Generational Differences in Food Choices and Consumer Behaviors in the Context of Sustainable Development.

(1) Background: This study examines diverse food choices and sustainable consumption behavior across four generations of Poles: Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y, and Generation Z. (2) Methods: The research employed an online survey with a quota sample of 1000 individuals, representing the Polish population in terms of gender, residence, and education (categorized into two groups). (3) Results: For Poles, the crucial factors in food selection were product quality (69.0%), price (68.6%), and information about the product's composition (41.0%). Older cohorts (Baby Boomers and Generation X) prioritized food quality, while younger generations (Generation Y and Generation Z) emphasized price. Statistically significant differences emerged between generations regarding the product's country of origin, with older generations emphasizing its importance more. The oldest group (Baby Boomers) considered ecological certification most important. As much as 85.9% of Poles checked product expiration dates while buying products, and 82.8% bought only as much as they needed. Baby Boomers most often exhibited these two behaviors and can be considered the most responsible among all generations. (4) Conclusions: This article highlights the importance of comprehensive sustainability efforts in the context of food choices. It takes into account the socio-cultural and historical circumstances of each generation that influence their consumer habits.

Changes in intensification of religious involvement during the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland.

INTRODUCTION: The emergence of the virus Sars-CoV-2, and subsequent COVID-19 pandemic, caused a global threat to public health. In such challenging and worrying situations it can be expected that people will seek comfort in religion. However, before the pandemic there were never such wide world disruptions of religious practice-because of social distancing regulations, religiosity cannot be practiced in the same way as it was before the pandemic. METHODS: Two anonymous online surveys were conducted of adult Poles, one during the second wave (N = 1072; November 2020) and one during the third wave of the pandemic (N = 1080; April 2021). The survey samples of participants reflected the Polish population structure in terms of age, sex, size of place of residence, education, and province. RESULTS: Participation in institutional religious practices fell threefold to 11.9% during the pandemic, as compared to pre-pandemic times (31.2%). The number of people who did not go to church at all increased from 23.1% to 57.0%. Between the second and third waves, there was a small return to regular practice (from 10.1% to 14.1%). Based on the subjective assessment of the amount of time devoted to prayer, fewer people reporting an increase (10.6%) than a decrease (20.1%) in religious commitment during the pandemic. Logistic regressions showed that an increase in religious commitment can be predicted by older age, more frequent participation in religious practices before the pandemic, and higher life satisfaction. A decrease in religious commitment can be predicted by younger age, less frequent participation in religious practices before the pandemic, and greater number of children in the household. CONCLUSION: Our research indicates a deintensification of religious practices during the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland. The pandemic has accelerated process of polarization of Polish religiosity.

Trust in Medicine as a Factor Conditioning Behaviors Recommended by Healthcare Experts during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Poland.

OBJECTIVE: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, public health experts have faced the challenge of convincing people to change their everyday habits. This study aims to evaluate the impact of trust in medicine on Polish citizens' adherence to recommended behaviors. METHODS: An online survey was conducted on a quota sample of adult Poles (n = 1072) during the second wave of COVID-19. RESULTS: The trust-in-medicine index was created from statements relating to trust in healthcare professionals, vaccines, and medicines. This index showed that 27.1% of respondents expressed low trust, 36.7% expressed moderate trust, and 36.3% expressed high trust. The recommended behavior index was created from nine statements. This index showed that 15.8% of respondents had low adherence, 38.2% had moderate adherence, and 46.0% had high adherence to the healthcare experts' recommendations. One-way analysis of variance showed that people with a high trust had significantly higher scores on the recommended behavior index when compared to people with a moderate or low trust. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that those responsible for health policy should put more effort into building trust not only in health professionals, but also in pharmaceutical companies. We also determined the socio-demographic features of people to whom such actions of trust building should be directed.

A study of opinions about the Polish constitutional tribunal's judgement strengthening Polish abortion laws.

OBJECTIVE: In October 2020, the Polish Constitutional Tribunal (CT) ruled that in cases where there are indications of irreversible impairments of a foetus or incurable life-threatening diseases, abortions violate the Polish Constitution. Despite the fact that it was issued during the second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Poland, this judgement caused numerous protests. The current study sought to ascertain Poles' opinions regarding the CT's judgement, and the ensuing threat to public health presented by the protests against it. MATERIAL AND METHODS: An online survey was conducted on a quota sample of adult Poles (N = 1072). The sample reflected the population structure of Poland. RESULTS: Only 15.5% of the people surveyed agreed that the CT's judgement was correct. Logistic regression analysis showed that support for the CT's ruling could be predicted by male gender, more frequent participation in religious practices, and the presence of a greater number of children in household. The majority of people (65.1%) considered protests to be necessary despite the ongoing pandemic. Cluster analysis distinguished between two groups of people, which were labelled "moderate liberals" (43.9%) and "moderate conservatives" (56.1%). There were no extreme groups - neither one that supported the CT's judgement and condemned the protesters, nor one that supported protesters unconditionally and disagreed with the judgement. CONCLUSIONS: Undoubtedly, there is no consensus among Poles on the issue of abortion, but the CT's judgement, resulted in a high level of agreement between people with different views.

A Typology of Poles' Attitudes toward COVID-19 during the First Wave of the Pandemic.

(1) Objective: To explore Poles' attitudes during the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 as a contribution toward the creation of effective health policies. (2) Method: Computer-assisted web interviewing (CAWI) was used to survey a sample of 1001 Poles selected using quota sampling. (3) Results: Using cluster analysis, three types of attitudes were distinguished, people being classified as "involved" (48.1%), "cautious" (27.4%), or "indifferent" (24.6%). The result of greatest interest was the absence of any attitude indicating an extremely dismissive posture toward COVID-19. Three logistic regression analyses, comparing people displaying each attitude with those comparing the other two attitudes combined, showed that an involved attitude was likely to be associated with being female, being in a poorer financial situation, but having relatively high life satisfaction. A cautious attitude was more likely to appear in places with fewer residents and among people in a favorable financial situation, and that an indifferent attitude was more likely to be associated with being male and having lower life satisfaction. (4) Conclusions: The attitudes identified may help to explain why, during the spring of 2020, the virus was spreading slightly more slowly, and on a narrower scale, in Poland than in other countries.