SLIIT International Conference on Advancements in Sciences and Humanities [SICASH] 2022
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://rda.sliit.lk/handle/123456789/3457
Browse
63 results
Search Results
Publication Embargo Depression, Anxiety, and Stress in Primary Caregivers of Children with Invisible Disabilities in Sri Lanka(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Mohamed, W; De Silva, RChildren with invisible disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, speech impairments, and learning difficulties require special support and a diligent caregiving environment to thrive. Primary caregivers have to take on additional roles to provide extra support for children with invisible disabilities while accommodating their professional and personal lives through the process. This research analyzed depression, anxiety, and stress between primary caregivers of children with invisible disabilities and primary caregivers of typically-developing children in Sri Lanka. Data was gathered through an online survey. The sample consisted of 75 primary caregivers between the ages of 23 years to 56 years, which included 38 primary caregivers of children with invisible disabilities and 37 primary caregivers of typicallydeveloping children. The DASS-21 (Lovibond and Lovibond, 1995) was administered to measure depression, anxiety, and stress. The Independent sample t-test was used to compare the mean difference between the two groups of caregivers. The findings did not reveal a significant difference in the levels of depression, anxiety, and stress between primary caregivers of children with invisible disabilities and primary caregivers of typicallydeveloping children. However, regression analysis revealed that parental age had a significant impact on the levels of anxiety among caregivers of children with invisible disabilities. This implies that experience gained with age may reduce anxiety in primary caregivers of children with invisible disabilitiesPublication Embargo The Effect of Text Difficulty on Types of Miscues among Proficient, Average and Below Average Readers(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Van Gramberg, V.T; Vithanage, DThe aim of this study was to understand the differences in the type of miscues among proficient, average and below average readers as text difficulty increases. It was hypothesised that the percentage of semantic and syntactic cues made by proficient in comparison to average and below average readers will increase as the text difficulty increases. The lack of available literature with regard to reading errors facilitated the designing of this study which could serve as a base to design remedial instruction and intervention tools. A quasi-experimental design was used to investigate this relationship. A sample of hundred and three students (N=103) were recorded while reading four levels of passages with increasing difficulty and miscues were analysed according to the three cueing system. The first level passage was a tested grade appropriate passage which was used to determine if the reader was proficient, average or below average based on their accuracy scores. Results revealed that there was no significant difference across the three cueing system and reading ability. However, it was observed that readers rely on the grapho phonics cueing system when encountered with a difficult word. The findings of this study can be used to design reading instruction and remedial systemsPublication Embargo Online Socializing and Offline Alcohol Usage: Influence of Daily Social Media Usage on the Level of Alcohol Usage among Students at a Non-state University in Sri Lanka(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Galappaththi, S.K; Abeysinghe, NAlcohol misuse can affect both the individual and society negatively. Specifically, young adults exhibit close associations with alcohol and social media. Previous studies demonstrate that online alcohol advertising promotes young people using social media to consume alcohol. This study examines the relationship between alcohol use among young adults and their usage of social media in the Sri Lankan context and any differences between levels of alcohol consumption among males and females. 300 students from a non-state university in Sri Lanka between the ages of 18 and 25 participated in a cross-sectional study conducted via online survey. Correlation and independent-sample t-test were used for data analysis. There was no significant relationship between daily social media use and alcohol use among young adults in Sri Lanka. A significant difference was observed between the level of alcohol use among males and females. Young adults in Sri Lanka are significantly influenced by a variety of sociocultural influences in their use of social media and alcohol intake. The use of social media in Sri Lanka and various alcohol-related behaviours among young people should be the subject of exploratory research, thus according to researchers.Publication Embargo Perceptions of People with Mental Disorders about Their Mental Health Condition; An Exploratory Study(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Wimaladhamma, KThis exploratory study was conducted to explore how people who have been diagnosed with mental disorders perceive their mental health condition, and their descriptions of lived experience of it. It also explored how their mental health condition might influence how they perceive themselves, their relationships, and how they engage the world around them through their activities. Sixteen participants (16) with a diagnosis of a mental disorder were the sample. The participants of the study were taking medication for the diagnosed mental disorder from a period of a minimum of six (06) months up to fortyseven (47) years. The data were collected at the Psychiatric Clinic, the General Hospital (Teaching), Kandy. The data were interpreted using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). It was identified that all the participants defined