Earth and Environmental Sciences

Introduction Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is rapidly entering higher education, but measures of adoption, frequency, intention, or general attitude do not explain whether students use GenAI in ways that support academic work. This study focused on learning-centred use of GenAI in academic work (LCU), defined as a task-focused, verification-oriented, and non-substitutive pattern of GenAI integration, and tested time-ordered paths from LCU to later academic functioning through self-regulated learning (SRL) and academic self-efficacy (ASE). Methods We analysed a de-identified three-wave panel dataset from university students in China. The valid baseline panel included 1,200 students; 984 students were retained at T2, where SRL and ASE were measured in separated modules (T2a and T2b); and 788 complete cases were retained at T3, where academic procrastination and learning engagement were assessed. Baseline-adjusted composite-score path models controlled for prior SRL, ASE, procrastination, engagement, demographic characteristics, and GenAI-use covariates. Inverse probability weighting and auxiliary behavioural and rater indicators were used as sensitivity and convergence checks. Results T1 LCU positively predicted T2a SRL ( β = 0.345, p < 0.001) and T2b ASE ( β = 0.118, p = 0.002), and T2a SRL positively predicted T2b ASE ( β = 0.244, p < 0.001). SRL and ASE subsequently predicted lower T3 academic procrastination and higher T3 learning engagement after baseline outcomes were controlled. Indirect effects from LCU to both T3 outcomes were supported through SRL, ASE, and the SRL-to-ASE sequence; no residual direct LCU-to-outcome paths remained statistically significant after these mechanisms were included. Inverse probability weighting (IPW) and auxiliary-indicator checks showed a similar substantive pattern. Discussion These findings show that the academic value of GenAI use is realised when students integrate it into learning-centred regulatory practice. Compared with frequency-based accounts, the present model identifies LCU as the behavioural condition that connects GenAI use with later academic functioning through strengthened SRL and ASE. The study advances a psychologically grounded account of GenAI in higher education and highlights the need to guide students toward task-focused, verification-oriented, and non-substitutive use that supports planning, monitoring, persistence, and engagement.

Background Young and middle-aged patients with first-episode acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and their spousal face significant psychological challenges, yet existing research often overlooks their dyadic interdependence in the process of benefit finding. Aim To investigate the levels of benefit finding in young and middle-aged patients with first-episode acute myocardial infarction and their spouses, to identify the influencing factors, and to analyze the pathways among these factors. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 212 dyads of young and middle-aged patients with first-episode acute myocardial infarction and their spouses. Data were collected using a set of validated scales to measure benefit finding, psychological resilience, coping styles, and family function. Data analyses encompassed descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, multiple linear regression, and path analysis via the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) to examine the actor and partner effects within the dyads. Results Benefit finding scores were (64.77 ± 13.05) for patients and (65.65 ± 12.87) for spouses. Multiple regression revealed that patients’ benefit finding was significantly associated with their own education, comorbidities, number of stents, resilience, positive coping, and their spouse’s resilience. For spouses, their benefit finding was associated with their own education, age, resilience, family function, as well as the patient’s age and comorbidities (all p < 0.05). The Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) further showed significant actor effects: both patients’ and spouses’ resilience and positive coping positively predicted their own benefit finding. Moreover, spouse’s family function exhibited a significant actor effect on their own benefit finding. Regarding partner effects, both patients’ and spouses’ resilience positively predicted each other’s benefit finding. Conclusion Benefit finding in both patients and spouses is moderate-low and influenced by multiple individual and dyadic factors. Interventions should target resilience, coping strategies, and family function from a dyadic perspective to enhance benefit finding.

Introduction The current study investigated associations between different stressors (e.g., poor diet, vigorous activity, and prior adversity), GI symptoms, and anxiety. Methods We collected survey data from a sample of university students and community participants ( N = 209). Results Key findings included: (a) vigorous activity was a significant moderator of the relationship between stress and GI symptoms; (b) GI symptoms significantly mediated the relationships between stress and anxiety and prior adversity and anxiety; (c) stress and GI symptoms were significant serial mediators of the relationships between diet quality and anxiety and prior adversity and anxiety. Discussion Our findings suggest that factors such as adversity, diet, and physical activity levels should be considered when examining gut-brain relations specific to stress, anxiety, and GI symptoms. Future research should investigate the directionality of these relationships more clearly through longitudinal and experimental study designs.

