Earth and Environmental Sciences

Introduction The connection between dance and creativity offers a promising avenue for exploration. This study examines the relation between modern dance and creative performance (cognitive and motor) as well as creative self-beliefs. Methods Expert dancers (35), amateur dancers (45) and non-dancers (controls, 36) performed a creative task and completed questionnaires measuring creative beliefs (self-concept, self-efficacy, and growth mindset). Experts and amateurs also performed a dance improvisation task. Results (i) Experts performed better in both creative and improvisation tasks; amateurs showed higher creative performance than controls; (ii) experts (but not amateurs) reported higher creative self-beliefs than controls; (iii) improvisation performance was predicted by creative task scores in amateurs but not in experts, who likely rely more on their domain-specific expertise. Discussion The results confirm links between dance and creative performance (cognitive and motor) and highlight the role of creative beliefs as a function of expertise.

Introduction In recent years, teacher turnover rates have risen significantly, posing a major challenge to efforts to improve educational quality. Teacher job satisfaction is a key factor influencing teacher turnover. This study applies Self-Determination Theory to explore the indirect associations of teacher-student relationship and self-efficacy in the relationship between teachers’ growth mindset and job satisfaction. Methods Data were drawn from 1,201 teachers in Shanghai who participated in the OECD’s 2024 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). Validated scales assessed growth mindset, job satisfaction, teacher-student relationship quality, and self-efficacy. Structural equation modeling and bootstrap analyses were conducted to test direct and indirect effects. Results Teachers’ growth mindset is significantly and positively correlated with job satisfaction, teacher-student relationship, and self-efficacy. Both teacher-student relationship and self-efficacy are positively correlated with teacher job satisfaction. Teacher-student relationship is positively correlated with teacher self-efficacy. Teacher-student relationship and self-efficacy not only mediate the relationship between teachers’ growth mindset and job satisfaction independently but also exert a chained mediating effect. Conclusion These findings underscore that fostering a growth mindset is associated with higher teacher job satisfaction by first enriching teacher-student relationship and subsequently strengthening teachers’ sense of competence. Schools and policymakers should implement integrated interventions, such as cultivating growth mindsets, promoting positive teacher-student interactions, and bolstering self-efficacy, to create a virtuous cycle that sustains teachers job satisfaction.

Objective Kinesiophobia is a common barrier in the postoperative rehabilitation process of cardiovascular disease patients. This study aimed to investigate the association between health literacy and kinesiophobia in patients after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI). Methods This cross-sectional study included 168 patients who had undergone PCI. Based on their scores on the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia-Heart (TSK-Heart), patients were divided into high and low kinesiophobia groups. Univariate analyses were performed to compare baseline characteristics between the two groups. Three multivariate logistic regression models were constructed to analyze the association between health literacy and kinesiophobia after adjusting for different covariates. Restricted cubic spline (RCS) models were used to explore the potential nonlinear relationship between health literacy and kinesiophobia. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was conducted to evaluate the discriminative ability of health literacy in identifying high versus low kinesiophobia. Interaction and stratified analyses were also performed to assess the effect modification of other variables on this association. Results Patients in the high kinesiophobia group had lower education levels, longer disease duration, poorer cardiac function, and higher rates of previous myocardial infarction and multiple stent implantations ( p < 0.05). In all multivariate logistic regression models, patients with higher health literacy levels (HeLMSQ3 and HeLMSQ4) had significantly lower odds of high kinesiophobia ( p < 0.05). RCS analysis showed a significant linear or near-linear negative association between health literacy and kinesiophobia. Interaction analysis indicated that education level and NYHA cardiac function classification significantly modified the association, with the protective effect of health literacy being more prominent in patients with higher education and better cardiac function. Conclusion The results of this study indicate that health literacy is negatively associated with kinesiophobia in patients after PCI, and a linear or near-linear relationship may exist between the two. This association is more pronounced in patients with higher education levels and better cardiac function.

