A neglected and forgotten episode of Nazi Race Psychology in Occupied Poland: A critical analysis by T. Tomaszewski (1945).

In the 1930s and 1940s, the Nazis used science as a tool for shaping state policy. One of the most abhorrent aspects of scientific collaboration with the Nazis at that time was the broadly defined field of "race psychology." In this article, we focus on German comparative research on the psychology of Poles and Germans, as analyzed by Tadeusz Tomaszewski, who is considered to be one of the founders of contemporary Polish psychology. We illuminate this episode from the history of science by providing a full translation of Tomaszewski's article published in 1945 on a research project led by Rudolf Hippius conducted in 1942 in Poznan (in occupied Poland) in the name of the political interests and ideology of the Nazi regime. We also shed light on the historical context of Tomaszewski's article, which facilitates the understanding of the core ideas of race/ethnic psychology per se; the sociohistorical context also provides the framework in which the other research articles that we refer to must be read. Reading Tomaszewski's text today will enhance our understanding of the relationship between science and politics, and serve as a warning for researchers today. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Negative psychological aspects of working with experimental animals in scientific research.

The aim of the study was to reveal the negative psychological aspects of using animals by scientists and to determine whether the emotional tensions and stress are associated with performing experiments on animals. All 150 participants of the study conduct experiments on animals in their work. Computer-assisted web interviewing, was used to collect the data. Correlation matrices for factorial analysis of main component loads and cluster analysis have been calculated as grouping methods revealed two different categories of researchers, which were mostly distinguished by acceptance and aversion to animal testing and animal welfare. The main findings demonstrated, that there is a group of respondents who feel discomfort when performing experiments on animals. Especially young people involved in animal testing, feel remorse, emotional tension and helplessness.

The Main Sources and Potential Effects of COVID-19-Related Discrimination.

The outbreak of a new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which appeared in late 2019 and eventually resulted in the announcement of a pandemic by the World Health Organization, led to global fear and panic as well as the spread of false information and fake news from different sources. As a result, a sharp increase in prejudice, discrimination, and xenophobia against different groups of people was observed in different geographical locations. This chapter presents the psychological and social sources of stereotypes and prejudices that take forms in the COVID-19 pandemic. These sources can be located in psychosocial processes, such as (i) socially generated and reinforced fears; (ii) human responses to stress induced by certain types of stimuli; (iii) sense of helplessness based on the lack of control over reality; (iv) psychological responses reinforced by conformism (crowd psychology); and (v) the stigmatization process. The chapter also presents the main groups of increased risk of experiencing prejudice and discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic (Asians, health-care workers, COVID-19 patients, and their relatives). Moreover, it provides a documented example of such behaviors. The groups at higher risk of more adverse effects of COVID-19 due to pre-pandemic discrimination are also discussed. Finally, initiatives taken to mitigate the discrimination associated with COVID-19 are presented, as well as the recommendations and good practices for preventing these behaviors during future outbreaks and for limiting discrimination against COVID-19 until the disease can be contained.

Ritual Slaughter: The Tradition of Pilot Whale Hunting on the Faroe Islands.

Faroese people consider grindadráp, the hunting of pilot whales, as a part of their cultural heritage, but from the point of view of veterinary sciences and biology, the method of killing pilot whales is a form of a ritual slaughter performed on fully conscious animals that are aware of their circumstances. Pilot whales are social, intelligent, and communicative animals that demonstrate complex social behaviors. Therefore, this traditional whaling method should be considered as a procedure in which animals are exposed to high levels of distress. In the context of contemporary civilizational development and material welfare, the practice of whaling may appear to be an inadequate and cruel relic of the past. This text explores social and cultural issues caused by pilot whale hunts and presents an understanding of the term tradition and some perspectives of how traditions change. The specificity of pilot whales as a species is presented, setting a foundation for a discussion about hunting itself. The conclusion of the text discusses different social perceptions of grindadráp by presenting arguments for and against the hunting. This analysis includes a presentation of actions undertaken bywhale hunting opponents.