Students In Portugal Research Articles

Compassion and extracurricular activities of Portuguese Health Sciences students in Portugal

BackgroundCompassion, one of the items of empathy, is crucial in health care professions. So, the evaluation of the levels of compassion of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences Master Degrees’ (M.D.) students of the public Colleges in Portugal according to the type of Master Degree and the participation in extracurricular activities (E.A.) was a task to be performed.MethodsCross-sectional study in 2020, applying an on-line questionnaire including the “Compassion” items of the Jefferson Medical Empathy Scale – Students’ version and questions about the participation in E.A.ResultsA sample of 901 students was studied. Its distribution by participation in E.A. did not differ significantly between M.D. (p = 0,854), most of the students participating in E.A. Using quartile distribution of compassion, the distribution of compassion levels was different among the three I.M. (p < 0.001), between Colleges (p < 0.001), and between curricular years (p < 0.001), with not different between genders (p = 0.036). For 56.4%, 74,6% and 69,5% of the respondents there was “medium-low” and “low” compassion for I.M. in Medicine, Pharmaceutical Sciences and Dentistry. These levels were also more prevalent among students in the 1st and 5th years. Levels of compassion were not different with the participation (p = 0,865), type (p = 0,177) and frequency of E.A. (p = 0,109).ConclusionsFor their importance in future health care professionals, compassion and their differences found among the M.Ds. of this area deserve future studies. Levels of compassion showed differences between the M.D. studied and academic years of frequency. There was no relationship between the participation, type, and frequency of E.A. and the students’ levels of compassion.The distribution of the level of compassion did not vary significantly with participation in E.A. (p = 0.865), with the type of E.A. (p = 0.177), with the frequency of E.A. (p = 0.109) or with the answer to the question “The practice of E.A. can make a person more compassionate?” (p = 0.503).

Financial Literacy among Portuguese Higher Education Students

Our globalised world, with increasingly diversified and rapid trade, requires properly informed and equally rapid decisions, where financial literacy is a core life skill. The information, attitudes and financial knowledge associated with these decisions are essential to ensure the sustainability of economies. The day-to-day life of any citizen is surrounded by financial decisions that determine and condition not only the individual well-being, but also financial sustainability of families, institutions and, consequently, local, and global economies.The need for everyone to take responsibility places the financial literacy of a population as a key issue for good governance. Moreover, financial ignorance has costs. Thus, the promotion of an inclusive financial sector is one of the objectives of several governments and institutional bodies, so since 2015 it has been included in the 2030 UN agenda in 5 of the 17 sustainable development goals. The literacy in general corresponds to the ability of each individual to acquire knowledge, develop cognitive and social skills that allow him, with the information available in society to make the right decision.Financial education is useful for people of all ages and education level. However, higher education students are one of the groups in which any country tends to place many expectations, since they are the future decision makers, so this is the target audience of this research. The survey was released in April 10, and it will be open until May 10, 2022. This preliminary study, which is part of a wider research, aims to determine the level of financial literacy of higher education students in Portugal and to determine whether there are differences in gender, age, course area, and day/ post-work students. Keywords: financial literacy; financial knowledge; financial attitude; financial behaviour; higher education students.

Psychological Responses and Strategies Towards the COVID-19 Pandemic Among Higher Education Students in Portugal and Switzerland: A Mixed-Methods Study.

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has caused overwhelming changes in individual and community daily-life, resulting from the public health measures implemented to contain it, and also from its psychological and socio-economic consequences. These shifts and consequences impacted the entire population, but some groups are more likely to be affected by these changes, including higher education students.Objectivesa) to investigate mental health status and its determinants among higher-education students in Portugal and Switzerland; and b) to explore adjustment patterns used by these students to overcome the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsA cross-sectional study with a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design was conducted in two phases. First, an online survey was conducted among higher education students in Portugal and Switzerland, in Portuguese and French respectively. A convenience sampling method was used. Second, some participants from the first phase were invited to participate in four online focus group discussions (two in each country) using a maximum variation sampling method.ResultsThe survey was answered by 1,880 students. Portuguese students revealed higher levels of stress and anxiety, but lower depression symptoms and less resilient coping compared to Swiss respondents. Hope was identified as an explanatory variable for mental health symptoms in students from both countries. In the focus groups (n = 27), 13 adjustment strategies were found, which were subdivided into three spheres: personal, social, and contextual.ConclusionsThe results suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic had a mild to moderate impact on most of the evaluated mental health variables. Nevertheless, the students reacted and mobilized positive short-term strategies, which need to be reinforced in order to prevent long-term psychological harm. In addition, our results can inform psychosocial interventions to minimize psychological impact, anxiety, depression, and stress due to sanitary crises or other population-wide problems or disasters.