The notion of wellbeing emerged in resistance to deficit characterizations of people's lives in mental health theory and intervention. It is an approach that rejects compartmentalization and stigmatization, with the aim of centering and presenting a more holistic view of personhood. Informed by a new program of research on youth wellbeing in the Global South, this paper seeks to engage critically with the potential value of an emergent framework called relational wellbeing for advancing research on youth wellbeing. As a formative step, a scoping review was conducted and published in 2024 covering the period 2013–2022. To update and capture possible changes in the literature since then, the authors embarked on a mini review framed by the following two overarching questions: how has relational wellbeing been applied in the more recent academic literature, and to what extent is it being employed as a distinct approach? The mini review confirms that relational wellbeing, understood as a distinct framework, is emergent, but not solidified. The term continues to be used to challenge individualistic models of wellbeing, firmly positioning relationships, culture and context as central to wellbeing. However, the construct continues to lack unified operationalization—used variably as a theoretical lens, analytic framework and still quite strongly as a measurable construct. While this reveals a field conceptually rich and influential, it remains methodologically diffused. Insights across different sections of the review, however, provide guidance for prospective scholars hoping to expand research that applies a relational framework to foster greater understanding and positive impact on youth wellbeing.

Introduction Although marriage generally supports psychological wellbeing, individuals can still experience profound loneliness within intimate relationships, which may increase susceptibility to adverse mental health outcomes. This study employed a cross-sectional, dyadic research design to investigate whether the belief that happiness is fragile mediates the relationship between marital loneliness and depression sensitivity. Methods Self-report data were collected from 307 married couples ( N = 614; husbands’ mean age = 35.71, wives’ mean age = 33.24) in Türkiye. Both intrapersonal (actor) and interpersonal (partner) pathways were examined by adopting the Actor-Partner Interdependence Mediation Model (APIMeM) via structural equation modeling. Results Results revealed significant actor and partner mediation effects for both husbands and wives (e.g., actor effect: β = 0.39, p < 0.01; partner effect: β = 0.27, p < 0.01). Specifically, an individual’s marital loneliness predicted their own depression sensitivity through their personal belief that happiness is fragile (actor effect). Furthermore, cross-partner effects showed that one spouse’s loneliness predicted the other’s depression sensitivity through the partner’s heightened perception of fragile happiness. Discussion These findings illustrate how cognitive appraisals of happiness transmit relational loneliness into depressive vulnerabilities. Addressing maladaptive beliefs about the fragility of happiness in couple therapy may help prevent marital loneliness from exacerbating depressive symptoms for both partners.

Background Parents of children with illnesses employ a variety of coping strategies. These strategies can play a crucial role in modulating the level of parental stress and mood. The study aimed to analyse stress-coping strategies used by parents of children with central coordination disorders (CCD) undergoing Vojta therapy over a period of 2 months. Methods A total of 57 participants who completed questionnaires before starting their child’s therapy (T1) and after 2 months (T2), with a mean age of 32.8 (±4.6) were assessed. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Brief COPE Inventory (Mini-COPE) and a self-designed questionnaire were used. Results At T1 and T2, the study group of parents most frequently used strategies such as Active Coping and Seeking Emotional Support. Female participants more often than males chose emotional and religious strategies. At T1 and T2, physically active parents significantly more often used the strategy Active Coping and Acceptance (respectively) and had significantly lower stress levels and better mood, compared with inactive parents. Conclusion Planned interventions for parents of children with CCD should focus on encouraging them to engage in physical activity and strengthening personal resources by fostering adaptive coping strategies, particularly problem-oriented coping strategies to improve their psychological well-being.

