Over past decades, grounded theory is increasingly popular in a broad range of research primarily in educationalresearch. The current paper aims to provide useful information for the new-comers and fit them well in groundedtheory research. This paper starts with definitions, origin and applications of grounded theory, followed by typesof grounded theory research designs and the key characteristics of grounded theory. Other aspects coveredinclude data collection and data analysis, general steps, and ethical issues in grounded theory. Discussions on thestrengths and limitations of grounded theory, as well as evaluation aspects, are found in the last part of thispaper.

Background: According to the validation literature on items of Young’s Internet Addiction Test (IAT), this study rephrased disputable items to improve the psychometric properties of this Chinese version of IAT and identify the presence of differential item function (DIF) among demographic and Internet use factors; detect the effect of demographic and Internet use factors on IAT after adjusting for DIF. Methods: An online questionnaire was distributed to college students in Zhe Jiang province in two stage. The 1st phase study collected 384 valid responses to examine the quality of IAT items by using Rasch Model analysis and exploring factor analysis (EFA). The online questionnaire was modified according to the 1st phase study and distributed online for the 2nd phase study which collected a total of 1131 valid responses. The 2nd phase study applied confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and a multiple indicator multiple causes (MIMIC) model to verify the construct of IAT, potential effect of covariates on IAT latent factors, as well as the effect of differential item functioning (DIF). Results: Rasch model analysis in the 1st phase study indicated a 5-point rating scale was performed better, no sever misfit was found on item. The overall property of Chinese version IAT with the 5-point scale was good to excellent person and item separation (2.66 and 6.86). A three-factor model was identified by EFA. In the 2nd phase study, IAT 13 were detected with DIF for gender in MIMIC model. After correcting DIF effect, the significant demographic and Internet use factors on IAT were time spent online per day, year 3, year 2, general users. Conclusion: Item improvement was efficient that the problematic items found in literature was performed good in this study. The overall psychometric property of this Chinese version IAT was good with limited DIF effect in one item. Item improvement on IAT13 was encouraged in the future study to avoid gender bias and benefit for epidemiology on PIU.

This review aimed to provide an overview of the influence of social and process smartphone use on problematic smartphone use (PSU) among adolescents aged between 10-24 years old. Social smartphone use comprises three types of smartphone features: social networking sites, chatting/texting/instant messaging, and video/phone calls. On the other hand, categories of process smartphone use include watching videos/television/movies, web surfing, playing games, listening to music/podcasts/radio, and educational learning. There were 42 studies with a total of 139,389 adolescents met the criteria for inclusion after a thorough search of academic databases. Overall, the evidence from the studies included in this review revealed that chatting/texting, video/phone calls, watching videos/television/movies and music/podcasts/radio were positively and significantly linked to and predicted problematic smartphone use. Social networking sites use, instant messaging, gaming, web surfing and educational learning yielded inconsistent results. They could have a positive or negative relationship with PSU and play a role in predicting PSU. More research is needed for music/podcasts/radio and video/phone calls because the results are still scarce.

Impostor syndrome is a psychological phenomenon characterized by persistent feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt despite evidence of competence and success. This systematic review aims to explore the prevalence, impact, and factors associated with impostor syndrome among individuals in higher education settings based on recent 6 years’ publication in journals (from 2019 to 2024). A comprehensive search of electronic databases was conducted, yielding a total of 37 relevant studies that met the inclusion criteria. The findings suggest that impostor syndrome is a prevalent issue among students and faculty academic staff in higher education, with varying degrees of severity. The syndrome can negatively impact academic performance, career development, and overall well-being. Several factors contribute to the development of impostor syndrome, including gender, minority status, high achievement orientation, and perfectionism. However, further research is needed to better understand the underlying mechanisms and effective strategies for addressing impostor syndrome in higher education.

Dyslexia is often described as the most common learning disability among the students that affect their ability to read and write. Children with dyslexia persist to their reading difficulties into adolescence and adulthood if without effective intervention and instruction. Therefore, this paper aims to review on the current state of available interventions for children with dyslexia in Malaysia and compare the interventions conducted outside Malaysia instead of to identify the frequently used for assistive technology tools in improving literacy skills. A total of 30 articles published between 2009 and 2021 that met the inclusive criteria were downloaded from electronic databases such as Scopus, SpringerLink and ScienceDirect. The interventions were divided into two categories which are phonological-based and assistive technology-based. The findings indicated that most of the interventions are focused on assistive technology tools and mobile learning applications become the favorite choice in Malaysia to assist students with dyslexia in ameliorating their learning difficulties. However, the developed mobile learning applications are not focused on teaching phonics and combined all three language skills (reading, spelling, and writing) in an application. Hence, it is imperative that researchers in Malaysia take into account to develop more mobile learning applications that focus on English language phonics and encompass three language skills (reading, spelling and writing) in an application for students with dyslexia.