Excessive social media use has become a growing concern due to its potential to affect self-perception, particularly through lowered self-esteem and a heightened fear of negative evaluation. With the increasing tendency for individuals to curate idealised online personas, understanding the psychological factors that drive this behaviour is critical. This study applies Self-Discrepancy Theory, Social Comparison Theory, and Gender Schema Theory to explain how self-perception, constant comparisons, and internalised gender norms drive online behaviours. A survey of 400 active social media users in Pakistan was conducted, and the data were analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). This study revealed that false self-presentation significantly heightened the fear of negative evaluation, which mediated its influence on excessive social media use. Social comparison, contrary to expectations, boosted self-esteem while also fuelling excessive use, as individuals sought validation online. Gender also appeared to play a moderating role, with women experiencing a stronger link between social comparison and self-esteem. However, gender did not moderate the relationship between false self-presentation and the fear of negative evaluation, suggesting similar psychological effects across genders. This study highlights that the fear of negative evaluation and social comparison-driven self-esteem are key psychological mechanisms behind excessive social media use, while gender plays a role in shaping the impact of social comparison but not false self-presentation. This study provides empirical evidence that excessive social media use is shaped by psychological factors, such as fear of negative evaluation and validation-seeking, driven by social comparison. Interventions aimed at reducing the emotional distress associated with excessive social media use should prioritise digital literacy programs that help users identify how false self-presentation and social comparison shape their fear of negative evaluation and validation-seeking behaviours, especially in appearance-driven online environments.

Online-Dating Romance Scam in Malaysia: An Analysis of Online Conversations between Scammers and Victims

Juvenile delinquency is always seen as a public health problem which needs intervention at various levels. Identifying which factors may lead juveniles to delinquency is a long-standing question among criminologists. This remains the case in Malaysia. There are studies that have explored the impact of problem-solving skills, low socioeconomic status, and gender differences in predicting the delinquent behavior of youth in Malaysia. However, very few studies have aimed to find an in-depth understanding of the effects of family roles and peer pressure on delinquency in Malaysia. The present qualitative research was designed to fill this gap in the literature. In-depth interviews were conducted with 12 young male prisoners (juvenile delinquents) in Malaysia to explore the influences of family life and peer pressure on delinquency. The current study showed that parental un-involvement, parent separation, peer pressure, criminal gang membership, and parents’ involvement in crime were the important factors for involvement in delinquency. The findings revealed the importance of guidance and counseling for parents and adolescents, to help them cope with life challenges and to build their social and emotional skills, as well as the necessity of appointing school psychologists and public health experts to help the youths become valuable individuals.

The conceptualisation of disability is contested globally and issues in gender studies further complicate the movement towards the development of an inclusive and equal society. However, most disability and gender research studies are based on the data collected in the Global North, and little is known about disabled women in the Global South. The data presented here is from a bigger study focusing on the lived experiences of women with disabilities. This paper sets to explore how disabled women in Malaysia experience their lives in terms of marriage and motherhood prospects. The data of this qualitative study was collected from a set of in-depth interviews involving 32 women in Malaysia with physical (mobility) impairment. Over a period of 6 months, 16 Malays, 8 Chinese and 8 Indian women were interviewed twice. The analysis proposes both retrospective and introspective accounts on marriage and motherhood. The data gathered from the in-depth interviews was transcribed and analysed thematically with the help of NVivo software. The findings indicated that most participants have experienced significant barriers concerning individual constraints, familial control, and societal barriers. These were discussed with the intrinsic aspects and contextual factors of living in a patriarchal and traditional society that significantly undermined the wellbeing of disabled women in this study. Nevertheless, many of those interviewed refused to give up their hope of having a family life despite the constant struggles they encountered in their pursuit of happiness. However, their aspirations to experience family life were restricted and this caused them to experience significant psycho-emotional problems. They were constantly reminded that they were ‘disabled’ and not worthy of experiencing life like other women. The paper will discuss these challenges and negative societal attitudes towards the issue.

Flipped classroom model has received massive attention from many researchers due to its innovative instructional strategy that offers a new perspective to the traditional classroom. However, not many studies have focused on dual language learners (DLL) who face challenges in grasping second language skills and knowledge, due to the multiple linguistic systems that they have to manage. By marrying communicative language teaching (CLT) approach with flipped technique, the present study, therefore, aims to explore dual language learners’ perception towards flipped classroom model in learning English tenses as well as their learning progress using the method. The lessons were conducted using set of culturalised interactive materials. A number of 133 intermediate learners (age 18 to 25) from a vocational college in Malaysia were selected as the research participants and data were collected using one-group pre-test–post-test design, questionnaire and interview. Pre-test and post-test grammar questions were given before and after a six-week intervention program to identify the effectiveness of the materials and instruction. The findings indicated significant differences between the mean scores of the pre-test and post-test. The results also revealed learners’ positive responses and improvement in English grammar through flipped classroom and culturalised interactive materials. This research has suggested some significant impacts of flipped classroom practices using familiar objects and culturalised learning materials. Apart from acknowledging the advantages of flipped classroom model in learning English grammar, the present study also proposes some additional strategies to achieve an effective flipped classroom lesson for dual language learners in Malaysia.

Intra and Intersentential Code-switching Phenomena in Modern Malay Songs