Health literacy, a more complex concept than knowledge, is a required capacity to obtain, understand, integrate and act on health information [1], in order to enhance individual and community health, which is defined by different levels, according to the autonomy and personal capacitation in decision making [2]. Medium levels of Health literacy in an adolescent population were found in a study conducted in 2013/2014, being higher in sexual and reproductive health and lower in substance use. It was also noticed that the higher levels of health literacy were in the area adolescents refer to have receipt more health information. The health literacy competence with higher scores was communication skills, and the lower scores were in the capacity to analyze factors that influence health. Higher levels were also found in younger teenagers, but in a higher school level, confirming the importance of health education in these age and development stage. Adolescents seek more information in health professionals and parents, being friends more valued as a source information in older adolescents, which enhance the importance of peer education mainly in older adolescents [3]. As a set of competences based on knowledge, health literacy should be developed through education interventions, encompassing the cultural and social context of individuals, since the society, culture and education system where the individual is inserted can define the way the development and enforcement of the health literacy competences [4]. The valued sources of information should be taken into account, as well as needs of information in some topics referred by adolescents in an efficient health education. Schizophrenia is a serious and chronic mental illness which has a profound effect on the health and well-being related with the well-known nature of psychotic symptoms. The exercise has the potential to improve the life of people with schizophrenia improving physical health and alleviating psychiatric symptoms. However, most people with schizophrenia remains sedentary and lack of access to exercise programs are barriers to achieve health benefits. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of exercise on I) the type of intervention in mental health, II) in salivary levels of alpha-amylase and cortisol and serum levels of S100B and BDNF, and on III) the quality of life and selfperception of the physical domain of people with schizophrenia. The sample consisted of 31 females in long-term institutions in the Casa de Saúde Rainha Santa Isabel, with age between 25 and 63, and with diagnosis of schizophrenia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR). Physical fitness was assessed by the six-minute walk distance test (6MWD). Biological variables were determined by ELISA (Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay). Psychological variables were assessed using SF-36, PSPP-SCV, RSES and SWLS tests. Walking exercise has a positive impact on physical fitness (6MWD -p = 0.001) and physical components of the psychological test...

Resumo: Durante a adolescência, a percepção de apoio social parece estar relacionada com o ajustamento psicossocial do adolescente e com o processo de desenvolvimento da sua auto-estima e da sua identidade. Este estudo aprecia algumas das qualidades psicométricas de um instrumento construído por Vaux para avaliar a percepção dos adolescentes do apoio emocional recebido da família, dos amigos e dos professores, o Social Support Appraisal (SSA). A sua consistência interna em estudantes portugueses do 7º ao 12º ano de escolaridade é satisfatória e melhora com a progressão na escolaridade. A sua estrutura, evidenciada graças ao recurso à técnica de modelação de estruturas covariantes (análise fatorial confirmatória, com o programa EQS, Bentler) revelou-se multidimensional e hierárquica, formada por um fator de segunda ordem e por três fatores de primeira ordem, que diferenciam a percepção de apoio social dos amigos, dos professores e da família.Palavras-chave: Adolescência; apoio social; análise fatorial confirmatória. SOCIAL SUPPORT APPRAISALS DURING ADOLESCENCE: A CONFIRMATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS OF THE SOCIAL SUPPORT APPRAISALS SCALE.ABSTRACT: Social support has been studied as an important variable, related to several aspects of Human behaviour and psychological well-being. During adolescence, the perception of support from the most important network resources -such as family, peers and teachers -seems to be related to the children's psychosocial adjustment, self-esteem and identity development. This study aimed to observe the psychometric qualities of an instrument developed by Vaux et al (1986) to assess the adolescents' perception of emotional support from family, peers and teachers. The "Social Support Appraisals" scale (SSA) was adapted to Portuguese students between 7 th and 12 th grades and it was analyzed in its reliability and factorial validity, using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Reliability revealed to be better in older students and CFA revealed a hierarchical structure, with a second order factor (emotional support) and three first order factors -emotional support from teachers, peers and family. Introdução: A conceptualização do apoio social refere-se a funções desempenhadas por grupo para um indivíduo, em determinadas situações da sua vida, e que podem ser familiares, amigos, vizinhos e outros, chamando-se ao conjunto por elas formado rede de relações sociais. A maioria dos estudos desenvolvidos nesta perspectiva privilegia, na análise do apoio social, a percepção que os indivíduos têm sobre si, que representa a crença generalizada por eles desenvolvida de que são estimados, que os outros se interessam por eles, que estão disponíveis quando precisam e satisfeitos com as relações que têm (Heller, Swindle & Dusenbury, 1986;Vaux, 1988).Um grande número de estudos enfatiza a importância do apoio social de outros significativos durante o desenvolvimento na adolescência, na relação deste constructo com o bem-estar físico e psicológi-