and understood mental health and mental illness through their lived experiences of mental illness. It was also identified that most of the participants experience some element of unhappiness or dissatisfaction because of their mental illness. However, the participants' positive self-esteem has played an important role in adjusting to the identity with the mental illness. The participants also valued the physical and psychological support they receive from their family members and others when they deal with their mental illness. Emotional support was highly valued by almost all the participants. It is expected that the generated knowledge of this research would help mental health professionals to work with families to construct an enabling view of the person with the illness and move away from treating them as helpless and irresponsible.Publication Embargo Perceived Stress Level and Associated Factors among Allied Health Science Undergraduates in University of Sri Jayewardenepura(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Wijedasa, HA cross sectional descriptive study was carried out to determine the level of stress and its associated factors among Allied Health Science undergraduates in University of Sri Jayewardenepura. A convenient sample of 150 Allied Health Science undergraduates who follow Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.Sc.N), Bachelor of Pharmacy (B. Pharm) and Bachelor of Science in Medical Laboratory Science (B.Sc. MLS) degree programmes were selected as the study sample. A self-administered questionnaire with both open ended and closeended questions was used as the research tool. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) developed by Cohen et al. (1994) was used to evaluate students’ perceived level of stress(PLS) during the last month. Irrespective of the year of study, B.Sc. Nursing undergraduates have scored higher level of perceived level of stress which is statistically significant in a chi-square test when comparing with B. Pharm and B.Sc. MLS undergraduates. Perceived level of stress had no significant association with sociodemographic factors including sex. Increased academic work load and financial difficulties were the prioritized factors associated with stress. The lack of personal freedom, conflicts with colleagues, unsupportive staff at the clinical placement and lack of support services were also reported as the other factors associated with the level of perceived stress among undergraduates.Publication Embargo Attitude of Police Officers towards Dealing with Individuals with Psychological Problems: A Sample from Selected Police Stations in Colombo District(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Tennakoon, L; Ponnamperuma, LSri Lanka’s Mental Diseases Ordinance (1873) gives discretion to police officers to make decisions concerning individuals who live with mental health conditions despite lack of clinical training. Identification of officers’ attitudes towards individuals with psychological problems (IPPs) is important as these influences officers’ responses to situations involving IPPs. Using the Mental Health Attitude Survey for Police (MHASP; Clayfield, 2011), the study aimed to identify police officers’ attitudes towards IPPs, on the community responsibility towards IPPs and on IPPs living in the community. Officers’ perceived level of adequacy to deal with IPPs was also assessed. Literature indicates that factors such as age, gender, level of education, years of experience, personal experience with an IPP and past training predicted officers’ attitude, the current study investigated the same. The survey was distributed amongst 77 officers who volunteered on site. MHASP includes 33 statements of officers rated their level of agreement using a Likert scale. MHASP Total an overall attitude score (M=132.67, SD=17.55) indicated a significant positive attitude towards IPPs despite an absence of a specialized training (84%) or any personal experience, officers felt confident to deal with IPPs. Multiple regression analysis identified gender of the officers to be the only predictor for attitude towards community responsibility towards IPPs (p=0.047). Despite the positive attitude and perceived adequate preparedness reported in the current study, considering the lack of experience stated by the officers and the analysis of individual items of the survey, several stigmatizing beliefs held by officers were identified. The findings can be used to enhance the current practices and specialized training to the police officers who deal with IPPs in Sri Lanka.Publication Embargo Siblings of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Behavioural and Emotional adjustment and the Influence of Family Factors on Adjustment(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Fernando, M.J.TChildren with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have unique characteristics, which are expected to have an impact on members of the family. However, research concerning the effects of ASD on family members has focused predominantly on ASD’s impact on parents and less on its impact on siblings, especially in the context of Sri Lanka. This research attempts to address this gap and advance the understanding of the Behavioral and Emotional (B&E) adjustment of siblings of children with ASD. The study utilized a quantitative research design using a sample of 80 mothers of children with ASD, selected using convenient sampling from hospitals and institutions located in the Colombo and Gampaha districts. Mothers completed a Demographic Questionnaire, Socio-Economic Status Questionnaire, Parental Stress Scale, and Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire. The study found that B&E adjustment of the majority of the siblings was within the ‘Normal’ range (54%), which shows that siblings were well adjusted behaviorally and emotionally. However, closer to half of the siblings (46%) either had a risk (i.e., scored within the ‘Borderline’ range) or were experiencing adjustment