International Journal of Management and Humanities
This study aimed to explore the possible effects of coping strategies and anxiety on mental healt... more This study aimed to explore the possible effects of coping strategies and anxiety on mental health among female undergraduate students in Kosovo. 492 students (M = 20.54, SD = 1.98) from three universities, voluntarily completed the Mental health SRMH, the Brief-COPE self-report questionnaire, the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, and a sociodemographic survey through a web-based Google form. Descriptive, correlation, t-Test, ANOVA, linear and multiple regressions were used. 65% suffered from anxiety and 62.6% of them rated their general health as poor. Students of second and third year reported more poor mental health (64.5%; 64.1%; 66%) and higher anxiety level (47.7%; 36.8%; 36.4%) than other students. There was a significant moderate positive relationship only between the anxiety and avoidant coping style. The hierarchical regression models indicated that the mental health score of students were predicted by being infected with COVID-19 (P = 0.00), study year (P = 0.00)...
Mediterranean Journal of Educational Studies, 2006
31 CRITICAL THINKING AND THE KOSOVAN EDUCATORS' VIEWS AND BELIEFS ABOUT EDUCATION, TEACHING ... more 31 CRITICAL THINKING AND THE KOSOVAN EDUCATORS' VIEWS AND BELIEFS ABOUT EDUCATION, TEACHING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT EDA VULA MERITA SHALA AbstractThe purpose of the study has been to analyse the changes in the attitudes and ...
With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of m... more With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of motor tests was conducted with 178 children, 105 boys and 73 girls. The set contained five tests that measure agility, static balance, dynamic balance, strength and coordination. Tests, which are consistent with their level of development, were fun and easily implemented from children. The results obtained have provided an overview of the stage of development of some motor skills of 6 years old children. Along with the descriptive analysis of data, was presented the latent structure of motor space, in which case it was possible to extract two factors: the factor of dynamic balance and coordination, and the factor of strength, agility and static balance.
Introduction: One year after the first COVID-19 cases in Kosovo, we aimed to discover the anxiety... more Introduction: One year after the first COVID-19 cases in Kosovo, we aimed to discover the anxiety level of university students and explore factors influencing their anxiety. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. 897 students (M = 21.06, SD = 4.41), from six universities in Kosovo completed the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale and a sociodemographic survey through a web-based Google form. Descriptive, Pearson chi-square, t-Test, ANOVA, linear and multiple regressions were used. Results: We found that 73.5% of the full sample experience anxiety, respectively 12.9 % of them severe anxiety, 22.2 % moderate, and 38.4 % mild anxiety, with female students showing higher levels of anxiety symptoms. Moreover, students in master studies (20%), students who have been infected with COVID-19 (18.9%), students having a relative (14.8%) or having an acquaintance infected with COVID-19 (15.7%), were more likely to be severely anxious (P < 0.05). Students from Medical Faculty, Law an...
This study was undertaken in order to examine differences in gross motor achievements among child... more This study was undertaken in order to examine differences in gross motor achievements among children of four to five years of age as the result of the development of physical education programmes offered by private and public institutions in Kosovo. Research was ...
International journal of psychiatry in clinical practice, Jan 26, 2018
The relationship between temperament and mental health problems is seen very important as we hope... more The relationship between temperament and mental health problems is seen very important as we hope to explain the trajectory of this interaction. The aim of this study was to test the validity of affective temperaments for predicting psychiatric morbidity, by explaining the relationships between temperament, anxiety and depression in a community sample. This was a cross-sectional study. The present sample consisted of 960 participants (347 male, 622 female) with a mean age of M = 28.4 (SD = 10) randomly recruited. Affective temperaments were measured by the brief version of TEMPS-A, depression and anxiety measured with Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory. The Cronbach alpha reliability coefficients for affective temperaments were between .72 and .81, for BDI and BAI, were .88 and .90. The study found significant gender differences on depressive [t(959) = -4.2, p<.001], cyclothymic [t(957) = -4.6, p < .001] and anxious temperament [t(957) = -8.2, p < .001], f...
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT / OBESITY AND INTERNALIZING PROBLEMS IN 4 YEAR OLD ... more THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT / OBESITY AND INTERNALIZING PROBLEMS IN 4 YEAR OLD CHILDREN. Alma Osmani1 Merita Shala 2 1Department of physical education and sports university, University of Tirana, Albania alma1osmani@hotmail.com 2 Department of Psychology, AAB University, Pristine, Kosovo. merishala@gmail.com Abstract Childhood overweight and obesity have increased worldwide in last decades. The child obesity leads at serious medical problems and since the childhood behavior problems represent an important topic in developmental psychopathology, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between overweight and obesity and internalizing problems in 4 year old boys and girls. There were 45 preschool teachers who voluntarily completed the questionnaire, and rated the child’s behavior on the C-TRF 1½-5 for 290 children (mean age in months = 46.09; SD = 12.61). The children were 128 or 44.1 % girls (mean in months = 31.11; SD=6.64) and 162 or 55.9 % bo...
