McKendree University (McK) is a private university in Lebanon, Illinois. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college or university in Illinois. McKendree enrolls approximately 2,300 undergraduates and nearly 700 graduate students representing 25 countries and 29 states. In the undergraduate program, on average there are 51% females and 49% males. The institution remains affiliated with the United Methodist Church. The school was renamed McKendree University beginning in the 2007–08 academic year. McKendree University comprises a College of Arts and Science, a School of Business, a School of Health Professions, and a School of Education.
In response to developments in generative artificial intelligence (AI), Robinson et al. proposed a model for integrating AI skills into the American Psychological Association's resources for undergraduate education. Robinson et al.'s plan would allow psychology to continue its role as a leader in effective education and could attract new students to the field. However, AI skills should not diminish the human skills that are central to psychology. Extensive professional development and financial support will be needed to achieve AI integration, and the timeline and mechanism for change are not yet clear. Despite some uncertainties, educators should proceed with adapting the psychology curriculum to include AI skills.
Rivers are major pathways for microplastic transport, yet controls on microplastic storage across different riverine environments remain poorly constrained, particularly in managed systems. Here, we quantify microplastic abundance and characteristics in water and sediments from the Kaskaskia River (Illinois), a regulated tributary of the Mississippi River, with a specific focus on differences between main channel and backwater environments. Water and sediment samples were collected from three locations downstream of Carlyle Lake and analyzed for microplastic concentration, morphology, size, and color. Microplastic (MP) concentrations averaged 2.9 MP/L in the water column and 34.4 MP/kg in sediments, with clear fibers dominating both matrices. Contrary to expectations that low-energy backwaters would act as preferential sinks, sediment microplastic concentrations were significantly (p < 0.05) higher in main channel environments in comparison to adjacent backwaters. In contrast, microplastic concentrations in water did not vary by site, riverine environment, or depth, and were not correlated with total suspended solids (p > 0.05), indicating a decoupling between microplastic and suspended sediment transport. Microplastics in backwater sediments were larger than those in the main channel (p < 0.05), suggesting enhanced fragmentation in high-energy main channel environments. These results demonstrate that in regulated, low-gradient rivers, main channels can function as microplastic storage zones, rather than solely as transport pathways, and backwaters may consistently serve as ecological refuges. Our findings emphasize the importance of cross-sectional sampling and environment-specific assessments to accurately characterize fluvial microplastic dynamics and inform freshwater monitoring and management strategies across all riverine environments.
Nearly 23% (n = 60) of 271 surveyed U.S. pre-service teachers perceived having experienced bullying by students during their field experiences in K-12 (kindergarten to 12th grade) schools. Relational bullying was the most commonly reported type of bullying perpetrated by students against pre-service teachers. Longer pre-service field experience duration was associated with increased self-reported student-on-pre-service teacher bullying. Self-reported bullying resulted in negative psychological impacts (e.g., worry, sadness, self-doubt), as well as contemplation of changing professional paths. Some participants reported professional growth, support from colleagues, and an increased awareness of student bullying. Participants attributed student bullying of teachers to students' lack of respect for pre-service teachers, the common nature of bullying in schools, and students’ personal issues. U.S. teacher education programs must better equip pre-service teachers to address student bullying by integrating evidence-based training into their coursework.
Stigma toward mental illness has declined over time. However, recent large-scale, representative studies have shown varying trends in desire for social distance from people with mental illness. Specifically, one U.S. survey showed significant reductions in desire for social distance for depression but no change for schizophrenia (Pescosolido et al., 2021), but another U.K. survey showed significant reductions for both depression and schizophrenia (Ronaldson & Henderson, 2024). The present study reanalyzed data from the surveys using identical statistical procedures to allow for direct comparisons of trends in significance and effect size. The U.S. data included surveys from 2006 (N = 634) and 2018 (N = 449), and the U.K. data included surveys from 2015 (N = 2,114) and 2023 (N = 1,392). Survey respondents read vignettes describing schizophrenia and depression and then reported their desire for social distance across five domains. For schizophrenia, the U.S. survey produced no significant changes, and the U.K. survey showed a significant reduction for only two out of the five measures of social distance. In both surveys, effect sizes for schizophrenia change were near zero for three out of the five measures of social distance. For depression, both surveys showed small but consistently significant reductions in desire for social distance. These findings indicate that the conflicting results of past studies were largely the result of differences in data analysis. In fact, data from both surveys suggest that social distancing toward schizophrenia has remained mostly stable despite reductions in stigma for other mental disorders.
The current study examined U.S. university students' willingness to unofficially disclose and officially report bullying within the university setting in relation to attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. This study included students (n = 419) from four U.S. universities. Participants completed a survey that was created for this study using the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a framework. The first part of the study investigated the likelihood of unofficially disclosing and officially reporting bullying among all participants (two Likert scale questions; 1 = extremely unlikely to 5 = extremely likely and one open-ended question). The second part of the study involved the development and testing of a measure of TPB-related factors that might promote disclosure. For this part of the study, participants were randomly divided into two groups: one group (n = 210) was used for performing exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to refine survey items and examine construct structure; a second group (n = 209) was used for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to establish construct validity and for structural equation modeling (SEM) to identify factors that were positively related to likelihood of disclosure (Likert scale questions; 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree). Participants were generally disinclined to either unofficially disclose or officially report bullying experienced within the university setting. Factor analysis of the measure of TPB-related factors that might promote disclosure resulted in a 13-item measure with three elements (i.e., attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control). Positive attitudes and perceived behavioral control positively impacted students' willingness to both unofficially disclose and officially report bullying. Implications were discussed.