Critical thinking is widely recognized as an essential competency for 21st-century higher education and the cultivation of innovative talent. However, previous studies have yielded contradictory conclusions, leaving two key questions remain unknown: What is the overall level of critical thinking skills among Chinese students, and what accounts for the inconsistencies in prior findings? To address these questions, this meta-analysis synthesized 79 primary studies published between 2002 and 2025 that assessed Chinese students’ critical thinking skills using the California Critical Thinking Skills Test or its Chinese version, with a total sample size of 8,860 participants. The results revealed that the overall score for critical thinking skills among Chinese students was 0.426, with scores on the analysis, evaluation, and inference dimensions ranging from 0.374 to 0.461, all falling below the scale midpoint. Academic discipline demonstrated a significant moderating effect, with scores ranked from highest to lowest as follows: Medicine, Liberal Arts, Education, Engineering, and Science. This variation may partly reflect differences in discipline-specific curriculum design, learning tasks, opportunities for classroom interaction, and exposure to problem-based learning. Publication type also showed a significant moderating effect, with general journals reporting the highest effect sizes and dissertations the lowest. In contrast, the moderating effects of grade level and institution type were not significant. Some issues related with the theoretical, educational implications, and future study were also discussed.

Audio description (AD) is an accessibility service that conveys visual information through verbal language for visually impaired audiences. This study examines the competence development of student audio describers by tracking their progress across two critical dimensions: content selection and translation strategy application. Drawing on data from a one-semester Audiovisual Translation course, the research analyzes the performance of 26 students through diachronic and phased comparisons, complemented by questionnaire and interview data. The findings reveal distinct developmental patterns in each competence area. Content selection competence demonstrated generally linear improvement, with a notable acceleration occurring after the fourth phase, followed by divergent trajectories among different student groups. In contrast, the application of translation strategies evolved in a more fluctuating and intuitive manner, developing independently rather than in parallel with content selection competence. This study provides empirical insights into AD training and contributes to pedagogical understanding of competence development in audiovisual translation education.

Intergenerational transmission of adversity is increasingly studied, yet little is known about the transmission of specific early-life experiences, particularly deprivation-related experiences. The LifeStories Offspring Project addresses this gap by examining whether infant institutionalisation under conditions of psychosocial deprivation is associated with outcomes in the next generation. The study builds on a population-based, non-selective cohort of individuals placed in Swiss infant care institutions between 1958 and 1961 under social and compulsory measures before the 1981 law reform. The parent generation was first assessed in infancy, followed up in adolescence, and reassessed approximately 60 years later. Compared with a non-institutionalised community cohort from the Zurich Longitudinal Studies, formerly placed individuals showed poorer physical and mental health, poorer cognitive functioning, and increased mortality. The current study will examine the adolescent and adult offspring of formerly institutionalised individuals ( N = 163) and compare them with offspring from the non-affected ZLS cohort. Using questionnaires, neuropsychological assessments, and semi-narrative interviews, the study will investigate physical, cognitive, socioemotional, and socioeconomic outcomes, as well as potential pathways of transmission. Quantitative data will be analysed using longitudinal statistical techniques, including latent growth models, latent mediation and moderation models, and random-intercept cross-lagged models. By focusing on adult “children” of individuals exposed to a clearly defined context of early psychosocial deprivation, this globally unique study moves beyond general adversity frameworks and threat-based models of intergenerational transmission. It investigates how the absence of early caregiving experiences may reverberate when those affected become parents themselves, while also contributing to societal recognition and reconciliation related to compulsory social measures in Switzerland.

Background Mobile health (mHealth) applications have the potential to improve mental well-being, reduce burnout, and manage stress among healthcare professionals. However, evidence on their effectiveness remains limited. Objective This pilot study evaluated preliminary changes in mental well-being, perceived stress, and burnout associated with the use of CalmAnna among healthcare professionals. Methods Using a single-group pre–post design, this study was conducted with 75 healthcare professionals who used the CalmAnna mobile application over a six-week period. The application includes evidence-based modules – such as mindfulness, relaxation techniques, and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)-inspired exercises, supplemented by psychoeducational content. Study outcomes were assessed at baseline and at six weeks using validated self-report measures (WHO-5, MBI, PSS-10, SUPSO-7), administered both online and via paper-and-pencil formats. In addition, participants completed an in-app self-assessment of stress, burnout, and well-being, which was used to generate a personalized intervention plan. Results A total of 75 healthcare professionals were included in the analysis. Significant improvements were observed in mental well-being (Δ = +1.55, 95% CI [0.61, 2.48], p = 0.001) and reductions in perceived stress (Δ = −1.73, 95% CI [−2.40, −1.06], p < 0.001). Burnout indicators also showed significant improvements, including reductions in emotional exhaustion and depersonalization and an increase in personal accomplishment. Changes across psychological state dimensions (SUPSO) indicated increased positive and decreased negative states. All reported effects remained significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Conclusions CalmAnna appears to be a promising mHealth intervention associated with improvements in mental well-being and reductions in stress and burnout among healthcare professionals. Further randomized controlled studies with larger samples and longer follow-up periods are needed to establish its effectiveness.

