scholarly journals Virtual contact hypothesis: Preliminary evidence for intergroup contact hypothesis in interactions with characters in video games

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Mulak ◽  
Mikołaj Henryk Winiewski
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Intergroup Contact ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Contact Hypothesis ◽  
Multilevel Regression ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Positive Attitudes

This paper examines intergroup contact hypothesis in interactions in video games to conceptualize how intergroup contact with characters in games may relate to attitudes toward minorities. Intergroup contact hypothesis states that intergroup contact leads to more positive attitudes and stereotype reduction. It also specifies situational factors that promote or hinder such an outcome. In an online survey a sample of 1627 gamers stated games they played the most and filled out a questionnaire measuring their attitudes toward minorities. Independent judges assessed games that were played by most participants (N = 44 games). A multilevel regression analysis revealed that average quality of contact with minorities in a game (measured at game-level, as a characteristic of a game) was associated with higher acceptance of minorities of the players (measured at individual level). Diversity of the game world generated by fictional races had no significant connection to attitudes. Game-level predictors largely increased fit to the data showing that game worlds were significant for the acceptance of minorities. The results supply preliminary evidence for the validity of the intergroup contact hypothesis for the interactions with characters in video games.

Preliminary Validation of the HS-QoL: A Quality-of-Life Measure for Hidradenitis Suppurativa

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chelsea McLellan ◽  
Mia Sisic ◽  
Hazel H. Oon ◽  
Jerry Tan
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Internal Consistency ◽  
Convergent Validity ◽  
Hidradenitis Suppurativa ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Life Measure ◽  
Preliminary Validation ◽  
Excellent Internal Consistency

Background: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with adverse physical and psychosocial impacts. The development of an HS quality-of-life measure, HS-QoL, has been recently described. Objective: This study was designed to validate the HS-QoL. Method: Fifty-five patients with HS from 4 dermatology clinics completed the 30-minute online survey. Item reduction, reliability (internal consistency), and correlation analysis (to assess convergent validity) were conducted. Results: The HS-QoL was reduced from 53 items to 44 items, resulting in a 7-subscale questionnaire. All subscales demonstrated excellent internal consistency, except for the support subscale, which had adequate internal consistency. All 7 HS-QoL subscales were related to other measures of QoL, life satisfaction, and mental health, which demonstrates convergent validity. Conclusion: The 44-item HS-QoL demonstrated strong preliminary evidence of reliability (internal consistency) and convergent validity.

scholarly journals New Social Horizons: Anxiety, Isolation, and Animal Crossing During the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna E. Lewis ◽  
Mia Trojovsky ◽  
Molly M. Jameson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Simulation Game ◽  
New Horizons ◽  
Emotional Outcomes ◽  
Social Gaming ◽  
The Impact

Increased participation in activities has been associated with improved positive mental health outcomes. However, there is much debate regarding the net effects of video games on individuals. Typified as a socially isolating activity, many games inherently contain socialization within the environment with game-generated characters or other players. Coinciding with the time of the initial pandemic/quarantine period was the release of a popular socializing and life simulation game, Animal Crossing: New Horizons. We investigated whether participation in this game was related to emotional outcomes associated with pandemics (e.g., loneliness and anxiety). The relationship between deleterious mental health and social gaming, amid a time of enforced reduction in socializing, would allow us to isolate the impact of the introduction of a social video game on improving the quality of life for players of this game. Participants (n = 1053) were asked about their time spent playing video games via an online survey, their socialization in game play, loneliness, and anxiety. We predicted that participants with higher levels of social interaction within the game would report less loneliness and anxiety. Utilizing multiple linear regression analyses, the research found that increased gaming and related activities were predictive of higher anxiety and somewhat related to increased loneliness. However, increased visits to another island were associated with lower levels of loneliness. As such, players may be utilizing gaming as a coping mechanism for anxiety. This research may inform generalized research regarding the influence that social games may have on feelings of loneliness and anxiety.

