), together with adequate internal consistency values ​​(α = 0.87, 0.80, 0.79). Additionally, the authors presented a proposal for the scale and cut-off points to classify results. It is concluded that the Rosenberg self-esteem scale under a bifactorial model with a general factor presents appropriate psychometric properties for Mexican university students.

No Good-Bye and No Thanks: A Case Study on the Experience of Mexican University Professors Retiring in Times of Pandemic.

The pandemic has left its mark on virtually every aspect of human life, including retirement. The main objective of this paper was to explore the role of the pandemic in the retirement decision of a group of Mexican university professors. A qualitative research methodology was chosen; 10 women and four men were interviewed. The theoretical framework that guided this work was the 3D model in retirement decision-making, which presents three primary elements in decision making: finances, health, and psychological well-being. Also, the model uses 6 categories: push factors, pull factors, barriers, enablers, triggers, and overrides. A matrix based on the elements and categories of the 3D model was elaborated, and results indicate that the pandemic did play a role in the decision to retire of all participants. Among the main factors for retiring were the long-term after-effects of professors who contracted COVID-19, stress due to training needs for distance education, changes in the family dynamics, the return to face-to-face classes, guilt, uncertainty, and recognition of the fragility of life.

Technology Inclusion as an Alternative Strategy for the Teaching of Anatomy

The teaching of medicine has historically been linked to the use of cadaveric models to understand the anatomy of the human body; however, as awareness of the ethical dimension of using cadaveric models for teaching purposes has increased, the creation of alternative teaching strategies has been encouraged. The incorporation of educational technology for medical education also represents a cost-efficient alternative that allows for the expansion of the experience so that a more significant number of students can benefit from it, also to successfully replicate the practice to reach the competencies. This study reports the implementation experience in a Mexican university using SECTRA Workstation IDS7 technology for the teaching of the Human Anatomy course. In this project, the sample consisted of 450 undergraduate students participating in the medical program, 50% of the participants had an internship with educational technology, and the remaining 50% received a course in traditional anatomy. The results show a significant difference (9.3%) since the approval percentage of the groups that participated in the experience was higher.

Design and validation of a measurement instrument for gender violence in university Nursing

Introduction: This work is part of the UNAM-DGAPA-PAPIIT Project IN304521, ENEO No124 entitled "Educational intervention to prevent gender violence in university nursing students: design and evaluation", which was approved by the ethics and research committee of the ENEO-UNAM. Objective: Build and validate a documentary measurement instrument for gender violence in nursing university students. Methodology: Based on the Supo taxonomy. Design and validation of instruments type documentary measurement, of multidimensional content to measure the perception, attitudes, knowledge and gender violence in Mexican university nursing students. The content was built from a literary search on the web, the last 10 years. The content validation was through rational validity and judging of 8 gender experts. The metric properties were determined by Variances and Cronbach's Alpha from the application of a pilot test with 80 students from various nursing schools and semesters, they were selected by non-probabilistic convenience sampling. The sample was calculated with a confidence level of 0.95% and a probability of 0.05%. The collection method was remote. Informed consent was requested, including clarification of doubts, associated risks and benefits, as well as data protection. Processing in statistical software SPSS 21. Results: The judges evaluated the content as sufficient (95.10%), clear (96.57%), pertinent (96.90%) Relevant (85.13%) and with applicability (95.93%). By general consensus the content validity was 93.93%. The construct validity was ratified with the strength of heterogeneity of the variances other than zero in all dimensions. The instrument obtained very high reliability (Cronbach .945). The conclusive instrument was constructed with 80 items distributed in four dimensions: perception, attitudes, knowledge and gender violence with 5 likert-type response options; an inventory with 5 additional questions and a section for the characterization of the sample. Approximate reasonable application time of 15 min. Conclusions: Based on the test theory, the documentary measurement instrument has a high precision to measure the gender violence variable.