Amid frequent crises and rising uncertainty, public organizations increasingly need effective leadership to stimulate team innovation. However, prior studies have focused mainly on how crisis leadership affects crisis response performance and employee behavior, with limited attention to team innovative performance. Drawing on COR theory, this study examines the relationship between crisis leadership and team innovative performance, and analyzes the parallel mediating roles of team cognitive flexibility and team positive affective climate. Using questionnaire data from 406 public sector employees, structural equation modeling shows that crisis leadership is significantly and positively related to team innovative performance. Team cognitive flexibility and team positive affective climate both play significant mediating roles, and the cognitive pathway has stronger explanatory power than the emotional pathway. This study reveals the cognitive–emotional dual-pathway mechanism through which crisis leadership influences team innovative performance. It expands research on crisis leadership and team innovation in the public sector, and provides practical implications for improving crisis leadership and team innovation capabilities in public organizations.

This study examines how pre-service Turkish language teachers interpret the pedagogical dimensions of Kutadgu Bilig and associate selected couplets with contemporary educational concepts. Employing a qualitative case study design, data were collected from 20 senior pre-service teachers through a structured mapping task involving 15 couplets. Participants were asked to associate each couplet with an educational concept and justify their choices. Data were analyzed via deductive thematic analysis using the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy and Shulman’s Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) frameworks as interpretive lenses. The findings indicate that while participants established pedagogical associations, they experienced varying degrees of difficulty in accurately relating them to intended concepts. The results suggest challenges in moving beyond concept recognition toward deeper pedagogical transfer. Participants’ justifications revealed significant differences in connecting culturally embedded messages with contemporary pedagogical frameworks. These findings highlight the need within teacher education programs for interpreting and applying pedagogical knowledge across diverse contexts. The study positions Kutadgu Bilig as a pedagogical resource for exploring the cognitive-pedagogical engagement of pre-service teachers.

Introduction Advance Care Planning is a fundamental process in palliative and person-centered care, as it promotes clinical decisions that align with patients’ values and preferences. However, in Latin America no regionally validated instruments were available to measure professional self-efficacy in this domain although a locally validated Argentinian version is available. Objective The objective of this study was to conduct a multicenter cross-cultural validation of the Perceived Self-Efficacy in Advance Care Planning Scale (ACP-SEsAR) among Latin American healthcare professionals, ensuring its cultural relevance and psychometric robustness. Methodology An exploratory instrumental study was carried out with 685 healthcare professionals from 18 Spanish-speaking Latin American countries. Linguistic and cultural adaptation followed the International Test Commission guidelines. Twenty-one experts from 12 countries evaluated item clarity, coherence, sufficiency, and relevance using the Content Validity Coefficient (CVC). Reliability and construct validity were analyzed using Cronbach’s alpha, McDonald’s omega, and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Results The analyses demonstrated the scale’s strength and consistency in the Latin American context. The expert panel showed excellent agreement (CVC = 0.895). The scale exhibited high internal consistency ( α = 0.974; ω = 0.93) and a solid unidimensional structure (KMO = 0.91; CFI = 0.96; RMSEA = 0.048). Conclusion The Latin American version, termed ACP-SEs Latam, demonstrated excellent validity, reliability, and cultural adequacy, consolidating its role as an essential tool for strengthening professional training, evaluating interventions, and informing person-centered health policies.