Interdependence in Mediated Intergroup Contact

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Katherine R. Dale ◽  
Emily Moyer-Gusé
Keyword(s):  
Intergroup Contact ◽  
The Self ◽  
Contact Hypothesis ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Extended Contact ◽  
Identity Model ◽  
The Common ◽  
Common Ingroup Identity Model ◽  
Common Ingroup Identity ◽  
Ingroup Identity

Abstract. Mediated intergroup contact and extended contact hypothesis research shows that observing a positive intergroup interaction can result in improved attitudes toward the outgroup. This experiment tested the common ingroup identity model and how the creation of a superordinate identity among characters in a television narrative influences viewers’ willingness to interact with outgroup members and attitudes toward the outgroup. Results reveal that self-efficacy, anxiety, and inclusion of the outgroup in the self mediated the relationship between exposure to narratives featuring intergroup interdependence and both positive attitudes toward and greater willingness to interact with the outgroup. That is, participants who watched a narrative featuring high levels of intergroup teamwork reported increased feelings of self-efficacy when considering future outgroup interactions, which was associated with lower levels of outgroup anxiety. Lower levels of anxiety were then associated with increased inclusion of the outgroup in the self, which was ultimately associated with more positive attitudes toward and greater willingness to interact with the outgroup. These results suggest that, even when comparing the effects of two narratives that portray an identical, positive outcome, positive effects on attitudes toward and willingness to interact with outgroup members are stronger when ingroup and outgroup members display interdependence. This research represents a step toward understanding the ways that the common ingroup identity model might help explain the extended contact hypothesis and the mechanisms by which narratives can affect attitudes toward and willingness to interact with outgroup members.

scholarly journals Awareness and Attitudes towards Advance Care Directives (ACDs): An Online Survey of Portuguese Adults

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 648
Author(s):  
Carlos Laranjeira ◽  
Maria dos Anjos Dixe ◽  
Luís Gueifão ◽  
Lina Caetano ◽  
Rui Passadouro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Online Survey ◽  
Sociodemographic Factors ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Advance Care Directives ◽  
Advance Care ◽  
Advance Decisions ◽  
Eol Care

(1) Background: Evidence shows that facilitated advance decisions can increase the number of meaningful and valid Advance Care Directives (ACDs) and improve the quality of care when End-Of-Life (EOL) is near. Little is known about the awareness and attitudes of Portuguese adults towards ACDs. The present study aims to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and preferences of a sample of Portuguese adults regarding EOL care decisions and ACDs. (2) Methods: A total of 1024 adults were assessed with an online cross-sectional survey collecting information on sociodemographic factors, knowledge, attitudes and preferences regarding advance decisions and EOL care. (3) Results: Participants had a mean age of 40.28 ± 11.41 years. Most were female and had a professional background related to healthcare. While 76.37% of participants had heard of ACDs, only a small percentage (2.34%) had actually ever made an ACD. Knowledge levels were weakly correlated with attitudes regarding ACDs (r = −0.344; p < 0.01). (4) Conclusions: Participants lacked a comprehensive understanding about ACDs, but revealed positive attitudes towards their use and usefulness. Further research can inform efforts to improve ACD engagement in this population. The discussion about ACDs should be part of health promotion education with a focus on planning for a comfortable and peaceful death.

scholarly journals Investigating the relationship between intergroup physical contact and attitudes towards foreigners: the mediating role of quality of intergroup contact

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e5680 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soraya E. Shamloo ◽  
Andrea Carnaghi ◽  
Carlo Fantoni
Keyword(s):  
Intergroup Contact ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Body Parts ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
The Relationship

