José Manuel García-Fernández’s research while affiliated with University of Alicante and other places

School anxiety is among the most common attendance problems in childhood and one of the main causes of school absenteeism. This emotional response is linked to other non-specific reactions, such as school-based distress. However, in Spain, there are no studies analyzing the relationship between different forms of school anxiety and school-based distress. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to analyze the relationship between school anxiety profiles and school-based distress in a sample of Spanish Primary School children. A sample of 660 Spanish students aged 8–11 years (M = 10.04, SD = 1.37) was recruited through cluster sampling. The results revealed positive and statistically significant relationships between school anxiety and school-based distress. Latent profile analysis (LPA) revealed four profiles of school anxiety (Low, Moderate-Low, Moderate-High, and High School Anxiety). The MANOVA results confirmed that students with high school anxiety obtained higher scores in the different sources of school-based distress. The conclusions advocate the planning and development of psychoeducational actions adapted to the pattern of anxiogenic reactivity and the sources of stress in Spanish Primary School students.

At the university stage, students must face new challenges and achieve necessary academic goals, with intrinsic motivation and the effective use of learning strategies playing a relevant role in not procrastinating. The objective of the study was to investigate the profiles of university students according to their levels of intrinsic motivation. It also sought to examine whether students with different intrinsic motivation profiles differ significantly in motivational learning strategies. The study participants were 719 university students in Spain (M = 21.31; SD = 4.43), being 64.8% women. The Educational Motivation Scale and the Questionnaire of Learning Strategies in University Students were used. During the completion of the instruments, anonymity and confidentiality of the data were ensured. Informed consent was requested from the participants, who participated voluntarily, without receiving any reward and were able to unsubscribe at any time. This was a cross-sectional study that used convenience sampling. The latent profile analysis was carried out. The results revelated that different intrinsic motivation profiles have been found among university students. Likewise, it was found that the different profiles differ significantly in motivational learning strategies. It was shown that those students with high values of intrinsic motivation are characterized by using motivational learning strategies to a high degree compared to students with low or intermediate values. The findings of the study can help personalize educational programs by providing prevention and intervention methods regarding inappropriate patterns in the use of students’ learning strategies as well as self-regulation in the learning process to ensure academic success.

The objective of this study was to adapt and validate the School Anxiety Inventory to a university population, analyzing its factorial structure, internal consistency, convergent validity, and sex differences. The School Anxiety Inventory - University Version (SAI-UV) was administered to a sample of 1,404 Spanish college students (63.82% female and 36.18% male) aged 18 to 49 (M = 21.32). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were applied to analyze the dimensional structure of the SAI-UV. Internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) and test-retest reliability (3-week interval) were calculated for the SAI-UV scores. The convergent validity of the SAI-UV was also verified, and sex differences were analyzed. A correlated three-factor structure was found, based on the analyzed school situations (Anxiety about Social Evaluation, Anxiety about Academic Failure, and Anxiety about Aggression). Furthermore, a three-factor structure was found for the anxiety response systems (Cognitive Anxiety, Physiological Anxiety, and Behavioral Anxiety). Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were acceptable. The correlations obtained supported the inventory’s convergent validity. As for sex differences, females obtained higher mean scores as compared to males on all of the factors. Therefore, the psychometric properties of the SAI-UV were satisfactory, determining that it has a reliable and valid inventory for the analysis of school anxiety in university students.

The most prominent roles played by schoolchildren in bullying and cyberbullying situations are those of aggressors, victims, and bystanders. These roles are characterised by differences in the school environment and their achievements. This study aimed to analyse the differences between the roles of those directly involved in bullying and cyberbullying (aggressors, victims, and bystanders) by examining their attitudes and interest in reading. Participants were 326 primary schoolchildren in Murcia, Spain (M = 8.98, SD = 0.84), of whom 53.1% were girls. A multimodal questionnaire on school interaction was used with an instrument on attitudes and reading interests. A latent profile analysis (LPA) was conducted and showed three profiles: a) low levels of aggressiveness and victimisation, b) high indices of aggressiveness, and c) high indices of victimisation. The results revealed differences in attitudes toward and interest in reading among the various profiles. The findings of the study can help customise educational programs by providing bullying and cyberbullying intervention and prevention methods based on the roles of victims, aggressors, and bystanders and their attitudes toward and interests in reading.