Introduction The Artists’ Residencies in Care Homes (ARCH) programme led by Magic Me involved four arts organisations delivering participatory arts in four UK care homes for older people. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the programme, causing substantial trauma to care home communities. Artists paid greater attention to supporting staff and resident wellbeing and recovery from trauma. We present a trauma-informed framework for participatory arts practice in residential care homes, based on learning from the responsive approach of ARCH. Methods The four-year programme comprised research and development focused on building relationships and testing ideas, followed by artists’ residencies including workshops, performances, and training in homes, outdoor spaces, and online (e.g., Zoom, film). Artistic media included dance/movement, textiles, music, performance, film, virtual reality, and photography. The research explored how arts and care home staff collaborated to deliver and embed participatory arts in care homes. Qualitative data were collected throughout, comprising observations of meetings, training, and arts activities, alongside interviews and focus groups with artists and care home staff reflecting on their expectations, training/support needs, experiences, and learning. 11 artists, 2 Magic Me directors and 27 care home staff (including home managers, lifestyle coordinators, carers, and representatives from the care home management company) participated. Data was analysed using inductive reflexive thematic analysis. Results One theme captures the context and experiences of COVID-19-related trauma in care homes. Subsequent themes describe artist approaches to supporting trauma recovery in care homes: creating safe and inclusive spaces, training and support for artists/facilitators, building trusting and collaborative relationships, empowering care home staff and residents, fostering joy, and channelling the power of the participatory arts. These themes informed a trauma-informed framework for participatory arts practice in care homes. Discussion We have proposed a trauma-informed framework for participatory arts in residential care homes, which is of particular importance considering the COVID-19-related trauma that care home communities have faced. As care homes continue to recover from the emotional impacts of the pandemic, and face continuing virus outbreaks and staffing challenges, the participatory arts provide the opportunity to restore joy and promote wellbeing for care home staff and residents.

Introduction Inclusive leadership is important for employee innovation because it encourages employees to speak up, share ideas, and try new ways of working. However, inclusive leadership may not have the same effect in all teams. It is therefore necessary to explain how inclusive leadership promotes innovation and when its effect may become weaker. Based on social information processing theory, this study examines the mediating role of team psychological safety and the moderating role of leader power distance orientation. Methods Data were collected in three waves from 475 employees nested within 93 teams led by 93 team leaders in Chinese IT firms. Multilevel analysis was used to test the proposed relationships. Results Inclusive leadership was positively related to employee innovative behavior and team psychological safety. Team psychological safety further promoted employee innovative behavior. Leader power distance orientation weakened the positive relationship between inclusive leadership and team psychological safety. The positive effect of inclusive leadership on team psychological safety was significant when leader power distance orientation was low, but non-significant when it was high. The conditional indirect effect of inclusive leadership on employee innovative behavior through team psychological safety was also significant only when leader power distance orientation was low. Discussion These findings show that inclusive leadership promotes employee innovation by creating a psychologically safe team environment, but this process becomes weaker when leaders have a stronger power distance orientation. This study helps explain why inclusive leadership may be more effective in some teams than in others.

Introduction Subjective well-being is increasingly recognized as crucial for the psychological adjustment and academic functioning of university students. Academic grit may represent an important resource for students’ well-being, but the mechanisms underlying this association remain insufficiently understood. This study aimed to examine the role of academic satisfaction and examination-related stress in mediating the relationship between academic grit and subjective well-being. Methods A convenience sample of 778 university students (age range: 19–69, M-age = 27.9, SD-age = 9.9) participated in the study. The study included the following instruments: Academic Grit Scale, College Satisfaction Scale (C-Sat), Examination stress sub-scale of E-CEA, Well-being Profile (WB-Pro). Data were analysed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) combining latent and observed variables and maximum likelihood estimation in LISREL. Results Academic grit was directly and indirectly associated with subjective well-being through academic satisfaction and examination-related stress. Academic satisfaction emerged as the primary indirect pathway linking academic grit to subjective well-being, whereas examination-related stress played a smaller, although still significant, role. The overall model explained 48.5% of the variance in subjective well-being ( R 2 = 0.485). Conclusion Academic grit may represent a relevant psychosocial resource for university students’ subjective well-being. Its association with well-being appears to be partly explained by higher academic satisfaction and lower examination-related stress. These findings suggest that university well-being interventions should consider both the promotion of positive academic experiences, and the management of examination demands.