Recent research has shown that a brief, casual touch administered by an outgroup member reduces prejudice towards the group to which the toucher belongs. In this study, we take the research on physical contact and prejudice a step further by addressing the relation between individuals’ amount of Experienced Intergroup Physical Contact (EIPC), across distinct contexts and involving different body parts, and attitudes towards foreign people. Specifically, we hypothesized that the amount of EIPC would be positively associated with both quantity and quality of intergroup contact, but that only quality would mediate the relationship between the amount of EIPC and outgroup attitudes, quality being more directly linked to the evaluative component of outgroup attitudes. To attain this aim, we asked participants to self-report the amount of EIPC, the quantity and quality of their intergroup contact and their attitudes towards foreign people. Consistent with our hypothesis: (1) as EIPC increased, positive attitudes towards foreign people increased; (2) higher levels of EIPC were associated with better quality and higher quantity of intergroup contact; (3) only quality of intergroup contact mediated the relationship between the amount of EIPC and attitudes towards foreign people. Results were discussed in relation to research on intergroup contact and physical contact.

scholarly journals Intergroup Relations in Integrated Schools: A Glimpse Inside Interdistrict Magnet Schools

2012 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Bifulco ◽  
Christian Buerger ◽  
Casey Cobb
Keyword(s):  
Intergroup Relations ◽  
Magnet Schools ◽  
Intergroup Contact ◽  
Ethnically Diverse ◽  
Racial Groups ◽  
Academic Environments ◽  
Intergroup Interactions ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Diverse Schools

The frequency and quality of intergroup contact within racially and ethnically diverse schools has potentially important implications for the achievement of desegregation goals. The analyses presented here use survey data to assess intergroup contact within a sample of ten interdistrict magnet schools in Connecticut. Findings indicate frequent intergroup interactions within interdistrict magnet schools, but also that the perceived quality of intergroup relations differs across racial groups and both the frequency and quality of intergroup contact varies considerably across schools. Students who report higher quality intergroup relations in their school also tend to report more positive academic environments and more positive attitudes towards other groups. Together these findings indicate that attention must be paid to intergroup relations within diverse schools if the goals of integrated schooling are to be realized.

scholarly journals The Role of Individualism, Gender and Situational Factors on Probabilities of Committing Offences in a French Drivers Sample

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florent Varet ◽  
Marie-Axelle Granié ◽  
Themis Apostolidis
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Cultural Values ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Heavy Traffic ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Traffic Density ◽  
Density Level ◽  
Traffic Condition ◽  
Individual Level

Driving offences can be a cause of road crashes and their psychosocial determinants have been studied using different approaches. Recent studies have found that cultural values, transposed at individual level through the vertical-horizontal individualism-collectivism model, may be relevant for understanding offending behaviours in drivers and pedestrians. Within this framework, we propose to test these relationships in a sample of French drivers (N = 666). In addition, we aim to explore the role of situational factors and gender differences, as potential moderators for the effects of individualist and collectivist values on offending behaviours. In an online survey experiment, drivers had to evaluate their probabilities of committing several driving offences in three driving situations, manipulating traffic density level and the probability of being caught by the authorities. Statistical analyses showed that, compared to a control situation, probabilities of offending were lower in the heavy traffic condition and even lower in the high probability of being caught condition. Probabilities of offending were also higher for men than women and were positively predicted by vertical individualism. However, the main effects suggested that horizontal collectivism and vertical individualism predicted posit offences for men only, depending on situation for vertical individualism. These results were qualified by significant interactions between driving situation, gender and vertical individualism and between gender and horizontal collectivism. These findings are discussed in relation to gender differences in value expression. Perspectives to improve the relevance of the value framework mobilized, the importance to consider situational context to understand driving offending behaviours and safety implications are also discussed.

Multilingualism and Ethnic Prejudice

2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 90-100
Author(s):  
Rocco Servidio ◽  
Isabella Giammusso ◽  
Stefano Boca ◽  
Alberto Mirisola
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Intergroup Contact ◽  
Equation Model ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Ethnic Prejudice ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract. This study explored the relationship between the ability to talk to others in more than one language and ethnic prejudice, considering the quality and quantity of intergroup contact. A structural equation model analysis was carried out on a sample of 631 Italian citizens. The results showed that multilingualism led to an increase of acceptance of intergroup differences and positive attitudes toward Moroccans and that the quality (but not quantity) of intergroup contact-mediated those relationships. The mediating role of the quality of intergroup contact extends previous results on the relationship between multilingualism and positive attitudes toward ethnic out-groups. These findings are important from a scientific point of view, as they enrich the conditions of the intergroup contact hypothesis.

