Suchergebnisse

ObjectiveThe current study tested the association between family relationships and left‐behind children's loneliness, as well as mediators of those associations.BackgroundThere is considerable concern in China about the psychological well‐being of rural children whose parents move to urban areas for work, so‐called left‐behind children. However, there have been inconsistent results in the research concerning loneliness for these children.MethodParticipants were Chinese left‐behind children from rural families in which one or both parents had left to work in an urban area (N = 399; 139 females; 11–16 years of age). The children completed questionnaires on grandparent–child relationships, parent–child relationships, emotional intelligence, peer relationships, and loneliness.ResultsPositive parent–child relationships were negatively associated with left‐behind children's loneliness. Path analysis showed that more positive grandparent–child and parent–child relationships were associated with a higher level of emotional intelligence and better peer relationships, which in turn were negatively associated with lower child loneliness. Moreover, the unique effect of parent–child relationships was higher than that of grandparent–child relationships in predicting left‐behind children's loneliness.ConclusionIt appears possible that a positive relationship with grandparents can lessen the loneliness experienced by left‐behind children, but the parent–child relationship is still more important for this aspect of psychological adjustment. Emotional intelligence and peer relationships appear to be mechanisms that account for the association between positive family relationships and lower loneliness in this group of children.ImplicationsThe results are discussed in terms of the role that parents and grandparents can play in interventions to help this population.

We aimed to determine how charitable behavior affects life satisfaction through the multiple mediating roles of self-acceptance and positive affect. We recruited 4,048 adults in China who voluntarily completed a survey on the frequency of their charitable behavior, self-acceptance,
positive affect, and life satisfaction. Results of a parallel multivariable mediation analysis showed that more frequent charitable behavior was positively associated with greater life satisfaction. Also, self-acceptance and positive affect mediated the relationship between charitable behavior
and life satisfaction. Implications for the mediating effect of charitable behavior on life satisfaction are discussed.

We aimed to determine how gender stereotypes about mathematics affect high school students' performance in this subject through examining the multiple mediating roles of competence belief, type of achievement goal, and effort. Chinese high school students (N = 267) completed
measures to assess their gender stereotypes, competence belief, achievement goals, effort, and performance in mathematics. The results of a serial multivariable mediation analysis partly supported the idea that competence belief, achievement goals, and effort act as mediators in the relationship
between gender stereotypes and mathematics performance. Specifically, gender stereotypes about mathematics had a negative direct and indirect effect on Chinese female students' mathematics performance: the girls with a stronger gender stereotype were serially associated with less competence
belief, lower performance-approach goals, and less effort, all of which, in turn, were associated with poorer performance in mathematics. However, gender stereotypes about mathematics did not predict the level of Chinese male students' performance at mathematics. The theoretical and practical
implications of these findings are discussed.

We examined the effect of real-world and virtual openness and Internet communication on social creativity using data from 451 undergraduates in central China. They completed the Big Five Personality Inventory, the Social Creativity Questionnaire, and the Internet Interaction Questionnaire.
Results of serial mediation analysis using a bias-corrected bootstrapping approach indicated that openness in real-world situations had a significant direct effect on social creativity. Virtual openness and Internet dependence, in combination, mediated the link between real-world openness
and social creativity. Individuals' use of the Internet directly affected their personality and communication. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Cordyceps militaris (CM), an entomopathogenic fungus belonging to the class ascomycetes, possesses various pharmacological activities, including cytotoxic effects, on various types of human tumor cells. The present study investigated the anti-hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and anti-breast cancer effects of CM in in vitro and in vivo models. CM aqueous extract reduced cell viability, suppressed cell proliferation, inhibited cell migration ability, caused the over-release of lactate dehydrogenase, induced mitochondrial dysfunction and enhanced apoptotic rates in MCF-7 and HepG2 cells. The expression levels of cleaved poly (ADP ribose) polymerase and caspase-3, biomarkers of apoptosis, were increased following treatment with CM aqueous extract for 24 h. Furthermore, in the MCF-7 and HepG2 cells, enhanced levels of B cell-associated X protein and cleaved caspase-8 were observed in the CM-treated cells. Finally, the antitumor activities of CM in HCC and breast cancer were also confirmed in MCF-7- and HepG2-xengraft nude mice models. Collectively, the data obtained in the present study suggested that the cytotoxic effects of CM aqueous extract on HCC and breast cancer are associated with the caspase-dependent mitochondrial pathway.