Digital literacy influences academic behaviors, especially in medical education, where students encounter considerable academic challenges. However, the effects of this phenomenon on academic self-efficacy and procrastination remain inadequately understood. This research explores the relationships between digital literacy and academic self-efficacy, emphasizing the mediating role of academic procrastination and its various dimensions among medical students. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted from seven medical colleges from October to December 2023. The research employed meticulously validated measurement tools encompassing a digital literacy scale, academic self-efficacy scale, and academic procrastination scale and collected data on 659 medical students. Descriptive statistics and inferential testing (mediation analysis) were performed to investigate the direct and indirect relationships of the study variables. The empirical results confirmed that digital literacy positively influenced academic self-efficacy and negatively correlated with academic procrastination. Among the five dimensions of procrastination assessed, self-efficacy emerged as the most potent mediator, significantly reducing procrastination and enhancing academic self-efficacy, followed by affective procrastination, time management, task avoidance, and behavioral procrastination. The findings underscore the critical role of digital literacy in fostering academic self-efficacy and reducing procrastination among medical students. Educators can develop more effective interventions to support medical students in their academic journey by targeting specific dimensions of procrastination, particularly self-efficacy-related procrastination. Future research should consider longitudinal studies to confirm causality and explore these dynamics in diverse educational settings.

Background: Nurses constitute the backbone of the healthcare sector, often confronting elevated levels of work-related stress and emotional demands that can profoundly impact their mental well-being. Mental health is critical to nursing practice as it directly influences job performance, patient care quality, and workforce sustainability. This study examines the effects of work-life balance on the mental health of nurses in Pakistan while examining the intermediary effects of psychological capital and job satisfaction. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted from twenty-seven public and private hospitals in Multan, Pakistan, between December 2023 and March 2024. The research employed meticulously validated measurement tools: Work-Life Balance (WLB) Scale, Psychological Capital Questionnaire 12 (PCQ-12), Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS), and General Health Questionnaire 12 (GHQ-12) to collect data on 578 participants. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS and AMOS to investigate direct and indirect relationships among study constructs. Results: The results indicated that work-life balance positively influences both psychological capital (β = 0.083, p < 0.05) and job satisfaction (β = 0.113, p < 0.01), which, in turn, significantly contributes to better mental health outcomes among nurses. Sequential mediation analysis confirmed that psychological capital and job satisfaction (Indirect effect=0.022, 95% CI: 0.01– 0.037) mediate between work-life balance and mental health, suggesting that a healthy work-life balance enhances psychological resources and job satisfaction, thereby improving mental health. Conclusion: The findings highlight the importance of fostering a supportive work environment within the nursing community that promotes work-life balance, enhances psychological resources, and improves job satisfaction to maintain nurses’ overall mental health.

Background: Problematic smartphone use (PSU) is linked to various mental health issues, but the relationship between PSU, bedtime procrastination, and mental health symptoms is unclear. Sleep factors related to PSU and its mental health effects have been understudied. This study explores the longitudinal associations between PSU, bedtime procrastination, sleep quality, and mental health in university students. Methods: In this study, a total of 683 university students participated by completing questionnaires on Smart Phone Addiction (SAS) scale, Bedtime Procrastination Scale (BPS), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and Depression, Anxiety Stress Scales 21 (DASS-21) across two different time points with six-months interval between them. The participants were selected using a cluster sampling technique from Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan. A cross-lagged model was utilized to assess the longitudinal association between these variables. Results: Statistically significant reciprocal associations were found between PSU, bedtime procrastination, and mental health symptoms. PSU at Time 1 significantly predicted PSU at Time 2, bedtime procrastination at Time 2, sleep quality at Time 2, and mental health symptoms at Time 2. Bedtime procrastination at Time 1 predicted PSU at Time 2, sleep quality at Time 2, and mental health symptoms at Time 2. Sleep quality at Time 1 predicted bedtime procrastination at Time 2 and mental health symptoms at Time 2. Mental health symptoms at Time 1 predicted PSU at Time 2 and sleep quality at Time 2. Conclusion: The research findings have significantly advanced understanding of the longitudinal connections between PSU, bedtime procrastination, sleep quality, and mental health indicators. This enhanced comprehension is instrumental for psychological practitioners in devising targeted interventions to mitigate such issues among the university student demographic.

