Dating Violence in Adolescence: Comparison between Scholars and Adolescents in Residential Care

(1) Background: Dating violence (DV) among adolescents constitutes a serious problem, not only because of the magnitude of the phenomenon, but also because of the seriousness of the personal and social consequences derived from it. The objectives of this study were the following: to analyze the prevalence of DV among adolescents in residential care and in schools, according to sex, age and origin, and to analyze the prevalence of the types of violence and victimization, according to the residential care resource and the school. (2) Methods: The sample consisted of adolescents in residential care in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country (Spain) (n = 271) and adolescents in schools (n = 268) aged between 12 and 17 years. (3) Results: The results showed a higher prevalence of DV in adolescents in residential care than that found in other studies with a normative sample. (4) Conclusions: These results support the need for work and research with these minors in residential care. It also gives an important weight to sociodemographic variables, such as age and sex, and also to the types of violence and victimization, i.e., variables to be taken into account in the intervention with adolescents. Future educational programs should consider DV prevention and children in residential care.

The association between entrapment and depression among migrant workers in China: a social rank theory based study

Background Migrant workers are a group susceptible for depression evolution due to occupational maladaptive triggers. The social rank theory illustrates the pathology process from defensive adaptation to depression, pointing out the early prevention of depression by discovering entrapment. This study aims to reveal the relationship between migrant workers’ entrapment and depressive symptoms. Methods A total of 1805 migrant workers in Shenzhen were recruited by stratified multi-stage sampling. Sample’s demographic, behavioral and psychosocial characteristics were described and analyzed to reveal the relationship between entrapment and depressive symptoms. The Receiver Operator Characteristic was performed to find the optimal cut-off point of Entrapment Scale for predicting depressive symptoms. Results In the binary logistic regression of sociodemographic variables, migrant workers who were married (univariate odds ratio (ORu) = 0.69, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 0.56–0.84), owned 1 or 2 children (ORu = 0.71, 95% CI = 0.58–0.86), had been working over 10 years (ORu = 0.71, 95% CI = 0.54–0.95), earned > 4999 yuan per month (ORu = 0.68, 95% CI = 0.47–0.99; multivariate odds ratio (ORm) = 0.57, 95% CI = 0.38–0.87) or with low risks of alcohol use disorders (ORu = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.34–0.75) had lower risks of depressive symptoms. After adjusted the aforementioned significant sociodemographic variables, migrant workers with severer entrapment were more likely to have depressive symptoms (adjusted odds ratio (ORa) = 1.13, 95% CI = 1.12–1.15). Besides, the study proved the reliability and validity of the Chinese version Entrapment Scale, preferring a two-dimensional structure, and 11 was the optimal cut-off value of this scale for predicting depressive symptoms among migrant workers. Conclusions This result indicates the potential value of entrapment according to the social rank theory on facilitating early prevention of migrant works’ depression and the application value of Entrapment Scale for effectively measuring mental status among migrant workers.

The degree of heterogeneity of news consumption in Germany—Descriptive statistics and relations with individual differences in personality, ideological attitudes, and voting intentions

This study aimed to examine the degree of homogeneity versus heterogeneity of individuals’ political information environments across offline and online media types and relations with sociodemographic variables, personality, and political attitudes. In two online surveys, German participants (sample 1: N = 686; sample 2: N = 702) provided information on sociodemographic variables, consumption of political news, and voting intentions, and completed the Big Five Inventory and Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) scales. Results revealed that absolutely homogeneous political news consumption was evident for a small proportion of individuals (2.04% and 0.43%). Openness (positively) and Agreeableness (negatively) exhibited significant associations with the degree of heterogeneity of political information environments across samples. No consistent patterns of relations with either the ideological attitudes of RWA and SDO or voting intentions were observed. The findings shed light on the existence of absolutely homogeneous political information environments and “who” might be prone to a more homogeneous versus more heterogeneous information environment.

