Educating Youth to Civic Engagement for Social Justice: Evaluation of a Secondary School Project.

The positive effects of youth civic engagement can be felt both at the individual level (e.g., better emotional regulation, a greater sense of empowerment) and at the community level (e.g., a greater likelihood of participation in civic and political activities). They may also be a protective factor for at-risk youth in the short and long term and a valuable element for positive identity development in general. The purpose of this longitudinal study was to assess the impact of an educational intervention implemented in secondary schools to promote youth civic engagement (N = 508 at Time 1, N = 116 at Time 2). The study is divided into two parts: first, it examines the changes stimulated by the project, and second, it uses a path analysis model to explain the intention to participate. Results show that after participation, hostile and benevolent sexism, classic and modern ethnic prejudice, and social dominance orientation decreased, while trust in institutions increased. In addition, the path analysis showed that policy control, social trust, and civic engagement increased the intention of civic engagement at time T1. Despite some limitations, this study may provide useful guidance for those designing and implementing civic education interventions for young people.

Self-Objectification and its Biological, Psychological and Social Predictors: A Cross-Cultural Study in Four European Countries and Iran.

Although scholars started investigating self-objectification more than twenty years ago, only a few studies focused on men and even fewer have taken into account the cross-cultural dimension. Our study focused on the antecedents of self-objectification paying attention to the role of biological and sociodemographic variables (gender, BMI), psychological characteristics (self-esteem, perfectionism) together with social and cultural factors (internalization of media standards, influence of family and friends). Self-objectification was operationalized as Body Shame and Body Surveillance. A self-reported questionnaire was administered to 2165 adults living in four European countries (UK, Italy, Poland and Romania) and Iran. Ten regression models were performed (2 per country) to analyse the correlates of self-objectification. Overall, self-objectification emerged as a process affected by factors entrenched in psychological, biological, social and cultural domains, partially different for Body Shame and Body Surveillance. Findings showed the key role of self-esteem as a protective factor against Body Shame across countries. On the other hand, the internalization of media standards emerged as risk factor for both Body Shame and Body Surveillance in the five countries. Taken together, these results underline the complexity of self-objectification and the need to deepen research on this topic among non-Western countries.

The selective effect of lockdown experience on citizens' perspectives: A multilevel, multiple informant approach to personal and community resilience during COVID-19 pandemic.

In the face of the first wave of COVID-19 contagion, citizens all over the world experienced concerns for their safety and health, as well as prolonged lockdowns - which brought about limitations but also unforeseen opportunities for personal growth. Broad variability in these psychological responses to such unprecedented experiences emerged. This study addresses this variability by investigating the role of personal and community resilience. Personal resilience, collective resilience, community disaster management ability, provided information by local authorities, and citizens' focus on COVID-19-related personal concerns and lockdown-related opportunities for personal growth were detected through an online questionnaire. Multilevel modelling was run with data from 3,745 Italian citizens. The potential of personal resilience as a driver for individuals to overcome adverse situations with positive outcomes was confirmed. Differently, the components of community resilience showed more complex paths, highlighting the need to pay more attention to its role in the face of far-reaching adverse events which hardly test individuals' as well as communities' adaptability and agency skills. The complexities linked to the multi-component and system-specific nature of resilience, as well as potential paths towards making the most out of citizens' and communities' ones, emerge. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Resilience and empowerment in immigrant experiences: A look through the transconceptual model of empowerment and resilience.

Resilience and empowerment are both strengths-based processes, which, while sharing commonalities, describe different goals, actions, and outcomes-one aimed at status quo; the other at status quake. The Transconceptual Model of Empowerment and Resilience (TMER; Brodsky & Cattaneo, 2013) outlines these similarities and differences in order to uncover the circumstances that lead to one or the other process. This study utilized TMER to explore resilience and empowerment in qualitative interviews of 99 first- and second-generation Latinx, Moroccan, and Albanian immigrants in the U.S. and Italy. Setting-based, macrolevel political and social issues, along with generational and locale variations, provided contextual counterpoints in participants' reported risks, resources, goals, actions, and outcomes. Individually held resources were the most common and were found to support resilience and empowerment actions. All participants, regardless of generation, locale, or context, reported more individually focused resilient actions than empowering ones. This study illustrates the difference between goals and actions that are resilient, thus maintaining the status quo, and empowerment goals and actions, which disrupt the status quo and thus are "status quake." It also adds to the evidence of TMER's contribution to understanding the processes by which immigrants' experiences, resources, and goals lead to resilience and empowering actions. Findings suggest how stronger coalitions might be built across community membership, which could use shared resources to address common concerns to benefit all. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Emergency online school learning during COVID-19 lockdown: A qualitative study of adolescents' experiences in Italy.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused abrupt and profound changes to teaching and learning. The present study seeks to understand adolescents' experiences of the emergency adoption of online school learning (OSL) during the first national lockdown in Italy. Sixty-four students in their final two years of high school were interviewed and content analysis was performed. The findings describe students' views of the changes related to OSL according to structural, individual and relational dimensions. Schools' lack of organization, overwhelming demands, as well as experience of difficulties in concentration, stress and inhibited relationships with teachers and classmates were among the challenges evidenced in the transition. OSL, however, has also made it possible to experience a new flexibility and autonomy in the organization of learning. The study stresses the importance of fostering adaptation of teacher-student relationships and collaborative learning in order to improve schools' preparedness for digital transitions in and out of emergencies.