difficulties (i.e., scored within the ‘Abnormal’ range). When siblings were analyzed according to the domains of the SDQ, the majority scored within the ‘Borderline’ range for peer problems, which indicates that siblings are at risk for peer problems. Additionally, the study found that out of all the selected family factors, Maternal Stress due to rearing a child with ASD and ASD severity was positively associated with sibling B&E adjustment difficulties.Publication Embargo The Evaluation of ENhancing Assessment of Common Therapeutic factors – Sri Lanka (ENACT-SL) to Assess Common Factors in Counselling in Determining Therapist Competence in Sri Lanka(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Abeysinghe, N; Kohrt, B; Galappatti, ACounselling and psychotherapy play an essential part in mental health care. The modern field of mental health care includes many counselling modalities. Each modality consists of specific knowledge and skills. This diversity makes objective evaluation of a therapist's competence across counselling modalities challenging. The "common factors" theory claims that along with each modality's specific strengths and techniques, common factors in counselling are essential for successful counsellor–client relationships. In high-income countries, the mental health care field has developed many tools to evaluate counselling skills based on the common factors relevant to specific socio-cultural settings. Hence, the usefulness of these tools is limited to the socio-cultural backgrounds where the tools were developed. The current study evaluated the ENhancing Assessment of Common Therapeutic factors – Sri Lanka (ENACT-SL) rating scale with the participation of 68 novice and experienced counsellors who used two versions of the scale to evaluate 10- minute pre-recorded counselling sessions. The scale's reliability was assessed using Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC). The ICC for interrater reliability was above 0.75, denoting ‘good’ inter-rater reliability, while the ICC for intrarater repeatability was poor for both groups. The research findings contributed in developing a new version of ENACT-SL based on 'five domains' of counselling skills to be used in counsellor training and assessment in Sri Lanka.Publication Embargo An Exploratory Study on Work Stress and Job Satisfaction during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hotel Sector Employees of Sri Lanka(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Bradie-Miles, E.M.A; Donmanige, I.CCOVID-19 has affected employees worldwide, especially in the hotel industry, with restricted travel, limited incoming flights, and guests, which presents challenges for hotels and employees. Therefore, it is essential to investigate how COVID-19 has affected hotel employees' job satisfaction and work stress. This study aimed to determine whether the stress at work generated by COVID-19 directly affects the job satisfaction of hotel employees in Sri Lanka. The researcher recruited hotel employees in Sri Lanka through purposive sampling following a selective criterion; 18 years or older, locally employed, with two or more years of industry experience. The researcher, part of a larger mixed-method project, presented the qualitative findings in this article, using a qualitative research design with semi-structured interviews to collect employee responses (N = 7) before subjecting the responses to content analysis. Ultimately, the main findings indicated that work stress generated by COVID-19 partially impacted the job satisfaction of Sri Lankan hotel employees. Other factors reported included COVID-related financial issues and procedural changes that significantly affected employees. Several solutions presented in the findings to improve job satisfaction and work stress during COVID- 19 included effective financial management by hotels, and extra support, for example, counselling and improved workplace communication. Overall, the satisfaction of Sri Lanka’s hotel workers' jobs has been affected by work stress and partially by COVID-19. Therefore, future research should explore the influences of COVID-19 on job satisfaction and work stress among Sri Lankan hotel employees and throughout the world.Publication Embargo Impact of Health Beliefs on Covid-19 Related Preventative Health Behaviours and Coping Behaviours(Faculty of Humanities and Sciences, SLIIT, 2022-09-15) Weerasinghe, W.A.S; Akuretiya, SNon-adherence to health regulations during the Covid-19 pandemic has been associated with health beliefs. Thus the present study studies the impact of these health beliefs on preventative health behaviours and coping behaviours. The research followed an ex-post facto survey design and convenience sampling was used to recruit a sample of 100 Sri Lankans with chronic illnesses. Data collection was carried out online using Google forms. The multiple regression analyses reveals that the Health Belief Model was a significantly useful predictor explaining 53% of the variation in preventative health behaviours. The findings reveal no significant predictive relationships between the health beliefs of perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, and perceived benefits with preventative health behaviours. Perceived barriers are found to significantly and negatively predict preventative health behaviours. Perceived selfefficacy and cues to action are found to significantly and positively predict preventative health behaviours. Educational level and marital status moderate the relationship between self-efficacy, cues to action and preventative health behaviours. In fact, selfefficacy is positively and significantly correlated with adaptive coping but not significantly correlated with maladaptive coping behaviour. Overall, the findings highlight the utility of reducing barriers, enhancing self-efficacy, and promoting health literacy through education and provision of social support, especially spousal support, to foster adherence to preventative health behaviours.