Background University students face increasing challenges in maintaining positive mental health, and nature-based approaches have received growing attention as accessible strategies for wellbeing promotion. However, less is known about the behavioral pathway through which nature-related psychological orientations may translate into later positive mental health. Objective This three-wave longitudinal study examined whether nature-based physical activity mediated the prospective association between nature relatedness and positive mental health among Chinese university students. Psychological flexibility was further examined as an exploratory boundary condition of the association between nature relatedness and nature-based physical activity. Methods A total of 1,191 Chinese university students provided complete and valid matched data across three waves. Nature relatedness, psychological flexibility, and baseline positive mental health were measured at T1; nature-based physical activity was measured at T2; and positive mental health was measured at T3. Ordinary least squares regression and PROCESS Models 4 and 7 with 5,000 bootstrap samples were used, with sex, age, grade, growth environment, green-space accessibility, and baseline positive mental health controlled. Results T1 nature relatedness was prospectively associated with greater T2 nature-based physical activity (B = 0.039, p < 0.001), and T2 nature-based physical activity was positively associated with T3 positive mental health after controlling for T1 positive mental health ( B = 0.395, p < 0.001). The indirect effect was statistically significant but small ( B = 0.015, 95% CI [0.006, 0.026]). Psychological flexibility showed a small first-stage moderating effect ( B = 0.005, p = 0.002; ΔR 2 = 0.008), and the index of moderated mediation was also small (index = 0.002, 95% CI [0.001, 0.004]). Conclusion Nature-based physical activity may represent a modest behavioral pathway linking human-nature connection with later positive mental health. The small interaction effect, limited explained variance in the mediator equation, and observational design indicate that psychological flexibility should be interpreted as an exploratory boundary condition rather than a central causal mechanism.

As social media browsing becomes increasingly episodic, users may develop intentions to interrupt browsing without permanently abandoning a platform. Although prior research has linked information overload to fatigue and discontinuance, less is known about how information-quality cues shape users’ immediate browsing experience and short-term discontinuation intention. This study examines the effects of information veracity and redundancy on cognitive load, negative use evaluation, emotional fatigue, and episodic discontinuation intention. A 2 × 2 within-subject experiment manipulated information veracity and redundancy in a simulated social media browsing context. Participants viewed travel-related social media posts and completed self-report measures after exposure, and linear mixed-effects models were used to account for repeated observations nested within participants. Low-veracity and high-redundancy conditions were associated with higher cognitive load and more negative use evaluation. Emotional fatigue positively predicted episodic discontinuation intention. The findings clarify how information-quality cues are linked to users’ short-term discontinuation intention during browsing episodes.

Introduction Although fitness social media has emerged as a primary source of exercise information and health advice, the mechanisms linking such exposure to exercise adherence remain poorly understood. This study develops and tests a dual-pathway framework examining how fitness social media exposure is associated with exercise adherence among recent content consumers. Methods Cross-sectional data from 575 respondents were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to evaluate variable net effects, complemented by fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to identify multi-condition configurations associated with high exercise adherence. Results Fitness social media exposure was associated with parallel positive and negative psychological processes, but the positive pathway showed substantially greater explanatory power. Specifically, media exposure was significantly and positively associated with both parasocial relationships and physical appearance comparison. The positive pathway through parasocial relationships, exercise self-efficacy, and exercise identity was fully supported, whereas the negative pathway through body image pressure was only partially supported, as the effect of body surveillance on social physique anxiety was non-significant. Discussion Exercise self-efficacy and exercise identity emerged as key proximal variables in the net-effect model and as stable core conditions in configurations associated with high exercise adherence. These findings suggest that relational and self-regulatory mechanisms are central to understanding exercise adherence among fitness content consumers and may outweigh the negative role of appearance pressure.

