Unequal by malice, protesters by outrage: Agent perceptions drive moralization of, and collective action against, inequality.

Economic inequality does not encounter strong protests even though individuals are generally against it. One potential explanation of this paradox is that individuals do not perceive inequality as caused by intentional agents, which, in line with the Theory of Dyadic Morality (Schein & Gray, 2018), should prevent its assessment as immoral and consequently dampen moral outrage and collective action. Across three studies, we test and confirm this hypothesis. In Studies 1 (N = 395) and 2 (N = 337), the more participants believed that inequality is human driven and caused by intentional agents, the more they moralized inequality, felt outraged and wanted to engage in collective action. This was confirmed in Study 3 (N = 243) through an experimental design. Thus, our research shows that agent perception is crucial in the moralization of economic inequality and, more broadly, that morality can be a powerful motivator and effectively mobilize people to action.

Why are some countries rich and others poor? development and validation of the attributions for Cross-Country Inequality Scale (ACIS).

Understanding lay theories on the causes of economic inequality is the first step to comprehending why people tolerate, justify, or react against it. Accordingly, this paper aims to develop and validate with two cross-sectional studies the Attributions for Cross-Country Inequality Scale (ACIS), which assesses how people explain cross-country economic inequality-namely, the uneven distribution of income and wealth between poor and rich countries. After selecting and adapting items from existing scales of attributions for poverty and wealth, in Study 1, we tested the factorial structure of this initial pool of items in three countries with different levels of economic development and inequality, namely, Italy (n = 246), the UK (n = 248), and South Africa (n = 228). Three causal dimensions emerged from the Exploratory Factor Analysis: "rich countries" (blaming the systematic advantage of and exploitation by rich countries), "poor countries" (blaming the dispositional inadequacy and faults of poor countries), and "fate" (blaming destiny and luck). The retained items were administered in Study 2 to three new samples from Italy (n = 239), the UK (n = 249), and South Africa (n = 248). Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) corroborated the factorial structure of the ACIS, and Multi-Group CFA supported configural and metric invariances of the scale across countries. In addition, we show internal consistency and construct validity of the scale: the scale correlates with relevant constructs (e.g., beliefs about cross-country inequality and ideological orientation) and attitudes toward relevant policies related to international redistribution and migration. Overall, the scale is a valid instrument to assess causal attribution for cross-national inequality and is reliable across countries. By focusing on resource distribution from an international perspective, this scale will allow researchers to broaden the discussion on economic inequality to a global level.

How Communication Technology Fosters Individual and Social Wellbeing During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Preliminary Support For a Digital Interaction Model.

The aim of the present study was to test an explanatory model for individual and social wellbeing which incorporates the advantages of using digital technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was carried out in Italy, one of the countries that has been most severely affected by the pandemic worldwide. The study was designed to include variables that might be specifically pertinent to the uniqueness of the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. Adults living in Italy (n = 1412) completed an online survey during the lockdown period in March 2020. Results showed two distinct digital interaction processes highlighted by the facilitating use of online emotions ("e-motions") and online social support ("e-support"). In short, e-motions were positively related to posttraumatic growth, which in turn was positively associated with positive mental health and higher engagement in prosocial behaviors. Moreover, individuals who perceived themselves as having greater e-support were characterized by higher levels of positive mental health, which it turn was positively associated with prosocial behaviors. Collectively, these two digital interaction processes suggest that digital technologies appear to be critical resources in helping individuals cope with difficulties raised by the COVID-19 pandemic.