Profile for Bixi Qiao

Bixi Qiao, Psychology, co-authored the article "Enhancing Empathy, Prosociality, Relationship, and Life Satisfaction: A Mixed-Methods Study of Empathy Training on Chinese Male STEM College Students," which was accepted for publication by Frontiers in Developmental Psychology. To examine the impact of an empathy training on Chinese male STEM college students, the current study applied a mixed-methods design using short-term longitudinal data. A total of 245 STEM male college students (M = 18.22, SD = 0.82) were randomly assigned to a control group and treatment group. The treatment group completed a 21-day empathy training, including two in-person group training sessions, ten journal entries, and three exercises. Participants’ empathy capacity (i.e., cognitive and affective empathy), life satisfaction, prosocial behavior, and interpersonal relationships (i.e., with parents, male, and female friends) were measured four times (i.e., pre-test, immediate post-test, three-month follow-up, and six-month follow-up). Among participants who completed the entire training, 23 were randomly selected for group interview to explore their observed changes during and after the training and mechanisms of the changes. Linear mixed-effects models were conducted in R to examine the changes in quantitative data and inductive analysis was conducted in Quirkos for qualitative analysis. Quantitative results and qualitative findings converged. The findings supported the effectiveness of empathy training. After the training, participants showed increased cognitive empathy, higher life satisfaction, more prosocial behaviors, and better relationships with parents and friends. Additionally, participants reported having improved emotion states. Participants attributed the positive changes to the training and the usage of empathy. The current study extended the understanding of empathy training to Chinese male STEM college students and shed light on possible effective empathy training to increase Chinese male STEM college students in a more cost-effective and sustainable approach.

Submitted on: April 20

Bixi Qiao, Psychology, co-authored the book "Teaching Tips: A Compendium of Conference Presentations on Teaching, 2024-25," published on Jan. 9 by The Society for the Teaching of Psychology. Volume 10 of this ongoing series, provide summaries of teaching presentations originally delivered at one of nine different national or regional conferences, many of which are sponsored by STP. The goal of this series is to preserve these works, which may otherwise be forgotten after their original presentation, for dissemination to a wider audience of current and future educators.

Submitted on: Jan. 19

Bixi Qiao, Psychology, authored the article "Teacher-Targeted Bullying: A Meta-Analysis of Student Bullying of Teachers" in "Trauma Violence & Abuse," which was accepted for publication by Sage. This meta-analysis examined the prevalence of student bullying against teachers, drawing from both teacher-reported victimization and student-reported perpetration. Following the PRISMA guidelines, this study systematically searched across seven databases (e.g., ERIC, Scopus, Academic Search Ultimate) and identified 59 studies spanning 26 countries. Included studies were peer-reviewed journal articles written in English. The analysis included data from a total of 203,535 teachers and 110,021 students. The pooled prevalence of student bullying against teachers was 51.1% (based on 14,022 teacher reports) and 17.3% (based on 78,001 student reports). Among teacher-reported cases, pooled prevalence rates were calculated, including verbal (ranged from 9.00% [belittling] to 37.70% [saying mean things]), physical (ranged from 1% [weapon pulled] to 39.5% [obscene gesture]), relational (ranged from 4.40% [isolation] to 44.40% [ignoring]), sexual (ranged from 2.90% [physical sexual bullying] to 14.20% [verbal sexual bullying]), cyberbullying (6.40%), and bullying based on personal characteristics (14.80%). In contrast, student-reported cases focused on verbal (ranged from 3.10% [verbal threat] to 10.30% [saying mean things]), physical (ranged from 2.60% [kicking and slapping] to 5.20% [damage property]), and cyberbullying (5.70%). Findings highlighted discrepancies in pooled prevalence rates between teacher and student reports of TTB. This study identified three moderators (based on teacher reports): country of origin, publication year, and recall period. These findings highlighted the need for targeted interventions and professional development programs to systematically address student bullying against teachers to increase awareness and improve knowledge for both teachers and students, and improve school climate.

Submitted on: Dec. 15, 2025

Bixi Qiao, Psychology, co-authored the article "Directed Motivational Currents in US Undergraduate Language Learners: A Mixed‐Methods Study" in the "International Journal of Applied Linguistics," published on Dec. 2 by Wiley. Directed motivational currents (DMC) are periods of intense engagement in tasks related to highly valued goals. The current study examined the prevalence and characteristics of DMC experiences in learning of languages other than English among undergraduate students from two universities in the U.S., along with factors that may promote DMC. This study investigated both internal and external contributors, including hope, language mindset, and teachers’ autonomy support. Using a mixed-methods approach, the data indicated that learners’ DMC experiences were generally highly intense and short lived and more evident in learners with low to intermediate proficiency levels. Hope directly predicted DMC experiences; language mindset and teachers’ autonomy support indirectly predicted DMC through hope.

Submitted on: Dec. 15, 2025

Bixi Qiao, Psychology, presented "Prevalence of U.S. Teachers’ Personal Experiences with Student Bullying in K-12 Schools" at the Society for the Study of Human Development on Oct. 24 in Lexington, KY.

Submitted on: Oct. 27, 2025