Excessive use of social networking services (SNS) is known to have a significant negative impact on mental health in university students. In this study, we conducted an online questionnaire survey of university students and analyzed 146 responses in order to clarify the relation between SNS addiction and self-compassion among university students. As a result, it was found that there was a significant negative relationship between SNS addiction and self-compassion in the university students. In addition, the subscales of "self-judgment," "isolation," and "over-identification" were significantly associated with SNS addiction. These results suggest that selfcompassion education may help reduce the deterioration of mental health caused by SNS addiction.

The purpose of this study was to examine whether university students' knowledge about blood donation is related to their willingness to donate blood and their behavior as part of efforts to promote blood donation behavior. The subjects were 79 female students at University A in Yamaguchi Prefecture, aged 20.367 ±1.312 years. Of the 79 subjects, 51 (approximately 65% of the total) had past lectures and self-study (learning experience) related to blood donation, and 28 (approximately 35% of the total) had no experience. Regarding the experience of actually donating blood (blood donation experience), of 79 people, 22 had experience (approximately 28% of the total) and 57 had no experience (approximately 72% of the total). Knowledge about blood donation was asked about 19 items, including “reasons why blood is needed,” “uses of blood,” and “types of blood donation. The results were as follows: (1) Those who had studied the subject had more knowledge about blood donation than those who had not studied the subject for all 19 items except for “Reasons why blood is needed” and “Uses of blood”. (2) For all items except “Uses of blood'' and “Information on blood donation buses in Yamaguchi Prefecture'', those who had experience of blood donation were more knowledgeable than those who had no experience of blood donation. (3) The reason for going to a blood donation for those who had experience donating blood was the availability of snacks and other small gifts, invitations from friends, etc. When thinking about going to donate blood, 60% of respondents said that it was because of their own convenience, such as having time, having a blood donation bus, being in good physical condition, and feeling well. In addition, 30% of the responders were due to factors from the blood center or others, such as a notification from the blood center that blood could be donated or an invitation from a friend. (4) More than 60% of the respondents who had never donated blood did so because of their physical condition, such as anemia or being underweight. In addition, lack of opportunity to go, image and impression of blood donation such as “painful” and “scary,” and lack of knowledge about blood and blood donation were also cited as reasons. (5) When we examined how gaining knowledge about blood donation was related to the willingness to take action for those who had never donated blood, we found that not only did gaining knowledge increase the willingness to take action, but also some did not change their willingness to take action and some decreased their willingness to take action after gaining knowledge. These findings suggest that it is important to make efforts to sustain interest in blood donation for those who have experienced blood donation behavior, and for those who have not donated blood, it is important to simultaneously provide knowledge about blood donation and opportunities to donate blood, and to devise approaches for those who lack weight or other factors to meet blood donation criteria.

A multiple-choice questionnaire was administered to university students to investigate their positive changes during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The data revealed that more than three-fourths of the students felt positive changes in relationships and values. Additionally, approximately half of the students felt positive changes in customs and behavior, while 20%–30% felt positive physical and mental vitality changes. Our findings suggest that it may be necessary for university students to notice their positive changes as being essential for growth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

An online questionnaire was administered to 143 university students to clarify their perception of the elderly and its related factors. Consequently, the elderly that formed the basis of the students’ perception regarding older adults were in the following order: “grandparents” > “the elderly in the community” ≥“the elderly in various media.” Furthermore, the students’ perception of the older adults was related to “frequent contact with grandparents,” “quarrel with grandparents,” “pleasant activity with the elderly in the community,” “training session offered by the elderly in the community,” “experience of being scolded by the elderly in the community,” “contents of various media for respect for the elderly,” and “contents of various media for the care of the elderly.” Our findings suggest that experiences with grandparents and older people in the community and various media may play an essential role in having a more positive perception of the elderly for students.