Motivation of International Mobility of Iranian Students in Portugal

This study investigated the possible causes behind the significant growth of the number of Iranians in Portugal. By considering the published reports, it was found that a major part of the Iranians are students or working in academic fields. A question that arises is why the number of Iranian students at higher educational levels or later academic activities is increasing in Portugal. To investigate this, a survey was disseminated between the Iranians resident in Portugal. The results showed that beside the available scholarships, the immigration policies are one of the main reasons in choosing Portugal. Investments in the educational system in Portugal and incentives for receiving foreign students are additional reasons that have increased the number of Iranians immigrating to Portugal. It was also found that the advanced levels of facilities, living expenses, etc. are other important factors that influence the number of foreign students, especially the Iranians in Portugal.

Kenny Music Performance Anxiety Inventory: Contribution for the Portuguese Validation.

(1) Background: The aim of the present study was to contribute to the validation of the Portuguese version of the Kenny Music Performance Anxiety Inventory (K-MPAI) and to study its psychometric properties. (2) Methods: A sample of 164 undergraduate music students in Portugal (62.2% female; mean age = 22.63; SD = 4.36) completed an online survey composed of the K-MPAI Portuguese version, the State Trait Anxiety Inventory, and a sociodemographic questionnaire. The K-MPAI psychometric properties were examined using exploratory factor analyses, known-group differences, and Cronbach’s alpha. (3) Results: A four-factor structure was identified, in line with recent validation of this measure in other countries: music performance anxiety-related symptoms, depression and hopelessness, parental support, and memory self-efficacy. Concurrent and known-group validity were established, and reliability scores were appropriate for the dimensions and total score. (4) Conclusions: The results provide initial evidence of the appropriateness of the Portuguese version of the K-MPAI.

A importância das Redes Digitais no engajamento político dos jovens da Universidade do Porto: Reflexão sobre a atividade e presença da política em Portugal

e impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution with the digitization of the world and the internet of things is notorious in the layer of postmodern society. Mobile phones, for example, have changed the way people interact and communicate with others in public space (Abdel-Aziz et al., 2016). These digital tools are often used to keep users informed about events and news, either by broa-dcasting them on public screens or made availa-ble to them over wireless networks anytime and anywhere as shown by Abdel-Aziz (2016). This is especially popular among young people, as shown by Eurostat (2022), in 2021, 95% of young people in the European Union use the internet every day. Digital media also have a profound influence on others in the success of social movements (Kluse-ner, 2018), as seen in movements like #Blackslive-matter or even the Yellow Vests Movement. Now, within this context, we sought to understand how social media platforms can be related to the enga-gement and political presence of young people. For this, we examined the presence of politics in the daily life of this population to be able to induce the weight of this factor in political engagement. Based on data collected from interviews carried out with a sample of 84 university students in Portugal, we analysed their political consumption habits (both in the medium of digital and traditio-nal media) and their opinions on political activism. The impact of the internet and digital media was found not to have a strong relationship with poli-tical engagement, which actually revealed a pre--existing trend: the low participation of young Por-tuguese people in politics, as shown by Accornero e Ramos Pinto (2015). Of those who have some political presence in their daily lives, most are indi-rectly - with the television news in the background - and very few actively seek it. Within this group, digital is the main means of political search.