Research on social anxiety (SA) over the years has revealed its associations with different psychopathological symptoms. This study aims to characterize SA profiles in a sample of Spanish adolescents and explore their differences in psychopathological symptoms. Data from 1,288 Spanish students in the 15 to 18 age range (M = 16.30, SD = 0.97, 47.5% female) were collected using random cluster sampling. The Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A) and the Symptom Assessment-45 Questionnaire (SA-45) were employed. Four SA profiles were revealed by the Latent Profile Analysis (LPA): extreme SA, high SA, moderate SA, and low SA. Statistically significant differences in psychopathological symptoms were revealed by the MANOVA (effect sizes from d = -2.13 to d = -0.37). The extreme SA profile exhibited the most severe psychopathological symptoms, whereas the low SA profile displayed the mildest manifestations. Proposed interventions aim to support adolescents with SA risk profiles.

BACKGROUND When the school climate is not ideal and coping skills for school situations are not strengthened in adolescents, school anxiety and stress may be manifested, potentially harming development and mental health during adulthood. This study aimed to analyze the predictive ability of school anxiety on elevated levels of stress in high-school students. MATERIALS AND METHODS This cross-sectional predictive study was conducted with 1588 students aged 12–18 (M = 14.82; SD = 1.86) years in 2023. The School Anxiety Inventory (SAI) and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) were administered to the participants. An inferential data analysis method was applied. Specifically, binary logistic regression was used for data analysis. The influence of school anxiety on stress was examined using the odds ratio statistic. RESULTS The total score on school anxiety (OR = 1.02), the situational factors: anxiety about aggression (OR = 1.03), anxiety regarding social evaluation (OR = 1.02), anxiety about failure and school punishment (OR = 1.03), and anxiety about school evaluation (OR = 1.04), as well as the response systems: cognitive (OR = 1.04), behavioral (OR = 1.08), and psychophysiological (OR = 1.04), positively and significantly ( P = 0.000) influenced the high scores on stress. CONCLUSION The results demonstrate the need to detect school anxiety in adolescents at an early state to intervene in both anxiety-provoking situations and responses and in the resulting high stress. Similarly, schools should promote mental health work and self-regulation to prepare students for adult life.

The Achievement Goal Theory has been commonly used in the literature and the relation between the goal orientation construct and aspects of athletes’ personality and well-being is an important element to be considered in the sports field. The objectives of this study were: (i) to confirm the reliability, factorial invariance and existence of latent mean differences of the Goal Orientations in Exercise Scale (GOES) in an Ecuadorian sample across sex; (ii) to identify the existence of subgroups of Ecuadorian students with different profiles of goal orientations to exercise; and iii) to determine the differences in resilience and life satisfaction among these profiles. A total of 597 Ecuadorian students from the Sports Sciences degree participated in this study. Confirmatory factorial analysis supported the two-dimensional (ego-task) GOES structure. The GOES has an adequate reliability and structural invariance across sex. Significant latent mean differences on the ego orientation subscale were found across sex but not in the task one. Cluster analysis identified three task-ego orientation profiles: (1) moderately high on task and low on ego; (2) low on task and slightly high on ego; (3) high in both task and ego orientation. Post hoc comparisons showed statistical differences in resilience between the three profiles and in life satisfaction between the profile 3 and profiles 1 and 2. The current study allows the possibility of using the GOES as an invariant and reliable scale in Ecuadorian sample and initiates the use of goal orientation profiles and their relationship with resilience and life satisfaction in the sports field.

Microbial associations and interactions drive and regulate nutrient fluxes in the ocean. However, physical contact between cells of marine cyanobacteria has not been studied thus far. Here, we show a mechanism of direct interaction between the marine cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus , the intercellular membrane nanotubes. We present evidence of inter- and intra-genus exchange of cytoplasmic material between neighboring and distant cells of cyanobacteria mediated by nanotubes. We visualized and measured these structures in xenic and axenic cultures and in natural samples. We show that nanotubes are produced between living cells, suggesting that this is a relevant system of exchange material in vivo. The discovery of nanotubes acting as exchange bridges in the most abundant photosynthetic organisms in the ocean may have important implications for their interactions with other organisms and their population dynamics.

p style="text-align: justify;">School attendance problems are of great research interest, which is reflected in the increase of scientific publications. This increase hinders the adequate follow-up and updating of the scientific community on the subject. The aim of the present bibliometric study lies in the review of the scientific literature published on school attendance problems during 2014-2021. A bibliographic search and analysis of scientific articles was performed, obtaining a definitive sample of 700 documents. Results were extracted and analyzed for the following indicators: temporal productivity, productivity by authors, co-authorship index, productivity by journals, use of topics, research areas addressed and types of samples used. The number of publications indicates a progressive increase of interest on the subject, which has not corresponded to the creation of a specific journal on the subject. There is also evidence of the need for consensus on the topics to be used; the preference for knowing the factors associated with school attendance problems over other areas of research; and the generalized use of community samples as opposed to more specific ones. In conclusion, the characteristics researched on school attendance problems are presented; knowledge that will facilitate the establishment of intervention processes applicable to different contexts and realities.</p