Introduction Meditation has shown benefits for mental health, yet difficulties may appear when practicing autonomously, particularly in people prone to anxiety or low self-esteem. The POEBRA (Program for Optimizing Self-Esteem and Benevolence and Reducing Anxiety) was developed to facilitate meditation learning through a structured, embodied, guided approach based on Full-Presence meditation. This study evaluated its effects on psychoaffective functioning in meditation novices, compared with an unguided silent practice. Method The randomized, controlled, parallel-group study assigned 137 novice participants to either an eight-week POEBRA session (G1) or an unguided silence condition (G2). Participants completed five validated self-report scales before and after the intervention: Rosenberg's RSES, Neff's SCS, Spielberger's STAI_Y2, Crawford's PANAS, and Mehling's MAIA-2. Between-group differences in pre-post changes were analyzed using Welch's t -tests, complemented by ANCOVA and correlation analyses. Results Completion rates were high (61/69 in G1 and 64/68 in G2). Compared with silence, POEBRA produced significantly greater improvements across all psychometric dimensions (all p < 0.001 except PANAS-NA, p = 0.015). The largest between-group effects were observed for trait anxiety (Δ = −8.1, d = 1.05), self-esteem (Δ = +3.6, d = 0.93), self-compassion (Δ = +0.53, d = 0.91), and interoceptive awareness (Δ = +0.54, d = 0.88). Positive affect increased under POEBRA (Δ = +4.1, p = 0.0002), while negative affect decreased more modestly. Correlation analyses revealed coherent internal dynamics in POEBRA, linking reduced anxiety with higher self-esteem and self-compassion ( r = –0.64 and r = –0.68, both p < 0.001), while changes in the silence group were more diffuse. Discussion Results confirm POEBRA strengthens self-esteem and self-compassion while reducing anxiety and emotional distress. Its emphasis on body awareness, guided reflection, and relational support appears to foster coherent psychoaffective transformation through embodied self-regulation. These findings align with previous research on the role of interoception and benevolence in emotional integration and self-confidence. Limitations include reliance on self-report measures and a predominantly female sample. Conclusion POEBRA offers a structured, body-centered pedagogical framework that promotes emotional stability, benevolence, and self-confidence through Full-Presence meditation. By integrating sensory attention, reflective guidance, and relational coaching, it provides an accessible approach to cultivating embodied self-regulation in non-clinical populations.

Introduction Social anxiety (SA) is a common and developmentally significant concern during adolescence. Although prior research suggests that physical activity (PA), loneliness, and SA are correlated, less is known about how these associations develop over time. This study examined the within-person longitudinal associations among these variables in a sample of Chinese adolescents. Methods Data were collected across four waves from 1,440 students (52.3% male; Mage = 13.39 years, SD = 0.62). A Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Model was used to analyze the data. Results At the within-person level, higher SA predicted subsequent increases in loneliness, while loneliness in turn predicted higher SA, suggesting a reciprocal and reinforcing process. Higher PA was associated with later decreases in both SA and loneliness, whereas SA and loneliness predicted lower subsequent PA. Conclusion These findings highlight the dynamic links among SA, loneliness, and PA, underscoring the importance of addressing social–emotional difficulties while promoting PA to reduce adolescent loneliness.

Introduction The rapid diffusion of text-to-image (T2I) generative AI has intensified pressures surrounding assessment and skill reconfiguration in art and design education. However, existing research on T2I adoption in studio-based pedagogy remains limited. This study examines technology acceptance from both educators' and students' perspectives, and illustrates the transformation of intentions and actions in creative learning situations. Methods A modified exploratory sequential mixed-methods design with an explanatory qualitative follow-up phase (QUAL-QUAN-qual) was employed. Instructor focus groups were first conducted to identify key constructs and inform the development of a contextualized technology acceptance framework. This was followed by a questionnaire survey of 417 college students, and semi-structured interviews to explain unexpected quantitative results. Results The results indicate that performance expectancy, social influence, novelty value, and creative competence positively influence behavioral intention. In contrast, the negative effects of effort expectancy and facilitating conditions can be interpreted in light of students' shortcut-oriented use of T2I tools in coursework. Furthermore, students with different levels of competence perceive distinct risks across task stages, which helps explain the lack of significant translation from intention and creative competence into use behavior. Discussion The findings highlight a paradox: although creative competence positively supports behavioral intention, it may also lead to more selective or restrained engagement in actual use. Accordingly, the study extends technology acceptance models in creative education by showing that T2I adoption cannot be understood solely through conventional utilitarian predictors. Instead, it is also shaped by students' interpretations of risk and their developing creative identity, particularly in authorship, originality, and skill preservation. The results reconceptualize T2I adoption as a dynamic process of negotiation between diverse student profiles and technological evolution, ultimately providing an evidence-based foundation and practical recommendations for AI pedagogy in creative education.

