Caterin Díaz-Vargas

Prof. Caterin Díaz-Vargas

Universidad de Concepción, Los Ángeles, Biobío, Chile
orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

5Years (2022-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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23 November 2022 in Geriatrics
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
RYRodrigo Yáñez-Yáñez
Rodrigo Yáñez-Yáñez
María Antonia Parra-RizoMaría Antonia Parra-Rizo
María Antonia Parra-Rizo
MNMcArdle Draguicevic Nelson
McArdle Draguicevic Nelson
NVNathalie Valdés-Valdés
Nathalie Valdés-Valdés
Gabriel Alfonso Rojas RojasGabriel Alfonso Rojas Rojas
Gabriel Alfonso Rojas Rojas
Igor CigarroaIgor Cigarroa
Igor Cigarroa
Current evidence suggests that attitude towards older people may be associated with sociodemographic and educational variables; hence, a positive attitude towards older people is key when training new university professionals. However, there is little evidence of this association in Chilean university students. The objective was to analyze students from a Chilean university’s attitudes towards older people, according to sociodemographic and educational variables. Analytical and cross-sectional study; 515 students from a Chilean university were consulted online about their attitude towards older people using Kogan’s Attitudes towards Old People scale. Additionally, sociodemographic and educational variables were recorded. The average score for positive attitude was 70.8 (±9.7), while the negative attitude score was 68.3 (±11.6). The total score was 139.1 (±16.6). Mostly, university students perceive themselves with a low-level positive attitude (61.2%). Additionally, older university students (26–42 years old); women; Chileans; students of law, speech therapy, and occupational therapy; students in their final years of the programs; and those who had training in older people outside the university have a more positive attitude towards older people. In Conclusion, a profile of sociodemographic and educational characteristics of students with a lower and higher attitude towards older age was investigated. These results are relevant since the way of seeing the aging process could regulate the training of future professionals and consequently generate changes in dealing with older people. Young people’s perception of ageing would affect the treatment and incorporation of the older people in society and the adaptation of policies in this age group.

23 October 2023 in Education Sciences
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
YCYasna Solange Chávez Castillo
Yasna Solange Chávez Castillo
RLRafael Zapata Lamana
Rafael Zapata Lamana
Caterin Díaz-VargasCaterin Díaz-Vargas
Caterin Díaz-Vargas
LALorena Antileo-Miño
Lorena Antileo-Miño
LDLilian Inés Castro Duran
Lilian Inés Castro Duran
Igor CigarroaIgor Cigarroa
Igor Cigarroa
Inclusive education acknowledges and values the capabilities and needs of every student. Exploring their perceptions of psychosocial variables and academic performance can significantly enhance inclusive practices and improve overall school performance, particularly for students with special educational needs (SEN). This study aimed to assess mental health, subjective well-being, and academic performance among students in the school inclusion program (SIP) and those not in the program. Conducted as an analytical cross-sectional study, this research endeavor entailed the utilization of a probabilistic, stratified sampling approach designed to ensure community representativeness. The study sample encompassed a cohort of 730 school students aged between 10 and 15 years (M = 12; SD = 1.3 years) representing five different public schools in the Biobío region, all integrating SIPs into their educational structure. Student assessments involved the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Subjective Happiness Scale. Additionally, their academic performance was measured based on grade point averages (GPAs) and final accumulated grades in language and literature as well as mathematics. Students enrolled in the SIP obtained lower scores in the self-esteem, anxiety, and happiness assessments along with poorer academic performance compared to their non-SIP counterparts. Consequently, students participating in the SIP displayed lower levels of mental health and subjective well-being along with inferior academic performance in contrast to their non-participating counterparts. These findings are alarming, as SIP implementation is a key strategy for promoting inclusive education in Chile and enhancing the learning of all students, especially those with SEN.

10 February 2023 in Behavioral Sciences
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
Caterin Díaz-VargasCaterin Díaz-Vargas
Caterin Díaz-Vargas
ATAndrea Tapia-Figueroa
Andrea Tapia-Figueroa
JVJacqueline Valdebenito-Villalobos
Jacqueline Valdebenito-Villalobos
MGMaría Aurora Gutiérrez-Echavarria
María Aurora Gutiérrez-Echavarria
CACarmen Claudia Acuña-Zuñiga
Carmen Claudia Acuña-Zuñiga
Igor CigarroaIgor Cigarroa
Igor Cigarroa
School coexistence is a fundamental aspect for good academic performance. The objective of the study was to identify school coexistence indices, and to analyze differences in academic performance according to these indices in students from public schools in the province of Biobío, Chile. This cross-sectional study involved 730 children (53.8% boys; 12 ± 1.2 years). School coexistence indices as a quality of interpersonal relationships between school bodies, the perception of violence and aggressiveness from a gender perspective, and the perception of levels of safety and unsafety in different school areas as well as academic performance through accumulated final grades (AFG) and grade point averages (GPA) were measured. A total of 40.9% and 41.3% of schoolchildren agreed or strongly agreed that stronger students are violent toward weaker students and boys are violent toward one another, respectively. The school areas most classified as unsafe or very unsafe were the restrooms (20.4%), followed by the playgrounds (10%), and the gym and fields (9.5%). Schoolchildren who classified the relationships within the school bodies as bad, or very bad, presented significantly lower AFG in subjects such as math, language (Spanish), and physical education and health as well as GPA. In the same line, those who perceived greater violence and aggressiveness among peers and higher insecurity in different school areas presented significantly poorer academic performance. In conclusion, students perceived violence and aggressiveness among themselves, and the school areas perceived as unsafe were identified. Furthermore, students who perceived poorer school coexistence indices presented a weaker academic performance.