Student Perception of Competencies and Skills for Social Entrepreneurship in Complex Environments: An Approach with Mexican University Students

The aim of this article is to present the results of a diagnostic study carried out on a group of Mexican university students regarding their perceived achievement of social entrepreneurship competence and its subcompetences. By means of a multivariate descriptive statistical analysis, it was possible to evaluate the perception of this group on their level of perceived achievement considering the variable age. The results show a positive perception on the personal subcompetences and a low perception on the subcompetences of social innovation and business management. This article concludes with the need to promote projects and training programs that improve students’ perception of the achievement of the economic and administrative subcompetences linked to the management processes of the social entrepreneurship competence. This will allow future social entrepreneurs to develop an optimistic view of their professional tools when it comes to materializing their projects.

Design and Psychometric Properties of the Strategies for Meaningful Learnings Scale

&lt;p style="text-align:justify"&gt;In higher education, it is essential that students apply what they have learned to solve problems in their community. Meaningful learning is the main means to increase the accumulation of knowledge and achieve the transfer of learning, which is why the present study aimed to: design and evaluate the psychometric properties of a scale that measures the application of learning strategies that promote meaningful learning. The participants were 890 university students from Northeast Mexico, with an average age of 20.35 years (SD = 3.94). The sample was randomly divided into two: an exploratory factor analysis was carried out with the first sample and a confirmatory factor analysis was made in the second sample. The results obtained confirm the eight-dimensional structure, which showed an adequate fit to the data (χ2 / gl = 3.57, GFI = .96, AGFI = .95, NFI = .94, RMSEA = .08 and SRMR = .07), high parsimony (RP = .93), in addition to good internal consistency (ω ≥ .80) and convergent validity (AVE ≥ .40). In conclusion, the scale presents adequate psychometric properties to measure the frequency of use of strategies that promote meaningful learning in Mexican university students.&lt;/p&gt;

Crossing the ocean to teach international business. Is it worth the trouble?

In this paper, we discuss the benefits and shortcomings of faculty-led short-term study abroad programs (STSA) as a tool to enhance international business teaching. While STSAs have been recognized as a valuable addition to business degree curricula, there are some understandable concerns about time constraints limiting the length of learning activities and possibly jeopardizing the program's academic rigor. We analyzed two editions of a week-long program of a leading Mexican university, covering international business topics in Europe. In particular, we centered our research on the students' perceived value with a balance of experiential activities and lecturing from academic experts. We found that more rigorous and academically loaded programs lead to higher student satisfaction. Based on a qualitative analysis of students' feedback, we identified five pillars of high-quality STSAs.

In Memoriam: Jorge Cervantes Castro, MD, Honorary FACS (1938–2021)

Jorge Cervantes Castro, MD, FACS (Hon.2006) passed away on May 28, 2021, at the age of 83years. He graduated from medical school at the National Autonomous Mexican University (UNAM) and did his residency in general and vascular surgery at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. After completing his surgical training, he returned to Mexico City and established his practice at the American British Cowdray Medical Center (ABC Hospital). He was a professor of surgery for hundreds of surgical residents for over 50 years, author of over 240 surgical papers and 52 book chapters, and member of the editorial board of seven medical journals. He is the author of four surgical training books, one on "Iatrogenia in surgery" and the others on vanguard techniques for laparoscopic surgery. For his Juris Doctor degree obtained from UNAM in 2016, his thesis was on the "Legal implications of the professional title of medical surgeon" in which he emphasizes the legal need to change the professional degree conferred to Mexican medical graduates. A global ambassador of surgery, he was an active member of over 30 surgical societies, including the American College of Surgeons (ACS), the International Federation of Societies of Endoscopic Surgeons (IFSES), the International Society of Surgery (ISS; Hon.2009), and president of the Mexican chapter of the Latin American Federation of Surgery (FELAC), of which he also became honorary fellow. Among other accomplishments, he was one of the founding members of the Mexican Society of General Surgery, president of the Mexican Board of Surgery, distinguished member of the Mexican Academy of Surgery, and member of the editorial board of the World Journal of Surgery (1995-2004). He is survived by his one true and lifelong love Lucero, his wife of 57+ years, and by his children Jorge, Lucero, Arturo, Ignacio, and Pablo, 13 grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.

