📄 social science

Practitioner perspectives on integrating mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) and peacebuilding: a qualitative study

Through qualitative interviews with 32 global practitioners, this study reveals that integrating mental health and peacebuilding requires shifting from normative justification to addressing practical implementation challenges, including bridging individual-collective divides, ensuring professional competence, and aligning funding with long-term recovery trajectories.

Mia Akiba, Saki Kasuga, Hana Murakami, Alli Roshni, Akiko Horiba, Mark Fabian, Manasi Sharma2026-10-13
📄 social science

Beyond Structural Indicators: Human Development, Student Self-Efficacy, and Mathematics Achievement in TIMSS 2019

This study utilizing TIMSS 2019 data from 38 countries reveals that while student confidence and home resources are key predictors of Grade 8 mathematics achievement, the apparent impact of structural educational indicators like expenditure and curriculum coverage is significantly attenuated when accounting for broader human development conditions and student- and school-level contexts.

João Marôco, Heidi Heidi Harju-Luukkainen, Juhani Rautopuro2026-10-13
📄 social science

The MECA model: A culturally and structurally responsive approach to the training of health service psychotherapists

This paper presents the Multidimensional Ecosystemic Comparative Approach (MECA) as a culturally and structurally responsive framework for training health service psychotherapists, demonstrating its application in theoretical foundations, pedagogical strategies, and interpersonal dynamics through supervisor and trainee testimonies.

Angelica Terepka, Angelica De La Fuente, Natalia Fraczek, Xiaomeng Liu, Lindsey Mc Crossan, Jonah Tavarez2026-10-13
📄 social science

Pedagogical Approaches for Developing Critical Thinking in Science Education (1987-2025): A Bibliometric and Thematic Analysis ​

This study analyzes 198 Scopus-indexed publications from 1987 to 2025 to map the growth and thematic trends of critical thinking pedagogy in science education, revealing a recent surge in technology-enhanced and inquiry-based approaches while highlighting a significant research gap in secondary chemistry laboratory contexts.

Gopi Kupuchitty2026-10-13
📄 social science

Pakistan’s Diplomatic Campaign in Iran-Us-Israel Crisis 2026: Balancing Mediation, Security and Economic Survival

This study argues that Pakistan's proactive diplomatic mediation during the 2026 Iran–US–Israel crisis was a strategic hedging maneuver driven by neorealist imperatives of national security and economic survival, allowing Islamabad to leverage its regional ties and emerging middle-power status to dampen conflict and maintain strategic autonomy despite lacking the capacity to fully resolve the dispute.

Fatima Faiz, Samreen Bari Aamir2026-10-13