Mobility in times of immobility: international students in portugal during the COVID-19 pandemic

RESUMO O objetivo deste artigo é compreender de que modo a crise provocada pelo coronavírus (COVID-19) tem impactado o ensino-aprendizagem dos estudantes internacionais no ensino superior português, e de que forma novos projetos de mobilidade estudantil têm sido repensados e renegociados durante a pandemia. A metodologia inclui a análise dos resultados de um questionário online — respondido por 703 estudantes internacionais, matriculados num estabelecimento de ensino superior em Portugal — para além de entrevistas individuais online — realizadas com 22 desses estudantes e também com aqueles que têm intenção de estudar em Portugal. Enquanto, para alguns, a pandemia representou a possibilidade de se fazer “mobilidade” estando “imóvel” (em seu país de origem, ou mesmo em Portugal, necessitando “apenas” de um computador e uma ligação à internet); para outros, potenciou as desigualdades sociais e econômicas, dificultando, e muitas vezes impossibilitando, a realização da “mobilidade” nesses moldes.

Housing situation of students during the COVID-19 pandemic – a case study from Poland and Portugal

The occurrence of the first illnesses of the inhabitants of Poland and Portugal caused decision-makers to introduce many changes in the functioning of economic units in various areas. This document aims to answer the questions of whether the changes related to the occurrence of COVID-19 had a significant impact on the housing situation of students by answering two questions: (1) How has the pandemic affected the change in the form of residence? (2) What changes in the provisions of the contract do students expect after returning to the full-time form? The empirical study was conducted based on data obtained from a survey. The research was conducted in May and June 2021 on a sample of 599 students at the University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn and the School of Technology and Management of Porto Polytechnic in Portugal. The analysis related to the determination of statistically significant interdependencies of socio-demographic characteristics of respondents with their attitudes, and a multidimensional method of comparative analysis was used, known as correspondence analysis. As a method of recording data in the analysis of correspondence, the Burt matrix was used. The result of the statistical analysis was the identification of structural relationships between variables and objects (respondents). The results showed different behaviours related to housing conditions in Poland and Portugal. Polish students, due to the epidemiological situation, were mostly forced to change their place of residence, which was usually associated with returning to their family home. This trend was not observed for students in Portugal (median response: Housing had not been affected in any way by the pandemic).

Determinants of the Entrepreneurial Influence on Academic Entrepreneurship—Lessons Learned from Higher Education Students in Portugal

Academic entrepreneurship is becoming increasingly important to the field of research as well as to policy makers due to its ability to contribute to the economic, technological, and social development of regions and countries. This research aims to evaluate the determinants that influence the interest of Portuguese higher education students (HEI’s) to become entrepreneurs. The methodology used is quantitative and uses structural model equations. The results obtained demonstrate that the student’s perception of business skills, business growth skills, strategy, and successful business are key factors that students take into account in their entrepreneurial orientation. The research contributes to this theory by adding new knowledge to the literature on the perception of the HEI’s students to become entrepreneurs, specifically the students of Portuguese universities. In practical terms, the contributions offered within this research are based on suggestions for the third mission of universities, explicitly knowledge transfer to the community, business groups, and policy makers, as well as the creation of the essentials within university boundaries to promote entrepreneurship amongst its students. The research is original and innovative, as no research on this field with all the aggregated elements under study has been previously performed in Portugal. Furthermore, the obtained results can translate into ideas that potentially create jobs.

Impact of COVID-19 on the Mental Health of Medical Students in Portugal.

(1) Background: The purpose of this article is to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of medical students in Portugal in the period after returning to face-to-face classes during the COVID-19 pandemic, in the 2020/2021 academic year. (2) Methods: We conducted an observational, descriptive, and cross-sectional study, between December 2020 and February 2021 with a representative sample of Portuguese medical students (n = 649), applying an anonymous questionnaire which was composed by a sociodemographic characterization, The Brief Symptoms Inventory–18, The Fear of COVID-19 Scale and the Negative Impact Assessment Scale. For statistical processing, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS ©) was used. (3) Results: 65.3% of participants said that self-perceived relevant anxiety symptoms, and around 10% said that they had a physical or a mental illness diagnosis. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found for Fear of COVID-19, Somatization, Anxiety and Overall Mental Health, indicating that women, students from the 1st and last years of training had higher scores. Age, year of training, Fear of COVID-19 and Negative Impact of COVID-19 were significant predictors of overall mental health. (4) Conclusion: In our sample of Portuguese medical students, age, year of training, but mostly fear of COVID-19 and the negative impact of COVID-19 contributed to mental health symptoms.