An Integrated Model of Compliance with COVID-19 Prescriptions: Instrumental, Normative, and Affective Factors Associated with Health-Protective Behaviors.

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of public measures for reducing the transmission of the COVID-19 infection relies on citizens' voluntary adherence with prescribed actions. Drawing on prior literature about compliant behavior, this study aimed to identify factors associated with people engagement in health-protective behaviors by including a conjoint complement of instrumental/self-oriented, normative/community-based, and affective variables. METHOD: A cross-sectional study involving a non-representative sample of 4045 Italian citizens was carried out during the first stage of the pandemic (April-May 2020). Variables associated with health-protective behaviors were perceived personal and societal concerns and perceived effectiveness of the institutional response to the outbreak (instrumental dimensions), and family and friends perceived norms and sense of community responsibility (normative dimensions). Two negative emotions (anxiety and fear) were included as mediators between personal and societal concerns and outcome behaviors. RESULTS: Results showed the importance of both self-interest and community-based factors. Indeed, self-interest concerns, family perceived norms, and sense of community responsibility were significant predictors of people's decisions to engage in health-protective behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: The research findings show that compliance with public health prescriptions is a multimodal phenomenon and integrating self-interest and community-based factors can offer a better understanding of people's decision to engage in health-protective behaviors. Further, this study unveils that a shared sense of community is effective in encouraging adherence to recommended behaviors so as behavioral changes can be sustained by targeting the recommendations not only on risk minimization for oneself but also on the allocation of personal responsibility toward the belonging community.

Community dimensions and emotions in the era of COVID-19.

Following an ecological perspective, reactions to a disaster-such as the COVID-19 pandemic-should be analysed in the interdependence between individual and community dimensions. The present study aims to analyse individual emotional dimensions (anxiety, joy, fear or depressive feelings) and their community dimensions (connectedness, emotional sharing and solidarity) with a longitudinal approach among university students from Italian universities. Participants were 746 university students at t1 (during the lockdown) and 361 at t2 (after the lockdown) recruited in six Italian universities from different areas of Italy. Comparing emotional dimensions in the two times, t2 is characterized by a generalized ambiguity: both happiness or joy because of the end of limitations and a kind of 'post-lockdown anxiety' because of a sense of individual inadequacy in facing the return to normality, conducting daily activities and attending community spaces. Data confirms that after the so-called 'honeymoon phase' in community dimensions (first phase of t1 time), a sort of 'depressive reaction' arises at t2: Italian university students seem more aware of the need for individual and social responsibility and that many events are not under their personal control. The reconstruction phase and exit from the emergency are perceived as necessary but also as a difficult and risky period. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement.

Prosocial behaviours under collective quarantine conditions. A latent class analysis study during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown in Italy.

We aimed to identify the patterns of prosocial behaviours under collective quarantine conditions. Survey data were collected from a sample of Italian adults during the March May 2020 COVID-19 lockdown in Italy. Participants reported on offline and online prosocial behaviours, sense of community responsibility (SoC-R) and perceptions of community resilience. Latent class analysis (LCA) was used for data analysis. A total of 4,045 participants completed the survey, and 2,562 were eligible (72% female; mean age 38.7 years). LCA revealed four classes of prosocial behaviours: Money donors (7%), Online and offline helpers (59%), Online health information sharers (21%) and Neighbour helpers (13%). The classes were partially invariant across age groups (18-35 and 35-65 years). Being a man, having achieved a higher educational level and higher SoC-R scores were associated with belonging to the Online and offline helper class. The members of this class also reported the greatest perceptions of community resilience. The results provide insight on the multidimensionality of prosociality under collective quarantine conditions. Online and offline helpers could be targeted for promoting sustained altruism and involvement in community organisations. For the other groups, programmes should aim at eliminating barriers to help others in multiple ways. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement.

COVID-19 in our lives: Sense of community, sense of community responsibility, and reflexivity in present concerns and perception of the future.