Metacognition, the capacity to monitor and evaluate one’s own decisions, has become a central topic in psychological and neuroscientific research. While research has largely focused on metacognitive sensitivity, defined as the ability to discriminate between correct and incorrect decisions, considerably less attention has been devoted to metacognitive bias, defined as the systematic tendency to report higher or lower confidence irrespective of objective accuracy. Here, we argue that this imbalance has limited current theories of metacognition. Instead, greater focus on metacognitive bias can deepen our understanding of internal models of confidence, revealing how inter-individual differences give rise to distinct internal representations of the world, even when external information is processed in comparable ways. This perspective reframes metacognitive bias as a regulatory mechanism that balances flexibility and stability in self-evaluation, rather than a failure of calibration. Given its theoretical and empirical relevance, we emphasize the importance of estimating this construct within a Signal Detection Theory (SDT) framework. We propose the meta-criterion (meta-c), derived from the model introduced by Maniscalco and Lau, as a principled and quantitative index of metacognitive bias. Unlike purely descriptive measures, meta-c captures fine-grained individual differences along a continuous scale, opening to the possibility of defining more conservative versus more liberal confidence policies. We foresee metacognitive bias as one of the central axes along which the next generation of metacognitive research will develop.

Fitness centers are privileged settings for promoting health; however, they are affected by high attrition rates and low attendance. At the same time, several motivational theories are considered relevant to improving behavior in exercise contexts, although they largely lack experimental evidence. Accordingly, the main objective of this study is to examine attendance trajectories following the implementation of two short training programs for exercise professionals, based on two theories of human behavior (self-determination theory and hedonic theory), with fitness center attendance patterns over time. As a secondary objective, the study will examine associations with attrition rates, motivational variables, and other behavioral outcomes. It is hypothesized that the theory-driven interventions will be associated with more favorable attendance trajectories and lower attrition than the control condition. This is a pre-registered, pragmatic, single-blind, controlled intervention study with three parallel arms, in which fitness clubs were randomly allocated across conditions. Professionals will receive brief training sessions according to their assigned condition throughout the intervention period. From September 2025 to August 2026, data on dropouts and training attendance among new clients will be collected. A subsample of exercisers will also be followed longitudinally to assess motivational outcomes. Primary outcomes will be attendance over one year; secondary outcomes will include attrition rate, motivation, intention to continue exercising, behavioral automaticity, subjective affective experience, and enjoyment. Improvements in attendance would reflect individual health gains, while reductions in attrition rates would enhance the financial sustainability of clubs. Moreover, the findings may provide preliminary evidence regarding the practical utility of translating these theoretical approaches into routine professional practice. Clinical trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov , identifier NCT07156240.

This study aimed to examine the effects of a structured recreational exercise program on digital addiction levels and sleep quality in children aged 10–14. A randomized controlled experimental design with repeated measures was employed. The sample consisted of 40 middle school students (20 girls and 20 boys), who were randomly assigned to a Recreational Exercise Group (REG, n = 20) or a Control Group (CG, n = 20). The intervention involved an 8-week recreational exercise program, including a 2-week adaptation phase followed by a 6-week main implementation period, conducted three times per week. Digital addiction and sleep quality were assessed at three time points—pre-test, post-test, and 6-week follow-up—using the Digital Addiction Scale for Adolescents and the Sleep Quality Scale and Sleep Variables Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using a 2 × 3 mixed-design analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results revealed significant group × time interaction effects for both digital addiction and sleep quality ( p < 0.01). Digital addiction levels in the REG decreased significantly from pre-test to post-test and remained stable at follow-up, whereas no significant changes were observed in the control group. Similarly, sleep quality improved significantly in the REG following the intervention, with the observed improvements maintained at follow-up. Effect size estimates indicated large effects for both outcomes. These findings suggest that regular participation in structured recreational exercise programs is an effective and sustainable approach for reducing digital addiction and improving sleep quality in children aged 10–14, highlighting the potential of school-based recreational interventions in early adolescence.

Currently, due to factors such as habitat loss and human activities, the populations of many endangered species have declined significantly, with some even facing the threat of extinction. Addressing this issue requires not only the involvement of experts but also the collective efforts of the public to support wildlife conservation. This study aims to explore the structural relationships between empathy towards endangered animals, attitudes towards conservation behavior, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and behavioral intention, while constructing an extended framework of the Theory of Planned Behavior. Based on self-perception theory and empathy theory, participants were shown a demonstration of a personality test game designed by the authors prior to completing the questionnaire, followed by an online survey using a 5-point Likert scale. A total of 306 valid responses were ultimately collected. Structural equation modeling was employed to test the hypothesized relationships between variables. The model demonstrated good fit, confirming the reliability of the results. The findings indicate a strong public willingness to protect endangered animals, with 81% of respondents expressing a willingness to take action. The study found that empathy indirectly influences an individual’s behavioral intention through attitudes and perceived behavioral control (PBC). The findings of this study provide guidance for future endangered animal conservation efforts. For instance, government interventions should place greater emphasis on empathy-based strategies, including public awareness campaigns and educational programmes designed to encourage the public to consider the plight of endangered animals from the animals’ perspective. Furthermore, the government should provide accessible channels and resources. Such efforts can raise public awareness, thereby strengthening individuals’ behavioral intentions regarding wildlife conservation and ultimately promoting conservation behavior.

