Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Theoretical framework: beliefs towards psychological services are important predictors of therapy attendance and mental health adjustment. Their objective evaluation is required and that is the reason why the BAPS -an instrument that has not been tested in Colombia- exists. Objective: to adapt and validate the BAPS scale for Colombian adult population. Methodology: the original scale was translated to Spanish and then back to English, and after conducting a pilot study, the instrument was applied to 440 Colombians (321 women and 118 men, with ages between 18 and 81 years, M = 37.46; SD = 16.99). Factor analysis, reliability, comparisons between those attending and not attending therapy, and rating norms were carried out. Results: adequate adjustment values were found, low levels of quadratic error, high reliability indexes and discriminant validity by consultation attendance. Conclusions: the BAPS scale is an objective instrument, with adequate evidence of validity, reliability and consistency to evaluate beliefs towards psychological services in Colombian adults. Scoring norms are included.

Psychomotricity in Uruguay has diversified the theoretical paradigms that support it and at the therapeutic level it assumes an interdisciplinary perspective, considering sensorimotor, psychoaffective and relational aspects of people. The aim of this study is to understand the current professional profile of those who work in therapeutic psychomotricity with children in Uruguay, their work settings and the reasons that originate the referral. A quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out. 145 psychomotor therapists who performed child psychomotor therapy in 2020 and/or 2021 were surveyed by self-report. The variables were socio-occupational profile, work setting and reasons for referral. Within the sample, 97.9 % are women, 46.2 % of which completed postgraduate studies. They see an average of 23 patients per week, mostly school boys. The most frequent reasons for referral are Autism Spectrum Disorder (71.9 %) and graphomotor difficulties (59 %), with psychomotor inhibition being the least frequent (0.7 %). The classic classification and description of psychomotor disorders does not correspond to the main reasons for referral, which are associated with neurodevelopmental disorders. There is a gap between what psychomotor therapists learn in their degree, the current profile of patients they see and the demands of the work field. Future studies need to review the frameworks and update the classification of psychomotor disorders.

Psychological problems involve a wide spectrum of internalizing and externalizing behaviors that affect the population. Internalizing problems refer to emotional alterations, while externalizing problems refer to behavioral issues.  Based on this, the objective of the present study was to explore the type of internalizing and externalizing psychological problems observed in male and female university students enrolled in two higher education institutions in Quito, Ecuador. In total, 553 university students participated in this study, including 42% men and 58% women aged 18-25 years (M = 20.79; SD = 2.07). The results obtained using the Spanish version of the Adult Self Report (ASR) showed that women reported a significantly higher number of internalizing problems than men and that externalizing problems occurred in both sexes, albeit with behaviours associated with gender stereotypes. Notwithstanding the lack of gender differences in self-reported substance use, alcohol and tobacco use was higher among men. These results highlight the need to implement context-specific promotion, prevention, and intervention programmes for young adults.

The 5C’s of Positive Youth Development in Sports Battery is an instrument designed to access the 5C’s Model in sport. The original version consists of 60 items organized into five subscales (competence, confidence, connection, care and character). The main objective of the present study was to assess the factorial structure and reliability of the 60 items and two brief versions with 30 and 15 items. Furthermore, the aim was also to compare the model with and without acquiescence control. Four hundred eleven athletes participated, aged between 12 and 24 years (M = 17.9 ± 2.84; 54 % male). Exploratory factor analysis and internal consistency indicators suggested the adequacy of the five-factor model for all versions. The results of the controlled model demonstrated better fit indices compared to the uncontrolled model. The adequacy of the new versions of the instrument and the potential of the battery for controlling response bias were verified.  