The aim of this study is to examine the association between citizens' perceptions of the effectiveness of the institutional response, their connection and responsibility to their community (Sense of Community-SoC; Sense of Community Responsibility-SoC-R), and their personal and social concerns about the current emergency and their perceptions of a postpandemic future during the first COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Another variable considered was the personal reflexivity about the COVID-19 pandemic. 3925 Italian adults completed an online questionnaire during the first COVID-19 lockdown. A structural equation model with mediation was tested. Institutional effectiveness was associated with SoC, SoC-R, current social concerns, and perceptions of a postpandemic future. SoC and SoC-R were associated with current personal and social concerns, and perceptions of a postpandemic future. Reflexivity was negatively associated with SoC and positively associated with SoC-R, mediating the relationships between SoC, SoC-R and current personal and social concerns and perceptions of a postpandemic future. Findings indicate the need to adopt a perspective that considers individual and socio-political levels and their interaction to better understand the impact of the pandemic during a national lockdown.

The potential of psychological connectedness: Mitigating the impacts of COVID-19 through sense of community and community resilience.

The purpose of this study was to identify patterns of relationships connecting sense of community (SOC) and community resilience with psychological wellbeing, via the mediation of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) impacts on life domains. Survey data were collected from an international sample of adults (n = 824) during the COVID-19 outbreak (June-September 2020). Using a structural equation model, we tested a mediation model to identify the associations between SOC and community resilience with the perceived impacts of the emergency situation and with psychological wellbeing. Results revealed that SOC mitigated the impacts of COVID-19 on multiple life domains, and it was also positively associated with wellbeing. Community resilience was correlated with SOC and wellbeing but showed no significant relationship with COVID-19 impacts. The findings support that SOC has a protective function and can contribute to mitigating the impacts of difficult life situations. SOC can also be leveraged as an intervention aimed at protecting the wellbeing of people and communities, particularly in times of crisiss.

Adjustment to COVID-19 Lockdown Among Italian University Students: The Role of Concerns, Change in Peer and Family Relationships and in Learning Skills, Emotional, and Academic Self-Efficacy on Depressive Symptoms.

In Italy strict containment measures against COVID-19 pandemic were implemented from March to May 2020 with home confinement and schools and universities closed. Students shifted to remote learning, experienced a forced isolation from peers and an increased sharing of time and spaces with the family. The influence of these aspects on the psychological adjustment of university students is largely unexplored. This paper was aimed at investigating the role of some correlates of depressive symptoms specific to the lockdown condition experienced by young university students, namely contagion concern, perceived worsening of family, and peer relationships and perceived worsening of learning skills. Moreover, the possible mediating effects of emotional and academic self-efficacy in these relationships were examined. Data were collected from 296 Italian university students (aged 18-25 years; 83% female students) through an online survey by means of a snowball sampling methodology in May 2020. Significant depressive symptoms were reported by 67% of participants. Contagion concerns were related to depressive symptoms through the mediating effect of emotional self-efficacy. Worsening of learning skills was related to depressive symptoms through the mediating effect of academic self-efficacy. Depressive symptoms were directly related to worsening of family relationships but unrelated to worsening of peer relationships. Results are discussed in relation to the need of preventive interventions for this specific population in view of academic activities planning in the post-COVID 19 period.

Self-efficacy, subjective well-being and positive coping in adolescents with regard to Covid-19 lockdown.

The study is aimed at examining the relationship between emotional and self-regulated learning self-efficacy, subjective well-being (SWB) and positive coping among adolescents and youths, during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. 485 Italian students (74% girls; mean age 19.3) filled in an online questionnaire during the lockdown period. The hypothesized model in which both the forms of self-efficacy were predictors of SWB and positive coping, and SWB partially mediated the relation between self-efficacy measures and positive coping was tested by means of Structural equation modeling. Results largely supported the hypothesized relationships and suggested paying special attention to adolescents' self-efficacy in regulating basic negative emotions, in order to promote positive coping strategies to face challenges coming from everyday life and from non-normative events.

Psychosocial empowerment-based interventions for smoking reduction: concepts, measures and outcomes. A systematic review.

Although empowerment is a widely used concept in health-related areas, its definition remains unclear. While there is evidence for the effectiveness of empowerment interventions in improving some psychosocial factors linked to health (e.g. patient self-care strategy, coping skills, access and effective use of health services) and some health outcomes like mental health and HIV/AIDS-related behaviour, other data appear to contradict this. Moreover, concepts, measures, and outcomes related to empowerment are operationalized in different ways. Using the case of tobacco control programmes, we wanted to explore: (a) how research on smoking reduction/prevention has conceptualized empowerment; (b) which measures and instruments have been used to assess behaviour outcomes and the empowerment process. We hypothesized that the transformative potential that characterizes empowerment is marginally considered.A total of 18 studies reporting on the effect of prevention interventions on smoking and/or empowerment outcomes were reviewed. Two kinds of study were distinguished: (a) studies reporting behaviour outcomes without data about the impact on empowerment; (b) studies analysing the empowerment process. Among this latter type, some studies did not provide information about the specific behaviour (smoking), while others examined the impact of intervention on both smoking and empowerment. In about half of all studies, empowerment strategies were found to be effective in improving smoking outcomes, while no differences were found between intervention and control groups in the remaining studies. The present review suggests that pragmatic definitions of empowerment need to be developed in order to promote its transferability and evaluation.