RESUMO CONTEXTO:Partimos do pressuposto que a preservação do desempenho das atividades básicas e instrumentais de vida diária em idosos institucionalizados contribui para a potenciação e conservação da função cognitiva. OBJETIVOS: Avaliar se a capacidade funcional para as atividades de vida diária prediz a função cognitiva dos idosos institucionalizados em Equipamentos Residenciais. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal correlacional preditivo, com recurso a amostra aleatória simples constituída por 475 sujeitos. Instrumentos: Mini-Mental State Examination (Guerreiro et al., 1994); Índice de Barthel (Araújo, Ribeiro, Oliveira e Pinto, 2007) e Escala de Lawton & Brody (Araújo, Ribeiro, Oliveira, Pinto e Martins, 2008). RESULTADOS: Os idosos que residem nas instituições residenciais são maioritariamente do género feminino, com idades compreendidas entre 65 e 104 anos (M = 83,94, DP = 7,21), na maioria viúvos e analfabetos. O modelo de regressão múltipla sugere que as atividades bási-cas e instrumentais de vida diária explicam cerca de 49% da variância existente do estado mental dos idosos. Verificou-se que as atividades instrumentais de vida diária correspondem ao preditor com maior peso, embora a contribuição das atividades básicas de vida diária seja também, estatisticamente, significativa para o modelo. CONCLUSÕES: O modelo sugere que a manutenção da execução das atividades de vida diária beneficia o estado cognitivo nestes utentes. Através de intervenções de estimulação motora e social, os idosos poderão preservar a sua autonomia na realização de atividades de vida diária, que por sua vez potenciam uma maior saúde mental, melhor bem-estar e maior autoestima.

Mathematics is a core subject in every school curriculum and it is strongly correlated with maths self-concept, which is defined as the subjective feelings and beliefs about one's competence in maths. In general, boys tend to report higher maths self-concept than girls, but the difference between boys and girls' maths scholastic performance is low or even inexistent. Some authors maintain that academic self-concept can play an important role as a motivational variable, promoting self-confidence and investment in the learning process. This study examined the causal relations between maths self-concept and maths scholastic performance in four cohorts of boys and girls within a threewave longitudinal study. The first two cohorts were composed of 187 girls and 139 boys attending grades 7 and 8 at Time 1 and the third and fourth cohorts were composed of 167 girls and 123 boys attending grades 9 and 10 at Time 1. Structural Equation Modelling was used to test the fit of several models of causal relations. The results revealed that for the first two cohorts the best models were reciprocal and skill-development for both boys and girls. However, for the older students, a reciprocal model gave a best fit for the boys, but for the girls there was only one significant effect from maths self-concept to maths scholastic performance. Results are discussed on the basis of genderrelated differential learning expectancies.

The reduction of the functional capacity in older people is the result of physical, psychological and functional changes related to the ageing process, compromising the performance of daily life activities. Assessing their functional capacity and their self‐care profile can facilitate the planning of targeted strategies related to stimulation, as well as cognitive and motor rehabilitation. This study aims to evaluate and analyse the functional capacity, as well as the level of dependence in self‐care of older people in senior care centres. This is a transversal exploratory study, quantitative in nature. The sample was comprised of 313 participants, randomly selected from a set of senior care centres, with an average age of 83.41 (SD=7.14) years, recruited from the interior North of Portugal. The data collection instruments included the Barthel Index, the Lawton and Brody Scale, the Evaluation Form of Dependence in Self‐care, the Self‐care of Home Dwelling Elderly (self‐care subscale profiles) and a questionnaire on demographic data. The elderly showed several levels of dependence on different self‐care items. It was possible to observe that the staff often replaces the elderly in many of the tasks that could still be performed by them, and thus aggravates their levels of dependence. The link observed between functional capacity and self‐care profiles highlights the need to focus on the notion of a healthy and active ageing process, especially in some profiles. The monitoring of the functional capacity and the self‐care profile can provide knowledge concerning the potential for autonomy and individual needs, thus enabling targeted and more responsive interventions for the individual and the real needs of older people.