Psychological Distress in Men during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Brazil: The Role of the Sociodemographic Variables, Uncertainty, and Social Support

Objective: To analyze the relationships between sociodemographic variables, intolerance to uncertainty (INT), social support, and psychological distress (i.e., indicators of Common Mental Disorders (CMDs) and perceived stress (PS)) in Brazilian men during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A cross-sectional study with national coverage, of the web survey type, and conducted with 1006 Brazilian men during the period of social circulation restriction imposed by the health authorities in Brazil for suppression of the coronavirus and control of the pandemic. Structural equation modeling analysis was performed. Results: Statistically significant direct effects of race/skin color (λ = 0.268; p-value < 0.001), socioeconomic status (SES) (λ = 0.306; p-value < 0.001), household composition (λ = 0.281; p-value < 0.001), PS (λ = 0.513; p-value < 0.001), and INT (λ = 0.421; p-value < 0.001) were evidenced in the occurrence of CMDs. Black-skinned men with higher SES, living alone, and with higher PS and INT levels presented higher prevalence values of CMDs. Conclusions: High levels of PS and INT were the factors that presented the strongest associations with the occurrence of CMDs among the men. It is necessary to implement actions to reduce the stress-generating sources as well as to promote an increase in resilience and the development of intrinsic reinforcements to deal with uncertain threats.

Cluster analysis of risk factors for chronic non-communicable diseases in elderly Brazilians: population-based cross-sectional studies in a rural town

Negative health behaviors incorporated into lifestyle are considered the main risk factors for chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in adults and the elderly. However, the relationship between the aggregation of these factors and the sociodemographic conditions of the elderly needs to be better elucidated. The aim of this study was to analyze the simultaneity of the five risk factors for NCDs in the elderly with low economic status living in a rural city in Brazil, and their association with sociodemographic variables. Cross-sectional study was conducted with elderly people from Family Health Units of the city of Ibicui-Bahia, Brazil, where 310 elderly were enrolled. Rates of physical inactivity in leisure (PIL), alcohol consumption, sedentary behavior, overweight/obesity and tobacco consumption were collected through a questionnaire in an individual interview. The average age among participants was 71.62 (± 8.16) years. The group presenting the five behaviors had high scores in both sexes (men O/E = 242.5; women O/E = 161.7). Among men and women, the highest scores found through clustering of simultaneous NCD risk factors were for the consumption of alcohol with smoking, and physical inactivity with smoking. When analyzing the association between groups and sociodemographic characteristics, men were more physically inactive than women (OR = 0.96, CI = 0.92-0.98) and concomitantly had unhealthy habits (smoking). In conclusion, the elderly are exposed to health risk factors for concurrent CNCDs and the accumulation of these risk factors was not associated with sociodemographic variables, it is suggested that further studies be carried out with the prevalent variables as well as to analyze why the elderly population presents these levels.

Preferences in Between: Moderates in the Catalan Secessionist Conflict

Recent research on territorial preferences focuses on explaining who supports or opposes independence. However, this research overlooks the relevance of an “intermediate” category of citizens who may oppose the territorial status quo of a sub-state territory but not support independence. We use evidence from the critical case of Catalonia to illustrate the relevance of individuals with such preferences for policies and outcomes highly relevant to secessionist conflicts. We present four sets of findings using two-wave panel data from December 2017 (just prior to the December regional elections when Catalan independence was the most salient and contentious issue) and September 2018. First, we find that a sizable plurality within Catalonia supports greater autonomy short of independence; conventional sociodemographic variables explaining support for independence do not strongly account for this preference. Second, such pro-autonomy individuals have considerably more intermediate attitudes regarding the key “on the ground” actions that the Spanish and Catalan governments pursued during the crucial independence drive in 2017. They were more opposed than pro-independence individuals to the unilateral independence efforts, and more opposed than pro-status quo individuals to the Spanish government’s actions to counter these efforts. Third, they expressed emotions around the secessionist conflict similar to pro-status quo individuals. Finally, using an embedded survey experiment, we find that pro-autonomy individuals are more trusting of both the central and regional governments regarding their abiding by an agreement to resolve the conflict, and are less easily “polarized” through priming. Overall, these findings indicate the importance of further analyzing individuals with intermediate territorial views in secessionist conflicts.

Relationship between self-care activities, stress and well-being during COVID-19 lockdown: a cross-cultural mediation model