Introduction Drawing on dual-process theory and uses-and-gratifications (U&G) perspectives, this study develops the Immersive Gratification Model (IGM) to explain compulsive engagement with erotic/pornographic content (EPC) in virtual reality (VR). Methods The IGM distinguishes three distal gratification-seeking predictors: sensual curiosity (SC), VR self-efficacy (VSE), and excitement-seeking and EPC pleasure (ESEPCP) from two proximal immersive experience evaluations: VR sense of presence (VRP), representing an automatic perceptual pathway, and VR cognitive satisfaction (VCS), representing a deliberate evaluative pathway. Both proximal evaluations are theorized to predict compulsive VR-EPC engagement (VRA), with habit (Hbt) as an asymmetric boundary-condition moderator. Survey data from 388 adult VR-EPC consumers (aged 18+) were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modelling. Results All three distal predictors are positively associated with both VRP and VCS, which in turn predict VRA. Mediation analyses support sequential indirect effects through both pathways. Notably, habit amplifies the VRP → VRA path but not the self-sustaining VCS → VRA path, revealing an asymmetric dual-process moderation pattern. Discussion These findings extend U&G theory to immersive VR media, advance dual-process accounts of problematic technology use, and carry implications for VR platform design and digital well-being intervention.

Introduction Cognitive aging increases vulnerability to false memories, yet the neural mechanisms underlying age-related susceptibility across sensory modalities remain poorly understood. Most previous studies have focused on visual orthographic stimuli, leaving the neural dynamics of auditory false memories largely unexplored. Methods To examine whether age-related susceptibility to semantic illusions is modality-specific and to characterize its spatiotemporal neural dynamics, we employed a cross-modal Deese–Roediger–McDermott (DRM) paradigm including Visual and Auditory conditions. Sixty-four-channel electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded from healthy younger and older adults. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were analyzed over frontal (300–500 ms) and parietal (600–800 ms) regions to assess familiarity-related and post-retrieval monitoring processes. Results Behaviorally, older adults maintained robust old-lure discrimination accuracy in the Visual condition but showed reduced performance in the Auditory condition, characterized by increased false alarms and prolonged reaction times for correct rejections. Electrophysiologically, visual lures elicited a classic FN400 familiarity effect together with relatively preserved late parietal monitoring responses across both age groups. In contrast, auditory lures elicited an early N400-like effect suggestive of increased semantic conflict processing. While younger adults appeared to recruit late parietal monitoring resources to resolve this auditory conflict, older adults showed attenuated and less organized late parietal monitoring activity. Discussion These findings provide preliminary evidence for a modality-dependent vulnerability to false memories in cognitive aging. The results suggest that auditory false memories may arise from increased semantic conflict combined with reduced late-stage monitoring processes, highlighting a potential modality-specific mechanism underlying age-related memory distortions. Pending further replication, these findings may contribute to a better understanding of false-memory vulnerability in older adults.

Discrimination is an influential structural determinant of mental health. Data show that at least two out of ten ethnic minority individuals in the Netherlands felt being discriminated against. Discrimination is not an incidental occurrence, but a structural recurring pattern within various parts of life especially during young adulthood. Ethnic discrimination is associated with a wide spectrum of psychological disturbances such as depression, anxiety and psychosis. This paper proposes a perspective through Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung’s notion of regressive restoration of the persona as a conceptual framework to understand the psychological processes behind ethnic discrimination as a complex structural determinant undermining mental health. Jung conceptualized the persona as the social identity of the individual formed by society and argued that after adverse life events, one’s social identity can regress into a more limited social identity. The paper applies the concept of regressive restoration of the persona specifically to the context of discrimination among ethnic minority individuals in the Netherlands. I argue that discrimination alters the way ethnic minority individuals relate to society through a regressed social identity which forms during emerging adulthood. This Jungian conceptual framework aligns with theories such as the social defeat hypothesis and minority stress, which proposes that repeated experiences of discrimination increase the risk for psychological disturbances. This perspective points toward the relevance of future research on societal and culturally specific diagnosis and management strategies of psychological symptoms in discriminated ethnic minority individuals in the Netherlands especially during adolescence.

Driven by rapid progress in generative artificial intelligence, the use of AI-generated models in online product displays has become increasingly widespread. Although AI-generated content appears highly realistic, it is commonly associated with adverse consumer responses. This study examines how labeling a model in a product image as AI-generated (vs. human) influences consumers' self-expression. The findings show that labeling a model as AI-generated functions as an emphasis-framing cue that elevates consumers' sense of eeriness, which subsequently increases both perceived psychological risk and perceived performance risk, thereby reducing consumers' self-expressive tendencies. This process is moderated by product type, such that the negative effect is amplified for symbolic products, whereas it disappears for functional products. Building on theories of framing effect, algorithm aversion, emotion, and risk perception, this study elucidates how AI-generated labels shape consumers' self-expression and identifies the boundary conditions of these effects across different product types.