With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of m... more With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of motor tests was conducted with 178 children, 105 boys and 73 girls. The set contained five tests that measure agility, static balance, dynamic balance, strength and coordination. Tests, which are consistent with their level of development, were fun and easily implemented from children. The results obtained have provided an overview of the stage of development of some motor skills of 6 years old children. Along with the descriptive analysis of data, was presented the latent structure of motor space, in which case it was possible to extract two factors: the factor of dynamic balance and coordination, and the factor of strength, agility and static balance.
Gender Differences in Internalizing Problems among Kosovar Preschool Children –Teachers’ Report M... more Gender Differences in Internalizing Problems among Kosovar Preschool Children –Teachers’ Report Merita Shala1, Milika Dhamo2 1-Faculty of Social Sciences, European University of Tirana, Albania 2-Psychology Department, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tirana, Albania 1-Email: merishala@gmail.com Abstract The course of internalizing problems has been investigated largely from late childhood onward, although there are a lot of studies that speaks to the existence of early manifesting internalizing problems. Internalizing behavior refers to a similarly broad set of constructs including anxiety and depression, as well as somatic complaints and withdrawn behavior. This study investigated the variability in age and gender of internalizing behaviour problems among preschool children. Participants were 140 preschool teachers who completed the questionnaire, and rated the 851 children’s behavior on the Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist/Caregiver-Teacher Report Form. The children (m...
Abstract The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship between parents’ level of... more Abstract The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship between parents’ level of education and children school readiness level, specifically on socio-emotional, cognitive and motor development domains. 500 children, randomly selected, in the first grade for different primary schools in Kosovo, as well as their parents were the participants in this study. Children were assessed through School Readiness Questionnaire (Brainline –J.D. Plooy). Each child was individually assessed for cognitive and motor development domain, while for the socio-emotional domain the questionnaire was completed by their parents. The results revealed interesting relation of parents’ education level on children’s school readiness, for both fathers and mothers. Keywords: Preschool Education; School Readiness; Parents’ level of education, cognitive, socio-emotional and motor development.
International Journal of Management and Humanities
This study aimed to explore the possible effects of coping strategies and anxiety on mental healt... more This study aimed to explore the possible effects of coping strategies and anxiety on mental health among female undergraduate students in Kosovo. 492 students (M = 20.54, SD = 1.98) from three universities, voluntarily completed the Mental health SRMH, the Brief-COPE self-report questionnaire, the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, and a sociodemographic survey through a web-based Google form. Descriptive, correlation, t-Test, ANOVA, linear and multiple regressions were used. 65% suffered from anxiety and 62.6% of them rated their general health as poor. Students of second and third year reported more poor mental health (64.5%; 64.1%; 66%) and higher anxiety level (47.7%; 36.8%; 36.4%) than other students. There was a significant moderate positive relationship only between the anxiety and avoidant coping style. The hierarchical regression models indicated that the mental health score of students were predicted by being infected with COVID-19 (P = 0.00), study year (P = 0.00)...
Mediterranean Journal of Educational Studies, 2006
31 CRITICAL THINKING AND THE KOSOVAN EDUCATORS' VIEWS AND BELIEFS ABOUT EDUCATION, TEACHING ... more 31 CRITICAL THINKING AND THE KOSOVAN EDUCATORS' VIEWS AND BELIEFS ABOUT EDUCATION, TEACHING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT EDA VULA MERITA SHALA AbstractThe purpose of the study has been to analyse the changes in the attitudes and ...
With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of m... more With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of motor tests was conducted with 178 children, 105 boys and 73 girls. The set contained five tests that measure agility, static balance, dynamic balance, strength and coordination. Tests, which are consistent with their level of development, were fun and easily implemented from children. The results obtained have provided an overview of the stage of development of some motor skills of 6 years old children. Along with the descriptive analysis of data, was presented the latent structure of motor space, in which case it was possible to extract two factors: the factor of dynamic balance and coordination, and the factor of strength, agility and static balance.
Introduction: One year after the first COVID-19 cases in Kosovo, we aimed to discover the anxiety... more Introduction: One year after the first COVID-19 cases in Kosovo, we aimed to discover the anxiety level of university students and explore factors influencing their anxiety. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. 897 students (M = 21.06, SD = 4.41), from six universities in Kosovo completed the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale and a sociodemographic survey through a web-based Google form. Descriptive, Pearson chi-square, t-Test, ANOVA, linear and multiple regressions were used. Results: We found that 73.5% of the full sample experience anxiety, respectively 12.9 % of them severe anxiety, 22.2 % moderate, and 38.4 % mild anxiety, with female students showing higher levels of anxiety symptoms. Moreover, students in master studies (20%), students who have been infected with COVID-19 (18.9%), students having a relative (14.8%) or having an acquaintance infected with COVID-19 (15.7%), were more likely to be severely anxious (P < 0.05). Students from Medical Faculty, Law an...