Psychometric properties of the Italian version of the sense of community responsibility scale.

The central aim of the present research was to examine the psychometric properties of adapted versions of the sense of community (SOC) responsibility scale in three Italian samples. We examined the psychometric properties of three modified versions of the sense of community responsibility (SOC-R) scale. Consistent with the original scale, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that the scale was unidimensional and exhibited excellent internal consistency. In addition, factor analyses revealed that SOC responsibility and SOC are two separate, albeit related, constructs. The results also provided evidence of the discriminant validity of SOC and SOC-R on key outcomes. Taken together, these results provide support for the Community Experience Model, which posits that community experiences are a function of resource and responsibility components, as well as for the adaptable nature of the SOC-R scale to the Italian context.

Acculturation in the discourse of immigrants and receiving community members: Results from a cross-national qualitative study.

This study explores the bidirectional and interactional process of acculturation from the perspectives of immigrants and receiving community members (RCMs). Our aim was to understand the experiences and interactions of different ethno-cultural groups and their impact on the functioning and dynamics of multicultural communities. We conducted a cross-national, cross-cultural study of acculturation processes, using interviews collected across two countries (Italy: urban regions of Torino and Lecce; U.S.: Baltimore/Washington corridor) and three distinct groups of immigrants-Moroccans and Albanians in Italy and Latin Americans in the United States-and RCMs in Italy and the United States. Findings show that acculturation is a complex, situated, and dynamic process, and is generally conceived as an unbalanced and individual process of accommodation, which expects the immigrant alone to adapt to the new context. The boundaries among traditionally explored acculturation strategies were blurred and while integration was the most frequently discussed strategy, it often referenced a "soft" assimilation, limited mostly to public domains. Some differences emerged between ethnic groups and generation of immigration as well as among RCMs who differed by level of contact with immigrants. The need for more flexible models and for a critical perspective on acculturation is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Shared Communities: A Multinational Qualitative Study of Immigrant and Receiving Community Members.

Community psychology is central to understanding how immigrants and more established residents of their new settings join together to develop a shared sense of community and membership. In our present study, we explored how newer (i.e., first- and second-generation immigrants) and more established community members form multiple positive psychological sense of community (PSOC) with one another. We conducted a multinational, qualitative study of PSOC through interviews with 201 first- and second-generation immigrants and third generation or more "receiving community members" in three contexts (Baltimore-Washington corridor of the U.S.; Torino, Italy; Lecce, Italy). Results indicated numerous similarities among the ways in which participants constructed PSOC in shared and nonshared communities, regardless of immigration/citizenship status, length of community residence, city, country, age, or gender. Small, proximal, and salient communities were often particularly important to building positive PSOC, which was formed around diverse membership boundaries. As intersectional beings, members converged and diverged on many characteristics, providing multiple opportunities for members to bring diversity to their communities while sharing other characteristics deemed essential to membership. Nonetheless, findings point to significant, structural challenges rooted in power and privilege that must be confronted to bridge the community-diversity dialectic and build strong, shared sense of community.

If Stigmatized, Self-Esteem Is not Enough: Effects of Sexism, Self-Esteem and Social Identity on Leadership Aspiration.

Ambivalent sexism has many pernicious consequences. Since gender stereotypes also affect leadership roles, the present research investigated the effects of ambivalent sexism on envisioning oneself as a leader. Our studies tested the influence of sexist attitudes (toward women - Study 1 - and men - Study 2) on leadership aspiration, taking into account the interaction among ambivalent attitudes, personal characteristics (e.g. self-esteem), and group processes (e.g. level of identification with gender). Specifically, the current study used a 3 (sexism: hostile, benevolent, control) x 2 (social identification: high, low) x 2 (self-esteem: high, low) factorial design. 178 women participated in Study 1. Results showed that, although sexism was not recognised as a form of prejudice and did not trigger negative emotions, in sexist conditions high-identified women increase their leadership aspiration. In Study 2 men (N = 184) showed to recognise hostility as a form of prejudice, to experience more negative emotions, but to be not influenced in leadership aspiration. For both men and women self-esteem had a significant main effect on leadership aspiration.