20 February 2023 in Behavioral Sciences
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
JCJesus Alonso Cabrera
Jesus Alonso Cabrera
FSFranco Salazar
Franco Salazar
JBJorge Benavides-Ulloa
Jorge Benavides-Ulloa
María Antonia Parra-RizoMaría Antonia Parra-Rizo
María Antonia Parra-Rizo
RLRafael Zapata Lamana
Rafael Zapata Lamana
Igor CigarroaIgor Cigarroa
Igor Cigarroa
In the past few years, the level of physical fitness in children has decreased globally. According to the SIMCE test carried out in 2015, 45% of 8th year students in Chile were overweight. Moreover, international studies have shown that being overweight is associated with the development of chronic illnesses, negatively affecting cognitive mechanisms and processes. Nevertheless, there is little to no evidence that analyzes the relationship between physical fitness and executive functions in students, at a national level. The aim was to analyze the relationship between cardiorespiratory, musculoskeletal, and motor fitness, and performance in an executive functions test, in students from a public school in the south of Chile. A qualitative, descriptive –correlational, non-experimental, and cross-sectional approach was used. In total, 100 students between 9 and 12 and 11 months of age from a public school in the south of Chile completed the physical fitness assessments through the ALPHA fitness test, and 81 students completed the executive function assessments through the ENFEN test. It was evidenced that students who achieved a longer duration of time and a later stage in the Course Navette test, more centimeters in the standing broad jump (SBJ) test, and a shorter duration in the 4 × 10 shuttle run obtained a better score in the gray trail test. Additionally, students who presented a stronger dominant handgrip scored higher in the colored trail tests. We conclude that students who show a higher level of physical fitness also present a better development of executive functions such as working memory and inhibitory control. In addition, these results suggest physical condition is a factor to consider for better cognitive and school performance.

24 September 2022 in Behavioral Sciences
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
JVJacqueline Valdebenito-Villalobos
Jacqueline Valdebenito-Villalobos
María Antonia Parra-RizoMaría Antonia Parra-Rizo
María Antonia Parra-Rizo
YCYasna Solange Chávez Castillo
Yasna Solange Chávez Castillo
Caterin Díaz-VargasCaterin Díaz-Vargas
Caterin Díaz-Vargas
GVGloria Sanzana Vallejos
Gloria Sanzana Vallejos
Igor CigarroaIgor Cigarroa
Igor Cigarroa
Understanding the perception that students have about their own cognitive processes is a key aspect that allows for a deeper assimilation of the different factors that affect school performance. However, there is limited evidence explaining the link between students’ perception of their own cognitive functions and their academic performance. The objective of this study was to analyze the association between perception of cognitive functions, such as memory, processing speed, attention, execution of complex tasks and nervousness, and academic performance in Chilean schoolchildren from the province of Biobio. A cross-sectional analytic design was conducted. The sample consisted of 590 elementary school students (12 ± 1.3 years old; 48.3% female) from Chilean public schools. The academic performance was measured by means of the accumulated final grades in the language, mathematics, physical education and health subjects, and the grade point average (GPA) of each student. Moreover, a survey to measure the cognitive functions of the participants was applied. The results show that 20.3% of the students perceived themselves as very nervous and 16.8% felt distracted. Differences in marks were observed in all the measured subjects, as well as in GPAs, depending on the perception of cognitive functions. Thus, the students with low to moderate perceptions of their cognitive functions received lower marks than those who reported a high perception. These results were consistent after a multivariate analysis adjusted for a socio-educational variables model. In conclusion, one in five public school students in the Biobío Region of Chile expressed a low perception of their cognitive functions, which is consistent with their weaker school performance. Therefore, it is believed that integrating curricular activity and cognitive work could potentially boost the perception of said functions, and thus reduce the risk of poor academic performance.

29 October 2025 in Sage Open
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
ERELENA ROMERO
ELENA ROMERO
CCCristian Sanhueza Campos
Cristian Sanhueza Campos
Caterin Díaz-VargasCaterin Díaz-Vargas
Caterin Díaz-Vargas
MCMarcela Vildósola Campos
Marcela Vildósola Campos
KSKatia Sáez-Carrillo
Katia Sáez-Carrillo
This study investigates the epistemic and effective stance strategies employed by EFL learners in reflective essays documenting their remote learning experiences. Drawing on a corpus of 298 essays, the research elucidates how students articulate their perceptions of remote learning, with particular attention to variations across gender and academic performance. Adopting a triangulated analytical approach, we examined the same set of written compositions through separate qualitative and quantitative lenses, integrating the findings at the interpretation stage. This enabled us to map key discourse-stance strategies and illustrate how individual reflections intersect with broader educational patterns. challenges. The findings illuminate critical aspects of EFL acquisition and underscore the pivotal role of pragmatic competence in language learning and communication, suggesting significant implications for EFL pedagogy. Moreover, by reframing students’ critical perspectives on remote learning as catalysts for pedagogical innovation, this research offers actionable strategies for enhancing online and hybrid EFL instruction and informs the development of adaptive, student-centered digital learning practices in an ever-changing educational landscape.