scholarly journals The trajectory of COVID-19 pandemic and handwashing adherence: findings from 14 countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zofia Szczuka ◽  
Charles Abraham ◽  
Adriana Baban ◽  
Sydney Brooks ◽  
Sabrina Cipolletta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Regression Models ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
World Health ◽  
Outcome Variable ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Protective Behaviors ◽  
Multilevel Regression ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Country Specific

Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic has affected people’s engagement in health behaviors, especially those that protect individuals from SARS-CoV-2 transmission, such as handwashing/sanitizing. This study investigated whether adherence to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) handwashing guidelines (the outcome variable) was associated with the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic, as measured by the following 6 indicators: (i) the number of new cases of COVID-19 morbidity/mortality (a country-level mean calculated for the 14 days prior to data collection), (ii) total cases of COVID-19 morbidity/mortality accumulated since the onset of the pandemic, and (iii) changes in recent cases of COVID-19 morbidity/mortality (a difference between country-level COVID-19 morbidity/mortality in the previous 14 days compared to cases recorded 14–28 days earlier). Methods The observational study (#NCT04367337) enrolled 6064 adults residing in Australia, Canada, China, France, Gambia, Germany, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, and Switzerland. Data on handwashing adherence across 8 situations (indicated in the WHO guidelines) were collected via an online survey (March–July 2020). Individual-level handwashing data were matched with the date- and country-specific values of the 6 indices of the trajectory of COVID-19 pandemic, obtained from the WHO daily reports. Results Multilevel regression models indicated a negative association between both accumulation of the total cases of COVID-19 morbidity (B = −.041, SE = .013, p = .013) and mortality (B = −.036, SE = .014 p = .002) and handwashing. Higher levels of total COVID-related morbidity and mortality were related to lower handwashing adherence. However, increases in recent cases of COVID-19 morbidity (B = .014, SE = .007, p = .035) and mortality (B = .022, SE = .009, p = .015) were associated with higher levels of handwashing adherence. Analyses controlled for participants’ COVID-19-related situation (their exposure to information about handwashing, being a healthcare professional), sociodemographic characteristics (gender, age, marital status), and country-level variables (strictness of containment and health policies, human development index). The models explained 14–20% of the variance in handwashing adherence. Conclusions To better explain levels of protective behaviors such as handwashing, future research should account for indicators of the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic. Trial registration Clinical Trials.Gov, #NCT04367337

Suicide-Bereaved Individuals’ Attitudes Toward Therapists

Crisis ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin F. Ward-Ciesielski ◽  
Madeline D. Wielgus ◽  
Connor B. Jones
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health Treatment ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Time Of Death ◽  
Loved One ◽  
Important Group ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Suicide Bereaved ◽  
Research Domain

Background: Suicide-bereaved individuals represent an important group impacted by suicide. Understanding their experiences following the suicide of a loved one is an important research domain, despite receiving limited attention. Although suicide-bereaved individuals may benefit from mental health treatment, their attitudes toward therapy and therapists are poorly understood. Aims: The present study aimed to understand the extent to which bereaved individuals’ attitudes toward therapy and therapists are impacted by whether their loved one was in therapy at the time of death. Method: Suicide-bereaved individuals (N = 243) from the United States were recruited to complete an online survey about their experience with and attitudes toward therapy and therapists following the suicide of a loved one. Results: Bereaved individuals whose loved one was in therapy at the time of death (N = 48, 19.8%) reported more negative and less positive attitudes toward the treating therapist than those whose loved one was not in therapy at the time of death (N = 81, 33.3%) or whose loved one was never in therapy/the deceased’s therapy status was unknown (N = 114, 46.9%). Conclusion: The deceased’s involvement with a therapist appears to be an important factor impacting the experience of bereaved individuals and should be considered when attempting to engage these individuals in postvention.

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