Differential influence of basic psychological needs on burnout and academic achievement in three southeast European countries.

Several studies show the importance of basic psychological needs (BPN) for decreasing burnout and increasing grade point average (GPA), but, to our knowledge, no prior study has explored the potential contextual differences in Southeastern European countries. Moreover, even less is known about how this relationship may differ during stressful (exam) and less stressful (beginning of the semester) periods. Measures of the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Student Survey and BPN Satisfaction and Frustration Scale were translated and adapted. The study included a cross-sectional sample of students from Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia during beginning of the semester and exam period. Across all countries and both contexts, students with high autonomy need satisfaction showed the strongest decrease in burnout, followed by those with high competence need satisfaction. Students with high academic achievement showed an increase due to competence need satisfaction. Competence and autonomy need satisfaction were higher beginning of a semester, while burnout was higher during the exam period. BPN play an important role in educational settings-satisfaction of the need for autonomy and competence protects students from burnout, and the need for competence predicts greater academic achievement regardless of culture or time of the semester.

Misbehaving in the Corona crisis: The role of anxiety and unfounded beliefs.

The aim of our study was to explore psychological determinants of COVID-19 responsible behavior. We focused on trait anxiety and worry about the corona crisis, knowledge and unfounded beliefs about coronavirus and thinking dispositions (cognitive reflection, actively open-minded thinking, faith in intuition and science curiosity) that should drive knowledge and beliefs. Additionally, we tested the effectiveness of a one-shot intervention based on the "consider counter-arguments" debiasing technique in changing COVID-19 unfounded beliefs. We used a convenience sample of 1439 participants who filled in the questionnaire on-line. Comparison of latent means showed that the "consider counter-arguments" intervention did not affect unfounded beliefs. Structural equation model, conducted on 962 participants with data on all variables, indicated that greater worry and weaker endorsement of COVID-19 unfounded beliefs lead to more responsible COVID-19 behavior. The relationship of trait anxiety and thinking dispositions with the criterion was mediated through the worry about COVID-19 and unfounded beliefs about COVID-19, respectively.