An immobility turn? The Covid-19 pandemic, mobility capital and international students in Portugal

ABSTRACT Corporeal travel has been highly problematized during the Covid-19 pandemic, leading to the curtailment of many previously taken-for-granted mobilities. This includes the circulation of international students; individuals undertaking short duration credit mobility exchanges alongside those who have migrated for an entire degree course. The objective of this article is to look at how the pandemic has affected credit and degree mobility students from inside and outside Europe, focusing on the example of Portugal during the lockdown of Spring 2020. Using evidence from qualitative interviews, we illustrate the unfolding impact of the pandemic on the lives and learning habits of these students, showing how the international learning experience changed from being a relatively positive and carefree experience to one characterized by risk and uncertainty. This apparent inversion extends to a potential devaluation of their mobility capital, somewhat undermining the raison d’être of much student mobility. In conclusion, we argue that whether temporary or permanent, during the pandemic we have witnessed a turn towards immobility in tertiary education, and perhaps in the broader field of mobilities, creating an imperative to open up debate on the impact of the limitations that affect student mobilities.

Immobility, precarity and the Covid-19 pandemic: the impact of lockdown on international students in Portugal

ABSTRACT This article looks at the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic among international students in Portugal, focusing on their experiences during the Spring 2020 lockdown. The discussion begins with an outline of the research context, and recognition of the inherent precarity of much international student life. Our research questions hence look not only at the immediate impact of the pandemic on internationalised learning but also the heightening of pre-existing economic vulnerability among many of our research subjects. Using evidence taken from 27 interviews, we document their experiences, including the challenge of maintaining communications and coping with social isolation, and look at how the pandemic has undermined the financial integrity of international studentship. In conclusion, we argue that in addition to widespread stress and anxiety the pandemic has created additional forms of precarity for this cohort, creating a need to integrate better support measures into the governance of mobility at tertiary education level.

‘There was no freedom to leave’: Global South international students in Portugal during the COVID-19 Pandemic

This article looks at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on international students, focusing on Portuguese-speaking African and Brazilian students during the lockdown of spring 2020. Using evidence from interviews conducted with 27 students domiciled in Portugal, we illustrate some of the challenges faced by students when coping with the pandemic, including difficulties in meeting the cost of tertiary education and the centrality of working to sustain their stays abroad, alongside the emotional impact of prolonged domestic confinement and separation from families. We also consider the paradoxes of online teaching, which have made visible the digital gap between local and international Global South students in the context of their stays. In this sense, pre-existing inequalities are more at the centre of students’ concerns than new issues raised by COVID-19, a pandemic that served to reveal former injustice in the context of global capitalism. In our conclusion, we argue that there is a need for greater recognition of the vulnerabilities facing certain African and Brazilian students at Global North universities in the context of contemporary neo-liberalism, including their dependence upon precarious work. Policy responses include the need for a more serious involvement and responsibility by both home and host higher education institutions in the lives of their students abroad.

COVID-19 pandemic and its psychological impact among healthy Portuguese and Spanish nursing students.

Few studies have explored the impacts of COVID-19 and lockdown on the mental health of undergraduate nursing students. This study aimed: a) to explore perceived stress among undergraduate nursing students in Portugal and Spain during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak; and b) to analyze several COVID-19 related factors and psychological issues that may be associated with perceived stress. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a convenience sample of Portuguese and Spanish undergraduate nursing students (n=1075). The data gathered included demographic information, questions about COVID-19 related factors, and psychological issues. Data were analyzed using multiple logistic regression with a degree of significance at p<0.05. High perceived stress scores were found in 558 participants (51.9%). Students with high perceived stress most likely had a COVID-19 diagnosis in their household; their household income had been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic; experienced difficulty falling asleep or sleeping all night; consumed junk food in excess; neglected their appearance; felt headaches, stomach aches, and back pain; and lacked the patience or desire to exercise. Additionally, high perceived stress was negatively associated with life satisfaction. The results provide evidence that infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, may significantly influence mental health. Further research should explore the long-term psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic among nursing students.