Over the past decade, researchers have increasingly drawn on dual-process models to explain why individuals fail to translate physical activity intentions into sustained behavior. According to these models, a person’s behavior can be influenced by two different types of process; first, reflective processes (e.g., intention) and, second, automatic processes (e.g., habit). The IAT offers researchers a means of capturing automatic evaluative associations that self-report measures cannot access. However, the choice of either word-based or picture-based stimuli in physical activity IAT can meaningfully affect the sensitivity, reliability, and cross-cultural applicability of measurements. This article presents my perspective on the theoretical and methodological justification for recommending word-based stimuli as a reasonable default for assessing generalized implicit attitudes in physical activity IAT, drawing on empirical work in cognitive psychology, health behavior research, and exercise psychology. I argue that word-based stimuli may tend to produce more consistent response times, somewhat higher internal reliability, and lower interpretive variability than picture-based stimuli, while emphasizing that this evidence is largely indirect, deriving from studies that did not directly compare the two modalities within the same design. I then outline future applications of word-based IAT for advancing both understanding and intervention design in physical activity.

Introduction This study examines how relational aggression functions as a form of informal regulation within Chinese co-national peer networks in transnational higher education, with particular attention to its processual and networked dynamics. Unlike conventional approaches that treat relational aggression as isolated interpersonal conflict, this study conceptualises it as a networked and processual phenomenon that shapes access to social belonging and peer-mediated resources. Methods Drawing on qualitative interviews with Chinese female international students in multiple host-country contexts, the study adopts reflexive thematic analysis to explore participants’ lived experiences within transnational mobility trajectories. Results The study develops and theorises the concept of moralised reputational governance. This concept illuminates how everyday social frictions are reinterpreted through shared moral codes, reconfigured into reputational cues, and enacted through indirect relational practices such as coalition alignment, narrative control, and information gatekeeping. These dynamics generate forms of harm that remain systematically less visible within institutional systems organised around discrete, evidence-based incidents, producing a structural legibility gap. Discussion By linking micro-interactional processes with network conditions and institutional logics, the study advances a process-oriented theorisation of peer governance in transnational student contexts and contributes to research on international student experiences and higher education governance.

Introduction The increasing prevalence of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in higher education environments has significantly transformed the learning and research processes of graduate students in particular. While AI-supported tools accelerate access to information and facilitate academic processes, various discussions have arisen regarding the potential effects of excessive reliance on these technologies on higher-order cognitive skills, especially creative thinking. In this respect, the aim of this research is to examine the relationship between AI dependency and creative thinking dispositions among graduate students studying in faculties of sports sciences. Methods In this research, a correlational survey model from quantitative research approaches was used. The population of the study consisted of graduate students studying in the faculties of sports sciences of eight universities located in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Türkiye. Within the scope of the study, data were collected from 286 graduate students using a convenient sampling method. The data were collected using the Dependence to Artificial Intelligence Scale and the Marmara Creative Thinking Dispositions Scale and analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent samples t-test, and Pearson correlation analysis. Results The research findings revealed that participants’ dependence on artificial intelligence varied significantly depending on the AI tools they used most frequently. It was found that this difference favored participants who used personal assistants. Additionally, a statistically significant negative correlation was found between AI dependence and dispositions toward creative thinking. Discussion These results highlight the importance of the balanced and mindful use of AI tools in graduate education programs for the sustainability of creative thinking skills.

