Assessing the Impact of Holocaust Education on Adolescents’ Civic Values: Experimental Evidence from Arkansas

Background American adults overwhelmingly agree that the Holocaust should be taught in schools, yet few studies investigate the potential benefits of Holocaust education. Objectives We evaluate the impact of a Holocaust education conference on knowledge of the Holocaust and several civic outcomes, including “upstander” efficacy (willingness to intervene on behalf of others), likelihood of exercising civil disobedience, empathy for the suffering of others, and tolerance of others with different values and lifestyles. Research Design We recruit two cohorts of students from three local high schools and randomize access to the Arkansas Holocaust Education Conference, where students have the chance to hear from a Holocaust survivor and to participate in breakout sessions led by Holocaust experts. Results We find evidence that the conference increased participants’ upstander efficacy, but fail to reject the null hypothesis that the conference would increase participants’ knowledge or other civic attitudes.

I’ll be there for you? Effects of Islamophobic online hate speech and counter speech on Muslim in-group bystanders’ intention to intervene

Online hate speech is very common. This is problematic as degrading social groups can traumatize targets, evoke stress, and depression. Since no reaction of others could suggest the acceptability of hate speech, bystander intervention is essential. However, it is unclear when and how minorities react to hate speech. Drawing from social identity theory and research on in-group intervention, we inquire how Islamophobic online hate speech and counter speech by majority or minority members shape Muslims’ willingness to intervene. Thus, in an online experiment ( N = 362), we varied the presence of Islamophobic online hate speech and counter speech by a (non-) Muslim. Results showed that Islamophobic online hate speech led to a perceived religious identity threat which, in turn, increased the personal responsibility to intervene and resulted in higher intentions to utter factual counter speech. In addition, counter speech by both majority and minority members directly reduced Muslims’ intentions to counterargue hatefully.

OTs' Role in Screening and Addressing Polypharmacy Side Effects With Geriatric Clients

Date Presented 04/200/21 Older adults in the United States are at high risk for polypharmacy, which is related to increased falls, confusion, constipation, weakness, and tiredness. OTs are uniquely prepared to notice function-related impairments due to polypharmacy but do not routinely screen for or address it. This study found that an infographic increased OTs' knowledge of and willingness to intervene regarding polypharmacy and may be cost effective and time efficient in encouraging OTs to attend to polypharmacy side effects. Primary Author and Speaker: Anna M. Quigg Contributing Authors: Jennifer Gordon, Allison Bigg, Kathleen Graser, and Victoria Fichter

Can a social media intervention improve online communication about suicide? A feasibility study examining the acceptability and potential impact of the #chatsafe campaign

There is a need for effective and youth-friendly approaches to suicide prevention, and social media presents a unique opportunity to reach young people. Although there is some evidence to support the delivery of population-wide suicide prevention campaigns, little is known about their capacity to change behaviour, particularly among young people and in the context of social media. Even less is known about the safety and feasibility of using social media for the purpose of suicide prevention. Based on the #chatsafe guidelines, this study examines the acceptability, safety and feasibility of a co-designed social media campaign. It also examines its impact on young people’s willingness to intervene against suicide and their perceived self-efficacy, confidence and safety when communicating on social media platforms about suicide. A sample of 189 young people aged 16–25 years completed three questionnaires across a 20-week period (4 weeks pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention, and at 4-week follow up). The intervention took the form of a 12-week social media campaign delivered to participants via direct message. Participants reported finding the intervention acceptable and they also reported improvements in their willingness to intervene against suicide, and their perceived self-efficacy, confidence and safety when communicating on social media about suicide. Findings from this study present a promising picture for the acceptability and potential impact of a universal suicide prevention campaign delivered through social media, and suggest that it can be safe to utilize social media for the purpose of suicide prevention.

Attribution Theory, Bystander Effect and Willingness to Intervene in Intimate Partner Violence

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a crime that is afflicted by a current or previous romantic relationship partner. One in four women has experienced IPV at least once in their lifetime, with physical and psychological consequences. IPV cases tend to go largely unnoticed and under-reported, with low rates of intervention by bystanders. This cross-sectional correlational study investigated whether a combination of attribution theory and the bystander effect could predict the willingness of strangers to intervene in IPV. There were two models tested. The first model examined attitudes towards the victim, while the second one examined attitudes towards the perpetrator. The relationship between perceived responsibility and willingness to intervene was hypothesized to be mediated by sympathy and anger, with the number of bystanders as a moderator to mediating pathways (sympathy towards victim and anger towards perpetrator). A convenience sample of 278 Australian residents aged 18-years and older was presented in a vignette depicting an IPV incident occurring in public. Participants completed measures about the vignette in an online questionnaire. Model testing was conducted using MPlus; confirmatory factor analysis indicated a good fit of the measurement models. After controlling potential covariates, moderated mediation models of victim and perpetrator were analyzed. Attribution theory was a significant predictor in willingness to intervene ( f² = .23, p < .001), but the bystander effect was not. Both attitudes towards victim and perpetrator accounted for unique variance in willingness to intervene in IPV, highlighting the importance of examining both. Findings indicate that psychoeducation campaigns aimed at reducing victim-blaming and promoting intervening behavior could be an effective means of preventing IPV.

The Role of Death Anxiety and Self-Esteem in Suicide Attitudes

The persistent stigmatization of suicide calls for a careful examination of the thought processes involved in perceptions of suicide. Hence, the present study is the first to apply terror management theory (TMT) and use experimental methods to examine whether reminders of death lead to increased stigma towards suicide and whether self-esteem moderates these stigmatized reactions. Consistent with the predicted effect of the death anxiety and self-esteem hypothesis, findings revealed that, for respondents with low self-esteem, thinking about their own death led to more stigma, less willingness to intervene, and allocated less money to a suicide prevention organization as compared to those who did not think about death. Findings from this study could have important implications for how we understand the psychological underpinnings of stigma and the role of death anxiety in hostile attitudes and decreased altruism – especially for mental health professionals working with individuals affected by suicide.

Military Alliances and Public Support for War

How do military alliances affect public support for war to defend victims of aggression? We offer the first experimental evidence on this fundamental question. Our experiments revealed that alliance commitments greatly increased the American public's willingness to intervene abroad. Alliances shaped public opinion by increasing public fears about the reputational costs of nonintervention and by heightening the perceived moral obligation to intervene out of concerns for fairness and loyalty. Finally, although alliances swayed public opinion across a wide range of circumstances, they made the biggest difference when the costs of intervention were high, the stakes of intervention were low, and the country needing aid was not a democracy. Thus, alliances can create pressure for war even when honoring the commitment would be extremely inconvenient, which could help explain why democratic allies tend to be so reliable. These findings shed new light on the consequences of alliances and other international legal commitments, the role of morality in foreign policy, and ongoing debates about domestic audience costs.