This study is based on measuring the d.c. (direct current) skin conductance of the acupuncture points representing the heart on the external ear. The subjects were 30 healthy volunteers and 20 cardiac patients. The results obtained showed that the skin resistance of the heart acupuncture loci on the auricle of the cardiac patients were markedly reduced when compared with that of the healthy controls. The value of this method of auricular electroacupuncture diagnosis is discussed.
This paper examined the role of loneliness in mediating the relation between social support and life satisfaction among Chinese young adults within the Malaysian context. Young adults (N = 275; Mage = 22.41; SD = 1.76; 57.5% females) completed self-administered questionnaires on the scales of perceived social support, loneliness and life satisfaction. The results of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) showed a partial mediation effect of loneliness on the relation between social support and life satisfaction. The integration of the bottom-up theory of subjective well-being and social cognitive theory is included to explain the mediating process. The results revealed that perceived social support can relate to a lower level of loneliness, which could eventually lead to higher levels of young adults' life satisfaction. Overall, the findings highlighted the importance of social support as well as their loneliness as a mediating pathway in promoting Malaysian Chinese young adults' life satisfaction. Interventions are also suggested to optimize life satisfaction as a whole.