The objective of this study was to perform a systematic review of articles that cover aspects of disaster mental health preparedness. This assessment was done by a thorough review and summary of the available studies which provided a considerable background and amplified the gaps in knowledge about community mental health preparedness. By this systematic review, we tried to identify available concept of community mental health preparedness and related tools that communities and individuals will need to prepare for natural disasters. We found there is a lack of mental health preparedness in the majority of countries; valid and reliable tools and context-bound programs should be developed based on the experiences and perceptions of the community.

A total of 1487 eleventh grade students in Leipzig (Germany) and Sendai (Japan) were given a test of basic concepts and operations in high school mathematics and a questionnaire involving beliefs, attitudes, and practices related to mathematics, their own abilities, and their psychological adjustment. Large differences were found between the two countries in the students' performance. The lower scores of the German students are attributed to three major areas of difference. Compared to Japanese students, German students were less critical of themselves and their academic ability, held lower standards for their performance, and were less likely to attribute excellence in performance to studying. Students in both countries expressed few indications of maladjustment. When differences were found the indices of maladjustment were more common among German than among Japanese students. Boys obtained higher scores on the mathematics test than girls, were more likely to spend more time studying mathematics, and placed more importance on going to college than did girls. The poor performance of the German students appears to be attributable to the same kinds of beliefs and attitudes as those found in prior studies of US students, who also have received low scores on tests of mathematics achievement.

<b>Background</b><br /> The purpose of this study was to investigate cross-cultural similarities and differences between Korean and German teachers in terms of knowledge, perceived teaching efficacy (PTE), and attitudes regarding students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as well as to evaluate how teachers’ experiences influence their attitudes through knowledge and perceived teaching efficacy, based on three components of attitudes within a culture as well as across cultures.<br /> <br /> <b>Participants and procedure</b><br /> Participants were teachers from Korea (n = 639) and Germany (n = 317). Through disproportional stratified sampling, matched samples of 264 Korean and 264 German teachers were obtained. The Kos questionnaire was slightly modified for the two countries due to different cultural backgrounds, by conducting translation/back-translation, item review, and a pilot study. The survey instrument was distributed from September 2012 to December 2013. SPSS 22.0 and AMOS 22.0 were used to analyze the data. <br /> <b>Results</b><br /> Korean teachers showed higher knowledge than German teachers. German teachers were found to have a greater PTE as well as more favorable attitudes compared to Korean teachers. Both Korean and German teachers’ experience led to their attitudes through knowledge and PTE. Also, the ways in which these variables have an influence on teachers’ attitudes differ between Korea and Germany. <br /> <br /> <b>Conclusions</b><br /> This investigation proved the cross-cultural differences of all research variables (experience, knowledge, PTE, attitudes) as well as the research model (knowledge and PTE as mediators) based on attitude theory. This study can be a preliminary resource to develop an <i>ADHD</i> management manual based on theoretical and cultural perspectives in both countries, so that both Korean and German teachers can be prepared for students with ADHD in their daily classroom practice.

Given that the majority of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) attend regular classroom settings in Germany, it is necessary for teachers to be well prepared to provide these children appropriate care and education on the basis of accurate knowledge of ADHD. Pre-service teachers should have enough learning possibilities in their curriculum about ADHD. The purpose of this study was to investigate German pre-service teachers' knowledge of ADHD by differentiating between their future school type, their study progress, their learning experiences, gender, and age. participants and procedureThe participants were 234 pre-service teachers of the University of Leipzig, Germany. The survey instrument constructed by Lee (2015) was slightly modified for pre-service teachers, and consists of the three subscales: (a) characteristics of ADHD, (b) causes of ADHD, and (c) subtypes of ADHD. resultsTotal accuracy of the knowledge of German pre-service teachers was 51.60%, inaccuracy was 21.60%, and no information was 25.80%. German pre-service teachers who majored in special education have a significantly higher accuracy rate than those who majored in primary education.The knowledge profiles consisting of total knowledge score and three domain-specific subscores can be explained significantly (ANOVAs) by the main effects and the interactions among the independent factors (a) future school type, (b) study progress, (c) experience by curriculum, and (d) personal experience. It was possible to discriminate significantly four pre-service teacher groups (differentiated by future school type and study progress) on the basis of their knowledge profiles by a discriminant analysis. conclusionsTeachers are an important target group for ADHD research because they play a major role in early diagnosis of ADHD as well as supporting their development. During their education, pre-service teachers need to be prepared for dealing appropriately with ADHD children in the classroom. This study provides a basic investigation of German pre-service teachers' needs of learning how to deal with ADHD children. key words primary education; special education; university curriculum; knowledge accuracy; knowledge of attention deficit disorders scale (KADDS)

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