Introduction Mental toughness (MT) is increasingly recognized as a psychological resilience factor that can help individuals to cope with stress more effectively and maintain better mental health. While previous studies suggest that MT buffers the negative effects of stress, it is unclear whether these patterns are consistent across broader adult populations and multiple dimensions of mental health. Methods This preregistered study examined whether MT moderates the relationship between perceived stress and three indicators of mental health: depressive symptoms, the mental health component of the SF-12 and subjective well-being. Participants were 402 community dwelling adults (aged 34–90) taking part in the longitudinal ‘Gesundheit zum Mitmachen’ project. MT, perceived stress, depressive symptoms, the mental health component, and subjective well-being were assessed using validated self-report instruments. Bivariate correlations and moderated regression analyses performed with Hayes’ PROCESS macro for SPSS were conducted. Results Higher levels of MT were associated with lower perceived stress and more favorable mental health outcomes, including fewer depressive symptoms, higher mental health component and higher subjective well-being. Perceived stress was strongly related to poorer mental health across all indicators. MT significantly moderated the relationship between stress and both depressive symptoms and the mental health component. However, the interaction term did not reach significance for subjective well-being, although the descriptive pattern suggested a similar buffering tendency. Conclusion The findings suggest that MT may be important in understanding individual differences in the association between perceived stress and mental health among community-dwelling adults. The observed pattern of results further supports the notion that the role of MT may vary across different mental health indicators rather than exerting uniform effects across outcomes. This is consistent with the view of MT as a context-dependent resource in stress appraisal and coping processes. Given the cross-sectional study design, the findings should be interpreted as associative rather than causal and require confirmation in longitudinal and experimental research.

Artificial intelligence is increasingly entering music and performance education, often through tools that measure pitch, stability, timing, and related performance indicators. In vocal pedagogy, however, more precise measurement does not automatically create educational value. This Perspective argues that AI-assisted vocal pedagogy should be evaluated by how AI-generated evidence becomes meaningful for human learning: how learners interpret feedback, regulate practice, sustain motivation, and develop trust in teacher-guided learning processes. The conceptual problem is that measurable vocal outputs may not fully represent learners’ internal experience, embodied coordination, or expert pedagogical interpretation. Drawing on educational psychology, performance science, and recent work on AI-supported and metacognitive music learning, the article proposes a framework that links technical adaptation, human learning processes, and educational outcomes. Within this framework, effectiveness, equity, and sustainability are treated as outcome criteria for judging whether AI-supported feedback becomes meaningful for learning, usable across learners, and sustainable for long-term vocal development. The article concludes that AI should not be positioned as an autonomous evaluator of singing quality, but as a human-centered support for interpretation, reflection, teacher–student dialogue, and pedagogically responsible decision-making.

The range of datasets, methods, and other tools available for environmental research and decision‐making is rapidly expanding. How should the quality of these tools be evaluated? When are new resources better than existing resources? We advocate an adequacy‐for‐purpose perspective, according to which the quality of environmental research tools depends on both research aims and context of use: a good tool is one that will allow its users—given their knowledge, expertise, and practical resources—to achieve their aims. The adequacy‐for‐purpose approach to assessment differs in various ways from standard practice and, we argue, has several advantages. It can help researchers and environmental managers avoid using “best available” datasets and models for purposes for which they are ill‐suited. It can also help researchers recognize the value of tools that are not state‐of‐the‐art. We illustrate the adequacy‐for‐purpose approach with examples from lake and reservoir forecasting.

Indonesia is highly exposed to seismic hazards, requiring building systems that can improve structural safety while remaining feasible for widespread application. This study investigates the effectiveness of prefabricated foamed concrete infill walls in enhancing the seismic resilience of buildings in earthquake-prone regions of Indonesia. The research integrates material characterization, structural performance assessment, and seismic response analysis to evaluate the role of lightweight prefabricated infill systems in reducing seismic demand on structural frames. Experimental testing and numerical simulations were conducted to analyze load–displacement behavior, energy dissipation capacity, and damage patterns under earthquake loading scenarios representative of Indonesian seismic conditions. The results demonstrate that the use of prefabricated foamed concrete infill walls significantly improves lateral stiffness and energy dissipation while reducing structural damage and overall seismic vulnerability. Compared to conventional infill systems, the proposed approach offers improved constructability, reduced structural mass, and enhanced post-earthquake functionality. This study provides evidence that integrating prefabricated foamed concrete infill walls into building design can serve as an effective and scalable strategy to enhance seismic resilience in developing, high-risk seismic regions, supporting safer and more sustainable built environments in Indonesia.