Cross-cultural validity of the five items Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS-5) in Peru and Mexico during the COVID-19 pandemic

The Spanish version of the 5-item Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS-5) is a brief measure of the general tendency to be attentive and aware of experiences in the present moment during daily life. The MAAS-5 has been used in different countries; however, an assessment of its cross-cultural measurement invariance (MI) has not been conducted. Therefore, the study aimed to evaluate the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the MAAS-5 in university students from two countries: Peru and Mexico. A total of 1144 university students from Peru (N = 822) and Mexico (N = 322) responded online to the Spanish version of the 5-item Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS-5). A multigroup confirmatory factor analysis was performed. Measurement invariance tests the hypothesis that the model behind a set of scores is comparable between groups. The results showed that the unidimensional structure of the MAAS-5 is the same between Peruvian and Mexican university students. Therefore, it is suggested that university students from both countries conceptualize the mindfulness in a similar way. As a result, the MAAS-5 can be used to compare differences between countries. No significant differences were observed in the MAAS-5 score between Peruvian and Mexican university students. The present study contributes to a better understanding of the psychometric properties of the MAAS-5 by presenting MI results in two Latin American countries. Implications of the findings are discussed, which will facilitate a more solid and reliable use of the MAAS-5 in future cross-cultural studies.

Soledad y ansiedad durante el confinamiento por COVID-19. El efecto mediador de la regulación emocional

The lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the lives of undergraduate students around the world. Knowing its effects on mental health and behavior will be a priority for years to come. Due to the multiple negative effects that confinement by the COVID-19 pandemic has brought, this study aims to provide new scientific evidence that will allow a better understanding of the effects of the experience of loneliness caused by this pandemic. Based on the procedural model of emotion regulation created by Gross, the objective of this research was to analyze the direct and indirect relations between the experience of loneliness, maladaptive emotion regulation strategies (rumination, avoidance, suppression, catastrophizing, and self-blame) and anxiety in a sample of Mexican undergraduate students. Based on this goal, it was hypothesized that maladaptive emotion regulation strategies would mediate the relation between loneliness and anxiety. To achieve this purpose, a total of 824 undergraduate students participated in the present research. In addition to providing their sociodemographic data, they answered the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale, the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, the Cognitive-Behavioral Avoidance Scale, the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, and the Beck Anxiety Inventory. In order to carry out the mediating analysis, a structural equation model was created which included three latent variables (loneliness, maladaptive emotion regulation strategies and anxiety). This model was tested using the Lavaan software. The indirect effects were analyzed using the bootstrapping method. The results showed that maladaptive emotional regulation strategies had a mediating role which was positive and significant in the relation between loneliness and anxiety. Regarding the measurement model, confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the measurement model comprising the three latent variables. Results showed that the measurement model fit the observed data appropriately. Furthermore, with the purpose of examining the validity of the measurement model, the average variance extracted and square root of the average variance extracted were calculated. Findings indicated that the average variance extracted for each construct was higher than all the squared correlations involving that construct. This confirmed the discriminant validity of all variables of study. Regarding the structural model, results showed acceptable data fit. The model explained 48 % of the variance in anxiety. The structural equation analysis revealed that loneliness was related positively with maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. Similarly, maladaptive emotion regulation strategies were associated positively with anxiety. Likewise, it was possible to confirm the main hypothesis of this study which stated that maladaptive emotion regulation strategies would mediate the influence of loneliness on anxiety among Mexican university students. Finally, it was confirmed that loneliness had a nonsignificant direct effect on anxiety. Regarding the contribution of each of the five maladaptive emotion regulation strategies, rumination had a significant function in the mediating process showing that loneliness had an impact on anxiety via the continuous thoughts that participants had about their own emotions. In turn, because of the strategy of catastrophizing, participants intensified their thoughts and emotions waiting for the worse scenario which in turn increased their levels of anxiety. Likewise, the strategies of avoidance and suppression had also a significant contribution on the mediating role of maladaptive strategies. Finally, the strategy of self-blame was a significant contribution to the mediating function. Therefore, with the purpose of controlling emotions associated with loneliness, it was possible that participants could blame themselves as a mechanism to regulate their emotions. In conclusion, these findings reveal the presence of a mediating effect by showing that loneliness was indirectly related to anxiety via its relation with maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. https://doi.org/10.16888/interd.2022.39.2.21