Moral exemplars promote positive attitudes, beliefs, intentions, and behaviors toward outgroups during the COVID-19 pandemic: The explanatory role of self-transcendent emotions

Due to their response at the COVID-19 frontline, migrant essential workers became moral exemplars likely to boost emotions such as gratitude or admiration. We examined the effect of moral exemplars on outgroup attitudes, beliefs about the outgroup, intentions and behavior toward the outgroup, as well as the role of self-transcendent emotions in this link. Participants of an online panel-based experimental study (N = 651) were randomly assigned to either watch a video clip with a story about migrant essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., the moral exemplars condition) or to watch a neutral video involving migrants (i.e., the control condition), and were invited to fill in a questionnaire and donate money to an association fighting for immigrants' rights. Compared to the control condition, participants in the moral exemplars condition manifested more positive outgroup attitudes, beliefs about the outgroup, and were more willing to help the outgroup, also via self-transcendent emotions. The exposure to the moral exemplars narrative was linked with more helping behavior (a donation to an NGO) only indirectly via self-transcendent emotions. Moral exemplars proved useful in promoting positive attitudes and prosociality toward immigrants. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Group Processes & Intergroup Relations is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Prevalence and Predictors of Food Insecurity among Students of a Spanish University during the COVID-19 Pandemic: FINESCOP Project at the UPV/EHU.

Research related to food insecurity (FI) among European university student populations is currently limited, especially the studies carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence and identify possible predictors of FI among students from a Spanish public university, the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional observational study design was used, in which a total of 422 students completed an online survey. Results were weighted according to age and field of education. Binary logistic regressions adjusted by sex, age, and campus were applied to identify FI predictors. FI in 19.6, 2.6, and 0.7% of the population was mild, moderate, and severe, respectively. The three main predictors of FI were a decrease in the main source of income (OR, 2.80; 95% IC, 2.57-3.06), not receiving scholarships during the pandemic (OR, 2.32; 95% IC, 2.18-2.47), and living arrangements before the pandemic (not living with parents/relatives) (OR, 2.03, 95% IC, 1.89-2.18). This study found a high prevalence of FI among the students surveyed, and the strongest predictors of this FI were related to socioeconomic status. A robust and comprehensive policy response is recommended to mitigate FI in this population.