National Survey on the importance of sleep in the quality of academic life and mental health of college students in Portugal.

The academic years are a period of vulnerability when considering sleep problems and mental health. Growing evidence suggests poor sleep patterns are related to impaired academic life and lower psychological well-being. The aim of this study was to explore the importance of sleep habits and report the associations of sleep problems with quality of academic life and different dimensions of mental health (e.g. worries, anxiety, self-regulation and resilience) in a large sample of college students. The HBSC/JUnP data base comprises a representative sample of 2991 college students (n=2203; 73.7% women), aged from 18 to 35 years old (22.43±3.83). Participants socio-demographic characteristics included sex and age. Besides, participants were inquired about sleep duration, characteristics of their sleep habits, questions about quality academic life, namely feeling bored in university, pressure from academic work and academic performance perception and mental health, namely worries, anxiety, self-regulation and resilience. Results showed most young people report an average value for sleep habits (M=4.41; SD=1.46) and that they sleep an average of 7 hours a night. More than half of the young people report either being affected by difficulty falling asleep, showing signs of sleep onset insomnia (67.7%). The conducted analyses indicated that the difficulty falling asleep (having insomnia) was associated with poor/reasonable academic performance perception, higher levels of concerns and anxiety, and lower levels of self-regulation and resilience, thus jeopardizing the mental health of college students. In turn, that characteristics of sleep was also associated with poor sleep habits. In conclusion, this study showed that poor sleep habits were associated with a worse level of academic performance perception and low levels of mental health among college students in Portugal. Universities offer enormous potential as settings to promote sleep-health programs since they can reach many young people who are future-oriented and willing to learn. There is then the need for academic researchers, teaching staff and health professionals working for college students health, to develop and test a wide array of sleep-promoting interventions (e.g., education classes, online programs, adjustment of class time), thus preventing negative secondary outcomes.

Foreign adolescents living in Portugal: Quality of life and school experiences

The present study intends to (1) analyze the differences regarding the quality of life between young foreigners and young Portuguese adolescents; (2) understand the relationship between variables related to the school context and the quality of life of foreign adolescents living in Portugal. In all, 8215 adolescents participated in this study, and only the sub-sample of 578 foreigners was considered. 50.3% are boys, aged between 10 and 22 years old. Foreign students in Portugal have a lower well-being index than Portuguese students and a worse relationship with peers and teachers. Foreign girls like school more than boys, have less difficulties in school and have a higher perception of security at this context. On the other hand, they have a lower perceived academic competence and a worse relationship with peers. The importance of developing programs to promote socioemotional skills, empowering teachers and educators, and promoting the adoption of an inclusive model in schools is highlighted.

Loneliness among African international students in Portugal

International students constitute an important sojourner group. This study examined the levels and predictors of loneliness among international students. The sample included 188 Angolan and 210 Cape Verdean college students who attended Portuguese institutions of higher education and a control group of 221 domestic students. The relative strengths of background and acculturation factors in loneliness, as indicators of psychological adaptation, were explored. Results showed that international students reported greater levels of loneliness than native-born students. As expected, results showed that students who reported poorer financial situation, greater perceived discrimination, lower home culture and host culture acculturation orientation scores reported higher loneliness. In addition, using hierarchical regression analyses, current findings suggest that the most significant predictors of loneliness for international students were financial situation, perceived discrimination and orientation to heritage culture. Implications of these results for reducing loneliness of international students are discussed.&#x0D;

