Yu Leung Ng

Application of SCOPE-C to measure social inclusion among mental health services users in Hong Kong

Abstract This study describes the construction of the Chinese version of the Social and Communities Opportunities Profile (SCOPE), henceforth, the SCOPE-C, to measure social inclusion among mental health services users in Hong Kong. The SCOPE-C was developed based on concept-mapping and benchmarking of census questions. The questionnaire consisted of 56 items, went through a standardized linguistic validation process and was pilot tested with qualitative feedback from five users of mental health services. Altogether 168 Chinese service users were recruited through various NGO mental health services to have three times face-to-face interview between October 2013 and July 2014. Results indicated that items related to satisfaction with opportunities and perceived opportunities in various social domains had high consistency. Nearly all the Kappa statistics and Pearson correlation coefficients between the baseline and two rounds of re-test were significant. The SCOPE-C was considered a valid instrument for Hong Kong mental health user population.

Using an expanded Theory of Planned Behavior to predict adolescents' intention to engage in healthy eating

ABSTRACT A study was conducted to test an expanded Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) in predicting healthy eating intention among adolescent boys and girls in mainland China. Two variables (perceived barriers and self-efficacy) were added to the TPB. A purposive sampling design was adopted to select schools, then students. Altogether, 635 adolescents were asked to complete a structured questionnaire about healthy eating. Results of confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling supported the structural validity of the proposed expanded model. Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that selected items of the perceived behavioral control and perceived barriers should be combined to form a new measure of perceived behavioral control. The new measure of perceived behavioral control and self-efficacy was found to be more influential than attitude as well as subjective norm in predicting healthy eating. Past behavior and gender were found to be significant moderating variables.

Should Different Marketing Communication Strategies Be Used to Promote Healthy Eating Among Male and Female Adolescents

A study was conducted to examine how interpersonal norms, media norms, attitudes, perceived behavioral control, perceived barriers, and self-efficacy had an influence on healthy eating intention among adolescents. A probability sample of 544 adolescents aged 12 to 18 was conducted. Results indicated that girls had a more favorable attitude and intention toward healthy eating than boys. Healthy eating intention among boys was predicted by attitude, perceived behavioral control, perceived barriers, and self-efficacy, and among girls was predicted by perceived behavioral control and self-efficacy. Different marketing strategies to promote healthy eating among adolescent boys and girls should be adopted.

More than social–cultural influences: A research agenda for evolutionary perspectives on prosocial media effects.

Prosocial media effects, short- and long-term intrapersonal changes in prosocial personality traits, values, emotions, and behavior caused by media use, have attracted much less attention than media violence research. Empirical examinations of current theories of prosocial media effects have focused on the indirect effects of prosocial media that explain why exposure to it results in prosocial behavior. However, they have neglected other types of media effects. Further, because of philosophical biases in the field of communication, only the social-cultural perspective has been used to explain the psychological antecedents and consequences of prosocial media effects. The origins and ultimate functions of prosociality in the processes of media effects are unknown. The intersection of evolutionary theories and media effects theories provides a more comprehensive explanation of prosocial media effects. Using various evolutionary perspectives on altruism, reciprocity, and cooperation, this article synthesizes 4 types of prosocial media effects: selective, indirect, conditional, and transactional, suggesting that the dramatic prosocial media learning process should be considered from a comprehensive nature-nurture interactive view. The research agenda, implications, and recent methodological advances are highlighted.