Structural Model of Biomedical and Contextual Factors Predicting In-Hospital Mortality due to Heart Failure.

Background: Among the clinical predictors of a heart failure (HF) prognosis, different personal factors have been established in previous research, mainly age, gender, anemia, renal insufficiency and diabetes, as well as mediators (pulmonary embolism, hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), arrhythmias and dyslipidemia). We do not know the role played by contextual and individual factors in the prediction of in-hospital mortality. Methods: The present study has added hospital and management factors (year, type of hospital, length of stay, number of diagnoses and procedures, and readmissions) in predicting exitus to establish a structural predictive model. The project was approved by the Ethics Committee of the province of Almeria. Results: A total of 529,606 subjects participated, through databases of the Spanish National Health System. A predictive model was constructed using correlation analysis (SPSS 24.0) and structural equation models (SEM) analysis (AMOS 20.0) that met the appropriate statistical values (chi-square, usually fit indices and the root-mean-square error approximation) which met the criteria of statistical significance. Individual factors, such as age, gender and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, were found to positively predict mortality risk. Isolated contextual factors (hospitals with a greater number of beds, especially, and also the number of procedures performed, which negatively predicted the risk of death. Conclusions: It was, therefore, possible to introduce contextual variables to explain the behavior of mortality in patients with HF. The size or level of large hospital complexes, as well as procedural effort, are key contextual variables in estimating the risk of mortality in HF.

A Path Analysis Model of Self- vs. Educational-Context- Regulation as Combined Predictors of Well-Being in Spanish College Students.

Previous literature has established the importance of personal and contextual factors in college students' trajectories. Following the Self- vs. External-Regulation Behavior Theory (2021) and the 3P Biggs Model, the present study aimed at analyzing a structural linear model that validates the joint effect of self-regulation, educational context, age, and gender (as personal and contextual presage variables) with other meta-abilities, such as coping strategies, resilience, and positivity (process variables), and specific well-being outcomes, such as flourishing and health (product variables). A sample of 1310 Spanish college students was analyzed, aged 17 to 25, and a cross-sectional study with an ex post facto design was performed. Association and structural equation modeling (SEM) was performed using SPSS software (v.26) and AMOS (v.23). Results show that individual and contextual factors have an important role in the acquisition of psychological competencies in young adults. Self-regulation was proven to be an important meta-ability that predicts personal well-being and behavioral health outcomes. Complementarily, educational context was shown to be an external predictor of other skills, such as problem-focused strategies, and positive outcomes such as flourishing and behavioral health. Practical implications and limitations are discussed.

Theory of Self- vs. Externally-Regulated LearningTM: Fundamentals, Evidence, and Applicability.

The Theory of Self- vs. Externally-Regulated LearningTM has integrated the variables of SRL theory, the DEDEPRO model, and the 3P model. This new Theory has proposed: (a) in general, the importance of the cyclical model of individual self-regulation (SR) and of external regulation stemming from the context (ER), as two different and complementary variables, both in combination and in interaction; (b) specifically, in the teaching-learning context, the relevance of different types of combinations between levels of self-regulation (SR) and of external regulation (ER) in the prediction of self-regulated learning (SRL), and of cognitive-emotional achievement. This review analyzes the assumptions, conceptual elements, empirical evidence, benefits and limitations of SRL vs. ERL Theory. Finally, professional fields of application and future lines of research are suggested.

Validation of the Spanish Short Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SSSRQ) through Rasch Analysis.

Background: The aim of the study was to psychometrically characterize the Spanish Short Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SSSRQ) through Rasch analysis. Materials and Methods: 831 Spaniard university students (262 men), between 17 and 39 years of age and ranging from the first to the 5th year of studies, completed the SSSRQ questionnaire. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was carried out in order to establish structural adequacy. Afterward, by means of the Rasch model, a study of each sub scale was conducted to test for dimensionality, fit of the sample questions, functionality of the response categories, reliability and estimation of Differential Item Functioning by gender and course. Results: The four sub-scales comply with the unidimensionality criteria, the questions are in line with the model, the response categories operate properly and the reliability of the sample is acceptable. Nonetheless, the test could benefit from the inclusion of additional items of both high and low difficulty in order to increase construct validity, discrimination and reliability for the respondents. Several items with differences in gender and course were also identified. Discussion: The results evidence the need and adequacy of this complementary psychometric analysis strategy, in relation to the CFA to enhance the instrument.

Validation study of the Questionnaire on School Maladjustment Problems (QSMP).

The aim of this study was to analyze the exploratory and confirmatory structure, as well as other psychometric properties, of the Cuestionario de Problemas de Convivencia Escolar (CPCE; in Spanish, the Questionnaire on School Maladjustment Problems [QSMP]), using a sample of Spanish adolescents. The instrument was administered to 60 secondary education teachers (53.4% females and 46.6% males) between the ages of 28 and 54 years (M= 41.2, SD= 11.5), who evaluated a total of 857 adolescent students. The first-order exploratory factor analysis identified 7 factors, explaining a total variance of 62%. A second-order factor analysis yielded three dimensions that explain 84% of the variance. A confirmatory factor analysis was subsequently performed in order to reduce the number of factors obtained in the exploratory analysis as well as the number of items. Lastly, we present the results of reliability, internal consistency, and validity indices. These results and their implications for future research and for the practice of educational guidance and intervention are discussed in the conclusions.

[Perception of the teaching-learning process and academic achievement in diverse instructional contexts of Higher Education]. / Percepción del proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje y rendimiento académico en diferentes contextos instruccionales de la Educación Superior.

In Higher Education, performance and Teaching-Learning (T-L) contexts are highly current concerns. Based on the DEDEPRO model, interdependence can be established between instructional contexts and levels of performance as they relate to the T-L process. Partitipants were 2020 pupils from two Spanish universities. Measurements of both variables were used in a quasi-experimental and correlational design. The univariate and causal analyses showed the effect of context on the T-L process and on performance; thus, the interdependent relationships between the latter and perception of the T-L process. Partial interaction effects also appeared, as well as a causal model of academic performance. Results are discussed and implications for the ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) are analyzed.

Assessing self-regulated learning in early childhood education: Difficulties, needs, and prospects.

Self-regulated learning is one of the main processes being investigated today within developmental and educational psychology; however, the research has come up against a number of challenges for which no satisfactory response has been found, and which are impeding progress in the field. These challenges are two-fold: one part is methodological, as the process of self-regulation must be evaluated at the very moment in which it occurs, and the other part is developmental, as these processes have not been fully assessed in children under the age of 6 years. This article gives a broad overview of these challenges, as well as prospects for future solutions which are beginning to take shape.

[Personal self-regulation and perceived maladjusted school behaviors]. / Autorregulación personal y percepción de los comportamientos escolares desadaptativos.

The purpose of this study is to confirm the extent to which subjects' ability to self-regulate, during mid-adolescence, influences their perception of maladjustment problems. The sample comprised 888 adolescents between 12 and 17 years of age. The study followed an inferential methodology, using two instruments, a Spanish version of the Personal Self-regulation Questionnaire (2003, 2007) and the Cuestionario de Problemas de Desadaptación Escolar [Questionnaire for the Assessment of School Maladjustment Problems] (2007) to measure the variables of interest. Results from the inferential analyses (ANOVAS) suggest that the degree of personal self-regulation is interdependent with respect to perceived maladjustment and relational problems at school. Results and implications for future research are discussed.