Air pollution has emerged as a major global concern in recent decades as a result of rapid urbanization and industrialization, leading to a variety of adverse health outcomes. This research aims to investigate the influence of exposure to ambient and household particulate matter pollution (PM_2.5), and ground-level ozone (O₃) pollution on respiratory and cardiac mortality in Pakistan. We used grey incidence analysis (GIA) methodology to estimate the degree of proximity among selected variables and rank them based on mortality. Hurwicz's criterion is then adopted for further optimization by prioritizing the selected factors with the greatest influence on respiratory and cardiac mortality. The GIA findings revealed that asthma mortality is considerably impacted by exposure to ambient and household PM_2.5 concentration while ischemic heart disease (IHD) mortality is potentially influenced by ground-level ozone exposure. Furthermore, results based on Hurwicz's analysis demonstrated that exposure to ambient PM_2.5 concentration appeared as the most intensified factor of respiratory and cardiac mortality. This corroboration adds to the growing body of research demonstrating that exposure to ambient PM_2.5 adversely leads to respiratory and cardiac risks, emphasizing the demand for further improvement of air quality in Pakistan. Besides, the suggested methodologies provide a valuable tool and additional practical knowledge for policymakers and decision-makers in drawing rational decisions.

Several cross-sectional and longitudinal investigations have demonstrated a robust association between academic stress, physical activity, mental health history, and time management skills. However, the existing literature exhibits inconsistencies in the relationship between academic stress and its predictive effects on physical activity and mental health history. In addition, there is a scarcity of scholarly research that concentrates on the significance of time management skills within this particular context. Furthermore, limited research has investigated these variables' longitudinal associations and causal pathways. Therefore, the present research explores the longitudinal relationships among academic stress, physical activity, mental health history, and time management skills among university students. The data were gathered from Wuhan University, China, employing a two-wave longitudinal survey methodology with an annual interval. A cohort of 980 university-level students engaged in the completion of questionnaires, which encompassed measures of academic stress via the Educational Stress Scale for Adolescents (ESSA), physical activity ascertained through Cho's five-item questionnaire, mental health history assessed by the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, and time management skills evaluated using the Time Management Behaviour Scale (TMBS). Subsequently, a cross-lagged path model was utilised to examine the prospective associations among these constructs. The outcomes of the cross-lagged path analysis indicated the presence of significant bidirectional relationships between academic stress and physical activity, mental health history, and time management skills. In addition, bidirectional interconnections existed between physical activity and mental health history. Furthermore, unilateral correlations were detected between physical activity and time management skills. These findings underscore the importance of an integrated approach to student health initiatives and highlight the need for comprehensive support systems that address student well-being's psychological and physical aspects.

Background: The compromised well-being of educators engenders a range of educational, social, and economic issues that cannot be adequately addressed through the mere awareness of risk factors. The present research explores the mediating roles of self-compassion and emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression) on the relationship between academic teachers’ psychological resilience and mental health. Methods: A total of 405 academic teachers from four colleges in Tabuk City, Saudi Arabia, participated in the study between September and November 2023. The standardized questionnaires measuring psychological resilience (The Brief Resilience Scale- BRS), self-compassion (The Self-Compassion Scale-SCS), emotion regulation (The Emotion Regulation Scale-ERS), and mental health (General Health Questionnaire-12) were used to collect data. The bivariate correlation, regression, and path analysis were employed to investigate their associations. Results: The findings demonstrated a significant positive impact of psychological resilience on mental health (β=0.39, p< 0.001). Self-compassion emerged as a significant positive mediator, strengthening the association between resilience and mental health (β=0.18, p< 0.01). Cognitive reappraisal was found to have a positive mediating effect on this relationship (β=0.16, p< 0.01), highlighting its functional significance in regulating emotions. Conversely, expressive suppression was found to negatively mediate the relationship, with an indirect effect of β=− 0.12 (p< 0.05), indicating a maladaptive influence on mental health. Conclusion: The research emphasizes the significance of fostering self-compassion and adaptive regulatory strategies, like cognitive reappraisal, while mitigating maladaptive approaches, including expressive suppression, in order to enhance the mental health of university educators. These findings underscore the necessity for culturally sensitive mental health interventions within educational institutions in Saudi Arabia.