ObjectivesTo examine the mediation role of self-care between stress and psychological well-being in the general population of four countries and to assess the impact of sociodemographic variables on this relationship.DesignCross-sectional, online survey.ParticipantsA stratified sample of confined general population (N=1082) from four Ibero-American countries—Chile (n=261), Colombia (n=268), Ecuador (n=282) and Spain (n=271)—balanced by age and gender.Primary outcomes measuresSociodemographic information (age, gender, country, education and income level), information related to COVID-19 lockdown (number of days in quarantine, number of people with whom the individuals live, absence/presence of adults and minors in charge and attitude towards the search of information related to COVID-19), Perceived Stress Scale-10, Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being Scale-29 and Self-Care Activities Screening Scale-14.ResultsSelf-care partially mediates the relationship between stress and well-being during COVID-19 confinement in the general population in the total sample (F (3,1078)=370.01, p<0.001, R2=0.507) and in each country. On the other hand, among the evaluated sociodemographic variables, only age affects this relationship.ConclusionThe results have broad implications for public health, highlighting the importance of promoting people’s active role in their own care and health behaviour to improve psychological well-being if stress management and social determinants of health are jointly addressed first. The present study provides the first transnational evidence from the earlier stages of the COVID-19 lockdown, showing that the higher perception of stress, the less self-care activities are adopted, and in turn the lower the beneficial effects on well-being.

Evaluating the Relationships among the Sociodemographic Variables and Gender Perceptions of Undergraduate Students in Turkey: A Meta-Analysis Study

This study seeks to examine gender perceptions in Turkey. After completing a literature review, the research compiles and analyzes academic studies on Turkish undergraduate students and their gender perceptions. Of the 763 studies included in the literature review, 15 were included in the meta-analysis. The study uses Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) Software (Biostat Inc, 2021) for the analysis and has concluded four different sociodemographic variables to be suitable for the meta-analysis. The variables used are undergraduates’ (1) gender, (2) school year, (3) mother’s education, and (4) father’s education. The paper presents the findings for each variable separately. The results show gender assigned at birth to have the biggest effect on undergraduate students’ gender perceptions, mother’s education to have a small effect, and father’s education to have no effect. The most striking and notable result from the meta-analysis is the lack of difference between the gender perceptions of freshman and senior undergraduate students.

Attitudes towards animals and belief in animal mind among first-year veterinary students before and after an introductory animal welfare course

Veterinarians are increasingly looked to for guidance on matters relating to animal welfare, yet little is known about US veterinary students' attitudes and beliefs about animals. In 2019, we surveyed all first-year veterinary students at a major US veterinary college (n = 123) before and after taking a required one-credit introductory animal welfare course. Attitudes were measured using the Pests, Pets and Profit (PPP) scale and belief in animal mind (BAM) was measured using an ad hoc measure adapted from previous work. Pre- and post-course comparisons indicated the introductory animal welfare course had no immediate effect on veterinary students' attitudes or BAM. Veterinary students' attitudes were most positive for animals considered pets, followed by pests and those used for profit. Students believed most species possess a wide variety of mental capacities, including many secondary emotions often considered uniquely human (eg guilt, embarrassment, jealousy). Sociodemographic variables consistently associated with more positive attitudes towards animals were: female gender, vegetarianism and liberal political ideology. Preferring a career involving large or food animal practice was consistently associated with less positive attitudes towards animals. Belief in animal mind explained 3% of the variation in attitude scores, whereas sociodemographic variables explained 49% of variation in attitude scores. Female gender, vegetarianism and preferring small (vs large or food animal practice) were all associated with greater BAM scores. Understanding veterinary student attitudes towards animals and beliefs about the mental capacities of animals is important when evaluating a veterinarian's ability to adhere to their oath.

Psychological Distress in Men During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Brazil: The Role of the Sociodemographic Variables, Uncertainty and Social Support

Objective: to analyze the relationships between sociodemographic variables, intolerance to uncertainty (INT), social support and psychological distress (i.e., indicators of Common Mental Disorders [CMDs] and perceived stress [PS]) in Brazilian men during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: a cross-sectional study with national coverage, of the web survey type, and conducted with 1,006 Brazilian men during the period of social circulation restriction imposed by the health authorities in Brazil, for suppression of the coronavirus and control of the pandemic. Structural equation modeling analysis was performed. Results: Statistically significant direct effects of race/skin color (&lambda;=0.268; p-value&lt;0.001), socioeconomic status (SES) (&lambda;=0.306; p-value&lt;0.001), household composition (&lambda;=0.281; p-value&lt;0.001), PS (&lambda;=0.513; p-value&lt;0.001) and INT (&lambda;=0.421; p-value&lt;0.001) were evidenced in the occurrence of CMDs. Black-skinned men, with higher SES, living alone and with higher PS and INT levels presented higher prevalence values of CMDs. Conclusions: high levels of PS and INT were the factors that presented the strongest associations with the occurrence of CMDs among the men. It is necessary to implement actions to reduce the stress-generating sources, as well as to promote an increase in resilience and the development of intrinsic reinforcements to deal with uncertain threats.