| Room 705 Saturday Onsite Presentation Session 1

Psychology and Education

Session Chair: Lord Joseas Conwi

09:30-09:55

67488 | Student Violence in Schools – An Emerging Challenge for Educators

Binoy Joseph, Charles Darwin University,

Australia

Teacher well-being continues to gather increased attention in the neoliberal education era. School-based violence is a significant contributor to the detrimental experiences for educators, that includes various forms of violence perpetrated by students. Even though research in this area has received global attention over the past decade, the paucity of ample evidence base to reinforce the well-being of teachers vindicates more research in this area. The current research evidence suggests that student violence adversely affects a wide range of areas, including mental and physical health, classroom management, job retention, self-efficacy, and overall personal and professional life. This research focuses on how student behaviours and school violence impact the well-being of teachers. Embracing a qualitative approach, the research aims to draw upon the lived experiences of educators in the schools of the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia. This paper reviews data from a short online survey that includes the foundational demography of educators in the NT and some of the key emergent themes that inform a larger study. Statistics from the online survey indicate a considerable degree of victimisation experienced by educators in the NT. The significance of the study is further highlighted as it covers a geographical location where there is a predominance of Australian First Nations people. This population still suffers from the distress and trauma of colonisation. Here we gain an initial snapshot of the prolific distress from student violence suffered by many teachers in the NT, alongside a backdrop of trauma experienced by children of colonised peoples.

09:55-10:20

69217 | Psychological First Aid and its Intervention in Climatic Disaster Context: Case of Pacific Island Countries

Malini Nair, Ritsumeikan

Asia

Pacific University, Japan

Psychological first aid (PFA) is one of the activities of psychosocial support (PSS) under the mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) intervention pyramid. PFA activities are being implemented as part of the response to climate disasters and health emergencies. This paper attempts to review the MHPSS intervention pyramid to examine what should be considered for localization. The study also conducts a gap analysis of PFA interventions in the context of climate disasters in Pacific Island countries (PICs). A scoping review of sources and keywords was used to identify research articles on the effectiveness of PFA in climate disasters. Online survey questions were sent to ten PICs red cross offices. Three PICs participated in survey interviews to gauge current status, issues, and challenges. The literature review demonstrates the effectiveness of PFA program intervention in a different context. However, there is a lack of such evidence from PICs and a lack of scientific evidence. A preliminary online survey found 50% of PFA is part of the disaster response and rehabilitation program. The gap analysis reveals that the current PFA has no tangible outcomes, negligible stakeholder consultation, lacks strategic planning, and lacks cultural context and localization. However, the PFA program is widely used and is generally accepted as a valuable tool during climate disaster response and recovery. Many recommendations are being made to fill these gaps as areas of improvement for PICs, to ensure that PFA intervention is recognized locally and scientifically proven effective in the context of climate disasters.

10:20-10:45

67511 | Exploring Protective Factors of Resilience Among Philippine College Students

Kevin Yau, De La Salle University, Philippines

Lord Joseas

Conwi, De La Salle University, Philippines

During the pandemic, college students experienced drastic disruptions in life and learning. While many reported mental health issues, some were able to cope quite well. This study investigates possible protective factors that contribute to different mental health outcomes. Using an explanatory sequential mixed methods design, the study first explores whether assets and resources would contribute to distinctive mental health outcomes typologies by the measure of subjective well-being and symptomology in the dual-factor model. A multivariate model of analysis was employed to examine whether the level of those protective factors (i.e. assets and resources) were specifically related to each mental healthgroup. Subsequent qualitative interviews were conducted to understand how representatives from the symptomatic but content group maintained high level of subjective well-being despite high level of clinical symptoms. Among the 317 college students who participated in the research, the symptomatic but content group accounted for the highest proportion (49%), followed by the troubled group (37%), the positive mental health group (11%) and the vulnerable group (3%). The quantitative result shows that the level of social support, regulatory strength, meaning making strength and interpersonal strength significantly differed across outcome groups, revealing that these protective factors matter to determine one’s mental health outcome. The qualitative result found that various coping skills grouped under appraisal and problem solving were used by students to keep them “well” despite persistent symptoms. It also highlighted the importance of self-efficacy and directedness as overarching factors for the symptomatic but content.

11:25-12:40 | Room 705