Introduction: It has been proposed that personality partially influences gaming behaviors. This study examined the relationship between normal personality traits and various gaming behaviors and experiences in a sample of Argentine gamers. Method: The study included a sample of 197 gamers and an additional sample of 91 non-gamers. Data were collected using ad hoc surveys, the Gaming Experiences Scale, and the Big Five Inventory. Results: No differences in personality traits were found between gamers and non-gamers, nor was there a relationship between personality and the number of hours spent playing video games. Individuals with higher openness to experience reported greater self-perceived performance in gaming, while those with higher extraversion engaged more with other players. No differences in personality traits were found based on preference for hardcore or casual games. Higher conscientiousness was associated with fewer both negative and positive experiences in gaming, whereas greater openness to experience was related to more positive experiences. The findings highlight the need to statistically control for variables such as gender and age, given their impact on the results. Conclusions: The study concludes that gamers do not have a distinct personality profile that differentiates them from non-gamers. Moreover, contrary to previous research, neuroticism did not emerge as a key trait associated with gaming behaviors. Instead, conscientiousness played a relevant role in shaping gaming experiences, while openness to experience stood out as the strongest predictor of positive gaming experiences and self-perceived gaming performance.

Background: The Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), introduced by Davis in 1980, remains a widely used self-report tool designed to assess empathy from a multidimensional perspective, with adaptations for various languages and populations. However, many studies examining its psychometric properties have failed to replicate the original four-factor structure. Method: This instrumental study applied Classical Test Theory to adapt the IRI for use in Uruguay, with a sample of 858 adult participants (640 females, 218 males). Results: The original 28-item scale did not show a good fit with the four-factor model. Removing the reversed items led to an acceptable fit for both the original and a three-factor model. Conclusion: These findings suggest that a shortened version of the scale, excluding the reversed items, would be more suitable for this population. Further research on the impact of reversed items is recommended. The study highlights the importance of ongoing investigation into the psychometric properties of the IRI, as well as the theoretical and practical implications of using a shortened version.

Introduction: Advanced activities of daily living (A-ADLs) are an important indicator of adult functional status and active aging. However, few studies have investigated the influence of two personality attributes (openness to experience and resilience) on A‑ADLs, and there is no data in the Argentine context. The relationship between A-ADLs and openness and resilience were analyzed, and secondarily the relationship between openness and resilience was examined. Methods: 151 Argentineans (Mage = 66) were evaluated with the Scale of Expansive Activities of Daily Life, the IPIP-NEO Personality Inventory and the Brief Resilient Coping Scale. Partial correlations and regression were carried out, controlling for age and education. Results: there were significant (moderate) correlations between all the variables of interest: openness, resilience and A-ADLs. The measures of resilience, openness and education explain 21 % of the variation in the A-ADLs score. Resilience was the variable that most influenced A-ADLs. Conclusion: a personality with more resilience and openness is associated with greater achievement of A-ADLs in Argentines ≥ 50 years old. It is suggested that the Argentine state implement public policies that promote recreational activity and social integration in older and middle age.

This paper analyzes the profession in the Enseñanza de los Estudios Sociales y la Educación Cívica in the context of the reform of the curriculum offered by the escuelas de Historia, Geografía and Formación Docente, of the University of Costa Rica. Primary sources to contextualize this career involved the analysis of books, essays, official documents, and the existing curriculum. We analyze the constitution of the profession from 1951 until today. Also, the external context is explained according to international trends in the Enseñanza de los Estudios Sociales y la Educación Cívica and so is studied the national context. We identify and confront the different offers in higher education in both, public and private sectors trying to determine the objectives, organizational structure, graduate profile and occupational field. Finally, we consider updating the curriculum in the Enseñanza de los Estudios Sociales y la Educación Cívica at the University of Costa Rica to be an urgent task because changes in higher education and social demands require public universities to offer appropriate, flexible curricular offerings according to social and cultural needs.

Study of the link between the State and private security companies in Costa Rica, in order to answer the following questions: How much is invested in the juncture 2006-2008 to keep the offer of this service in some instances of the public sector? How does the accounting reflect the amounts that the State invests on services of private monitoring, as an expense or an investment? And  why is the geographic expansion of private security  partly the result of its link with the State?