Keynote Presentation
Prof. Fumiko HOEFT
Prof. Ralf SCHWARZER
Resilience in Individuals with Learning Disabilities
Fumiko HOEFT
University of Connecticut, USA
In this talk, I will present evidence of the neural and cognitive mechanisms of dyslexia, with a particular focus on cognitive and socio-emotional processes that are either impaired or heightened in individuals with learning disabilities (LDs) including dyslexia. I will also introduce the concept of resilience that unifies not only socio-emotional factors but also cognitive factors that promote success in individuals with LDs despite their challenges. More specifically, I will start the talk by introducing the cognitive and socio-emotional struggles that individuals with LDs and dyslexia often face including anxiety and depression. I will then talk about attentional biases to threatening stimuli and heightened emotional reactivity. I will also talk about our findings on stigma and stereotype threat, the science behind resilience, and strategies including mentoring that we can incorporate to promote resilience. This approach affords a framework for understanding success in children and taking a whole child approach to LD.
Keynote Presentation
10:00-11:00 hrs
Self-Efficacy: A Resilience Factor
Ralf SCHWARZER
Freie Universität Berlin, Germany, &
SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Poland
Perceived self-efficacy is a powerful operative construct that refers to one’s capability to master challenging tasks in the future. Its eminent role in behavior change and resilience is addressed with a focus on conceptual issues including assessment, construct validity, and modification. The construct of self-efficacy has become an essential part of behavior change theories. In particular, the Health Action Process Approach has made a distinction between three stages of change in which the self-efficacy construct operates differently: pre-action task self-efficacy, coping self-efficacy, and recovery self-efficacy. This process-based distinction has implications for the assessment of self-efficacy. Measurement examples will be provided that were applied in various intervention settings targeting physical activity, dietary changes, and alcohol consumption. Convergent and discriminant validity has been examined using multiphase-multibehavior structural equation models. Moreover, examples of digital intervention programs will be given.