Survey of the Knowledge and Use of Antibiotics among Medical and Veterinary Health Professionals and Students in Portugal.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an urgent and complex problem worldwide, exacerbated by the frequently inappropriate use of antibiotics. The purpose of this study was to survey the levels of knowledge and awareness about antibiotic use and stewardship, among human and veterinary health professionals or students in Portugal, and the associations between antibiotic knowledge factors and socio-professional groups. In cross-sectional survey design, a total of 449 online structured questionnaires were completed in 2018–2019. The statistical analysis was performed dividing the respondents into four groups, A (undergraduate students), B (PhD students and researchers), C (lecturers), and D (technicians and other occupation). Among all respondents, 17% (n = 75) revealed some gap in knowledge about antibiotic resistance and the antibiotics that should be administered for different infection types (bacterial, viral, or fungal). Of the 159 pet owners among the respondents, only half had administered antibiotics to their animal and 64% (n = 102) knew that veterinary prescription is mandatory when administering antibiotics to animals. All groups statistically agreed that the AMR is a major public health problem and the antibiotics should be administrated for bacterial infections and used until the whole pack has been finished (p = 0.00). As expected, only groups B and C demonstrated a higher level of knowledge to recognize the antibiotic name and their active ingredient than undergraduate students (p = 0.00). About the antibiotic use on pets, only group B was statistically significant to no used antibiotics on their pets (p = 0.00). However, groups A, C, and D were statistically significant for the knowledge about the mandatory veterinarian prescription and groups C and D were significantly statistics for fully aware of the transmission of bacteria between animals and humans. In conclusion, in matters related to AMR, the behavior, education, and training of the general public and health professionals, including those who prescribe antibiotics for humans and animals, need to be improved.

The Increase of Brazilian Students in a Portuguese Engineering School

In the last fifteen years, the number of Brazilian students in Portugal has shown an increase of more than 600%. This trend was firstly driven by Portuguese economic recovery, which included investments in university education and incentives for receiving foreign students, through the international student statute, established in 2014. In the same year, Portugal started to accept the Brazilian national exams (ENEM) for the university admission, increasing the educational migratory flux once a directly access was stablished. Moreover, other secondary reasons led to this increase, such as the opportunity to study and live in a safer country and the possibility of obtaining a prestigious foreign degree. Currently, Brazilian students represent more than 33% of the foreign students in Portugal. However, the Brazilian students are highly concentrated in the top 3 Portuguese universities, Coimbra, Lisbon and Porto. In the specific case of the University of Porto, 73% of the foreign students are of Brazilian origin, with the Faculty of Engineering (FEUP) representing the largest contingent. This sharp growth in a specific group of foreign students on the engineering courses has created several important educational challenges, as the Brazilian students often exhibit higher failure rates in exams and curricular units as well as increased dropout rates when compared with Portuguese students. This is due to several factors, such as differences on the educational methodology, the quality of the high-school education, cultural differences, difficulty of adaptation and other socioeconomics aspects. The present work evaluates the causes behind the limited academic success of Brazilian students and introduces the measures and methodologies applied to the Brazilian students on the Faculty of Engineering of University of Porto, and on the Integrated Master’s in Mechanical Engineering (MIEM) in particular, in the pursuit of maintaining educational equality and ensuring success for all enrolled students, independently of their origin.

Why do People Refuse Entrepreneurship and How to Improve Entrepreneurial Education?

The purpose of this paper is to measure entrepreneurial intentions with a clear timeframe for the intended behavior, thus going beyond a simple measure of attitude. It then looks at those who refuse the idea of becoming entrepreneurs to understand why This is something the literature on entrepreneurship has ignored so far. Samples were collected in 2018 from final year university students in Portugal. Data shows that trusting one’s own skills, valuing own job creation, valuing being one’s own boss and valuing the independence associated with being an entrepreneur does contribute to student’s willingness to become entrepreneurs. The results provide some important lessons for entrepreneurial education programs, as people who say no to entrepreneurship: › are less motivated to career factors and more worried about life quality factors; › see harder obstacles to creating startups; › trust less in their entrepreneurial skills. Implications for theory and practice are proposed, as these results can be used to improve entrepreneurial education. This new view on potential entrepreneurs’ individual choices is presented as an advancement to the theory and to our present understanding of entrepreneurship.