“I’ll stop procrastinating now!” Fostering specific processes of self-regulated learning to reduce academic procrastination

ABSTRACT

Academic procrastination is considered to be a result of self-regulation failure having detrimental effects on students’ well-being and academic performance. In the present study, we developed and evaluated a group training that aimed to reduce academic procrastination. We based the training on a cyclical process model of self-regulated learning, thus, focusing on improving deficient processes of self-regulated learning among academic procrastinators (e.g., time management, dealing with distractions). The training comprised five sessions and took place once a week for 90?min in groups of no more than 10 students. Overall, 106 students completed the training. We evaluated the training using a comprehensive control group design with repeated measures (three points of measurement); the control group was trained after the intervention group’s training. The results showed that our training was successful. The trained intervention group significantly reduced academic procrastination and improved specific processes of self-regulated learning (e.g., time management, concentration), whereas the untrained control group showed no change regarding these variables. After the control group had also been trained, the control group also showed the expected favorable changes. The students rated the training overall as good and found it recommendable for procrastinating friends. Hence, fostering self-regulatory processes in our intervention was a successful attempt to support students in reducing academic procrastination. The evaluation of the training encourages us to adapt the training for different groups of procrastinators.     

Is constitutionalized media freedom only window dressing? Evidence from terrorist attacks

Public Choice - Media freedom is often curtailed in the wake of terrorist attacks. In this contribution, we ask whether constitutional provisions that are intended—directly or...     

Cigarette burns in forensic medicine

Skin lesions suspected to have been caused by a burning cigarette require thorough diagnostic evaluation as to the mode of infliction. Accidental cigarette burns must be differentiated from injuries due to self-infliction or maltreatment. The typical categories are presented on the basis of the literature and exemplary cases from the authors' own study material. An intentional infliction must be taken into consideration when a body region is involved which does not normally come into contact with a cigarette by chance. Full thickness burns from glowing cigarettes require an exposure time of more than 1s. One should also keep in mind the possibility of confusion with local skin infections or thermal effects by traditional medical practices (e.g. moxibustion). In unclear cases, repeated inspection of the lesion is recommended in order to facilitate its classification as to causation and age. The courses of healing in first- to third-degree cigarette burns are demonstrated by means of continuous photographic documentation. The discussion deals with different kinds of accidental and intentional cigarette burns, e.g. in drug addicts, psychiatric patients, victims of child abuse, maltreatment and torture, but also in persons feigning a criminal offence.     

Central banking below zero: the implementation of negative interest rates in Europe and Japan

This paper provides an overview of the operational implementation of negative interest rates in Europe and Japan. Drawing attention to the fact that there is precedent for negative policy rates and negative money market rates, the paper addresses conceptual issues and summarizes measures which define negative interest rate policy. Based on detailed institutional analysis and an examination of the interaction of interest rate policies with balance sheet policies, it is argued that there exists substantial heterogeneity in the purpose, design, and operational specificities of negative interest rate policies across economies, with significant consequences for effective market rates, private sector funding conditions, and expectations. Summarizing transmission channels of negative rates, benefits, and risks of the policy, the paper calls attention to potential adverse effects resulting from the interaction of negative interest rates with tighter liquidity and capital standards adopted since the Global Financial Crisis.     

Factors of efficiency of multinational companies in Slovenia

This paper investigates factors of the company efficiency for the sample of the multinational companies in Slovenia. Their efficiency performances are compared with similar Slovenian non-multinational companies. The unique in-depth survey evidence is combined with the secondary data from the official registry of companies. The paper finds that efficiency of the multinational companies in Slovenia is determined by the leadership factors in a way of the decision-making in the company and by the way of the motivation of the employees in the company. Among the motivation factors, there are found significant association for the flexible working time, good relations with collaborators and security of employment. The company innovativeness in terms of the considering of new ideas for the improvement of working conditions are also found as factors to significantly contribute to the efficiency of the multinational companies in Slovenia, but less so the company economic culture and the satisfaction of the employees.     

The Soviet Military Administration and East German Elections, Autumn 1946

Even before the capitulation of Germany in 1945 the Soviet Union had begun to make preparations for a step-by-step communist seizure of power in the territories it controlled. This paper shows that the elections in the Soviet Occupation Zone (SBZ) in autumn 1946 were part of this radical change. Unpublished Russian documents provide evidence that Soviet military authorities had planned almost every detail of this campaign to ensure that the Socialist Unity Party of German (SED) headed the poll — and this was even more evident after the crushing defeat of the communists in Hungary and Austria in 1945. In any case the Soviets were determined that such defeat should not happen again due to Stalin's postwar plans to establish a predominantly communist Germany.