This study was undertaken in order to examine differences in gross motor achievements among child... more This study was undertaken in order to examine differences in gross motor achievements among children of four to five years of age as the result of the development of physical education programmes offered by private and public institutions in Kosovo. Research was ...
International journal of psychiatry in clinical practice, Jan 26, 2018
The relationship between temperament and mental health problems is seen very important as we hope... more The relationship between temperament and mental health problems is seen very important as we hope to explain the trajectory of this interaction. The aim of this study was to test the validity of affective temperaments for predicting psychiatric morbidity, by explaining the relationships between temperament, anxiety and depression in a community sample. This was a cross-sectional study. The present sample consisted of 960 participants (347 male, 622 female) with a mean age of M = 28.4 (SD = 10) randomly recruited. Affective temperaments were measured by the brief version of TEMPS-A, depression and anxiety measured with Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory. The Cronbach alpha reliability coefficients for affective temperaments were between .72 and .81, for BDI and BAI, were .88 and .90. The study found significant gender differences on depressive [t(959) = -4.2, p<.001], cyclothymic [t(957) = -4.6, p < .001] and anxious temperament [t(957) = -8.2, p < .001], f...
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT / OBESITY AND INTERNALIZING PROBLEMS IN 4 YEAR OLD ... more THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CHILDHOOD OVERWEIGHT / OBESITY AND INTERNALIZING PROBLEMS IN 4 YEAR OLD CHILDREN. Alma Osmani1 Merita Shala 2 1Department of physical education and sports university, University of Tirana, Albania alma1osmani@hotmail.com 2 Department of Psychology, AAB University, Pristine, Kosovo. merishala@gmail.com Abstract Childhood overweight and obesity have increased worldwide in last decades. The child obesity leads at serious medical problems and since the childhood behavior problems represent an important topic in developmental psychopathology, the purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between overweight and obesity and internalizing problems in 4 year old boys and girls. There were 45 preschool teachers who voluntarily completed the questionnaire, and rated the child’s behavior on the C-TRF 1½-5 for 290 children (mean age in months = 46.09; SD = 12.61). The children were 128 or 44.1 % girls (mean in months = 31.11; SD=6.64) and 162 or 55.9 % bo...
With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of m... more With the aim to highlight the movement skill levels of 6 years old children of Kosovo, a set of motor tests was conducted with 178 children, 105 boys and 73 girls. The set contained five tests that measure agility, static balance, dynamic balance, strength and coordination. Tests, which are consistent with their level of development, were fun and easily implemented from children. The results obtained have provided an overview of the stage of development of some motor skills of 6 years old children. Along with the descriptive analysis of data, was presented the latent structure of motor space, in which case it was possible to extract two factors: the factor of dynamic balance and coordination, and the factor of strength, agility and static balance.
Gender Differences in Internalizing Problems among Kosovar Preschool Children –Teachers’ Report M... more Gender Differences in Internalizing Problems among Kosovar Preschool Children –Teachers’ Report Merita Shala1, Milika Dhamo2 1-Faculty of Social Sciences, European University of Tirana, Albania 2-Psychology Department, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tirana, Albania 1-Email: merishala@gmail.com Abstract The course of internalizing problems has been investigated largely from late childhood onward, although there are a lot of studies that speaks to the existence of early manifesting internalizing problems. Internalizing behavior refers to a similarly broad set of constructs including anxiety and depression, as well as somatic complaints and withdrawn behavior. This study investigated the variability in age and gender of internalizing behaviour problems among preschool children. Participants were 140 preschool teachers who completed the questionnaire, and rated the 851 children’s behavior on the Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist/Caregiver-Teacher Report Form. The children (m...
Abstract The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship between parents’ level of... more Abstract The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship between parents’ level of education and children school readiness level, specifically on socio-emotional, cognitive and motor development domains. 500 children, randomly selected, in the first grade for different primary schools in Kosovo, as well as their parents were the participants in this study. Children were assessed through School Readiness Questionnaire (Brainline –J.D. Plooy). Each child was individually assessed for cognitive and motor development domain, while for the socio-emotional domain the questionnaire was completed by their parents. The results revealed interesting relation of parents’ education level on children’s school readiness, for both fathers and mothers. Keywords: Preschool Education; School Readiness; Parents’ level of education, cognitive, socio-emotional and motor development.
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