Introduction Extensive evidence suggests that both working memory (WM) and emotion regulation shape cognitive control, yet their distinct contributions to proactive and reactive control remain unclear. Methods Guided by the dual mechanisms of control (DMC) framework, sixty-six healthy participants completed a change detection task to assess working memory capacity (WMC), a modified stop-signal task (SST) to index proactive and reactive control, and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) to evaluate habitual regulation strategies. Results Correlation and regression analyses revealed differential predictive patterns. The proactive control (PC effect), quantified as the reaction time difference between Uncertain-Go and Certain-Go trials in the SST task, was significantly related to WMC, with a marginal contribution from expressive suppression. Reactive control, as indexed by stop-signal reaction time (SSRT), was significantly associated with cognitive reappraisal strategy. Expressive suppression strategy emerged as a significant predictor of SSRT only within the regression model, indicating a potential suppressor effect. Furthermore, a positive correlation between the PC effect and SSRT indicated partial interdependence between proactive and reactive control. Discussion These results demonstrate that working memory and emotion regulation strategies exert distinct, yet complementary, influences on cognitive control, highlighting a dynamic interplay between cognitive and affective systems in goal-directed behavior.

Data normalisation, a common, often necessary preprocessing step in engineering and scientific applications, can severely distort the discovery of governing equations by magnitude-based sparse regression methods. This is particularly acute for the Sparse Identification of Nonlinear Dynamics (SINDy) framework, where the core sparsity assumption is undermined by the interaction between data scaling and measurement noise, yielding dense, uninterpretable, physically incorrect models. To address this vulnerability, we introduce Sequential Thresholding of Coefficient of Variation (STCV), a novel, computationally efficient sparse regression algorithm inherently robust to data scaling. STCV replaces conventional magnitude-based thresholding with a dimensionless statistical metric, the Coefficient Presence (CP), which assesses the statistical validity and consistency of candidate library terms. This shift from magnitude to statistical significance makes term selection largely insensitive to arbitrary per-variable scaling. We say “largely insensitive” rather than “invariant” because STCV’s inner loop still relies on a Sequentially Thresholded Least Squares (STLSQ) step with a small fixed near-zero threshold; this step is magnitude-dependent and can in principle retain residual scale sensitivity, though in practice the dimensionless CP metric dominates selection, as shown empirically in Section 4 . Through comprehensive benchmarking on canonical dynamical systems and practical engineering problems, including a physical mass–spring–damper experiment, we demonstrate STCV consistently and significantly outperforms standard STLSQ and Ensemble-SINDy (E-SINDy) on normalised, noisy datasets, identifying correct, sparse physical laws even when other methods fail. By mitigating the distorting effects of normalisation, STCV makes sparse system identification a more reliable and automated tool for real-world applications, enhancing model interpretability and trustworthiness.

Deep reinforcement learning (DRL) algorithms have shown increasing promise for autonomous decision-making and continuous control, yet their practical value relative to established control methods remains difficult to assess under realistic control-engineering conditions. Existing evaluations are often narrow, application-specific, or based on inconsistent assumptions. As a result, it remains unclear when learned controllers are suitable alternatives to conventional designs. This paper presents a systematic assessment framework that compares four prominent DRL controllers with a classical control baseline across a diverse set of applied control problems, including non-minimum phase dynamics, flexible mechanical systems, nonlinear marine control, and aerial robotics. The framework standardises modelling assumptions, reward design, controller tuning, computational budgets, performance metrics, robustness tests, and deployment conditions. This allows fair and reproducible analysis across methods and applications. The evaluation covers tracking accuracy, settling time, overshoot, control effort, actuator saturation, disturbance rejection, model uncertainty, robustness margins, and sim-to-real transfer. The results show that performance depends strongly on the algorithmic structure, system dynamics, and operating conditions. Learned controllers provide advantages in some cases, particularly for nonlinearities, constraints, and uncertain operating regimes. Classical control remains competitive in accuracy, simplicity, and reliability for several benchmark conditions. Under combined saturation and unmodelled dynamics, the learned controllers maintained stable operation where the classical baseline became unstable. Real-time deployment on a quadrotor platform further demonstrated stable sim-to-real transfer. The study establishes a rigorous and reproducible evidence base for assessing the practical suitability of these data-driven control algorithms in applied control. It clarifies the trade-offs between learning-based and conventional control. This addresses a critical gap that cannot be easily inferred from isolated, system-specific studies.