Compulsive buying among young consumers in Eastern Europe: a two-study approach to scale adaptation and validation

Purpose Although much research focuses on the compulsive buying behavior theory, little attention has been paid to evaluation and diagnosis of compulsive buying in Eastern Europe. This is surprising, given an increasing prevalence of consumerism in many transitioning economies. Young consumers are particularly vulnerable to this phenomenon. The purpose of this study is to adapt the Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale to the Eastern European, specifically Polish cultural and language environment, and to validate it within a group of young Polish consumers, as well to assess the compulsive buying prevalence and the relationship between the compulsive buying and its precursors. Design/methodology/approach The Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale was selected for adaptation to the Polish context as it represents one of the best methodological and substantive compulsive buying measures in literature. The research is composed of two studies. Study 1 uses an in-person survey of young consumers (N = 504). A wide range of statistical procedures and latent variable modeling was used in the analysis. Study 2 (N = 756) uses an online survey to evaluate the correlation and relationship between the compulsive buying measure and its precursors, including consumers’ traits and states, by implementing a multiple indicators and multiple causes model. Findings The results of the two studies confirm that the adapted scale represents a valid and reliable measure of compulsive buying tendency in Poland, with the identified incidence rate of compulsive buying among Polish young consumers ranging from 11% in Study 1 to 11.6% in Study 2. In comparison with the results of other studies using the same measure, the current research findings reveal a similarity with the compulsive buying prevalence in China (10.4%; He et al., 2018), Brazil (9.8%; Leite et al., 2013) and slightly exceed the level found in western societies (e.g. 8.9% in the USA; Ridgway et al., 2008). The results of Study 2 indicate that compulsive buying in Poland is induced by low self-esteem and high levels of materialism, depression, anxiety, stress and negative feelings. Research limitations/implications The present research offers a methodological and substantive contribution by adapting and testing the original version of the Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale within an Eastern European transitional market; specifically Poland. In addition, the study offers an empirical contribution to the international research on compulsive behavior, including its precursors, as seen in young consumers. Practical implications This research offers important public policy implications and highlights ethical implications for business organizations. In particular, the findings of this study offer suggestions for enhancing policies and processes of programing appropriate social and educational campaigns that can save young consumers from the negative consequences of compulsive buying. Originality/value The transitional status of the Polish economy and other Eastern European countries has given rise to compulsive buying behavior, especially among young consumers. This emerging consumer behavior trend in Eastern Europe is still underexplored and underreported; hence, there exists a strong need for exploring and measuring such behavior across different Eastern European markets.

Future ethical implications and potential health consequences of nanotechnology research in Jordan: A scientometric analysis

Purpose: To evaluate the implanted legislation and regulations in Jordan, in order to minimize nanotechnology research-related health concerns. Methods: In the first part, all nanotechnology published research in Scopus database and the Jordanian National Database for Researchers were mined. The growth in nanotechnology research was analyzed by calculating the relative growth rate (RGR), doubling time (DT), and compound annual growth rate (CAGR). Thereafter, the results were compared to global preferences. Furthermore, this research explored all possible factors that may influence decision-makers and health policies in Jordan. Results: Data analysis showed that the quantity of nanotechnology research in Jordan is exponentially increasing with RGR (1.96), DT (0.37), and CAGR (33 %) very close to the figures obtained worldwide. The trend line analysis (R2 = 0.9638) expected that more than 65 % of nanotechnology research will be produced within the next 5 years. Moreover, no legislation has been adapted in Jordan to regulate nanotechnology research and industry. Conclusions: Adopting nanotechnology without having any corresponding legislation constitutes a violation of the ethical codes of research, and ignorance of public safety. Moreover, the research suggests a set of steps to organize the crafting of nanotechnology and research in Jordan, and other similar contexts in developing countries.

Management of Medico-Legal Risks in Digital Health Era: A Scoping Review

Artificial intelligence needs big data to develop reliable predictions. Therefore, storing and processing health data is essential for the new diagnostic and decisional technologies but, at the same time, represents a risk for privacy protection. This scoping review is aimed at underlying the medico-legal and ethical implications of the main artificial intelligence applications to healthcare, also focusing on the issues of the COVID-19 era. Starting from a summary of the United States (US) and European Union (EU) regulatory frameworks, the current medico-legal and ethical challenges are discussed in general terms before focusing on the specific issues regarding informed consent, medical malpractice/cognitive biases, automation and interconnectedness of medical devices, diagnostic algorithms and telemedicine. We aim at underlying that education of physicians on the management of this (new) kind of clinical risks can enhance compliance with regulations and avoid legal risks for the healthcare professionals and institutions.

Lesbian and bisexual women's experiences of aversion therapy in England

This article presents the findings of a study about the history of aversion therapy as a treatment technique in the English mental health system to convert lesbians and bisexual women into heterosexual women. We explored published psychiatric and psychological literature, as well as lesbian, gay, and bisexual archives and anthologies. We identified 10 examples of young women receiving aversion therapy in England in the 1960s and 1970s. We situate our discussion within the context of post-war British and transnational medical history. As a contribution to a significantly under-researched area, this article adds to a broader transnational history of the psychological treatment of marginalised sexualities and genders. As a consequence, it also contributes to LGBTQIA+ history, the history of medicine, and psychiatric survivor history. We also reflect on the ethical implications of the research for current mental health practice.

The AI Carbon Footprint and Responsibilities of AI Scientists

This article examines ethical implications of the growing AI carbon footprint, focusing on the fair distribution of prospective responsibilities among groups of involved actors. First, major groups of involved actors are identified, including AI scientists, AI industry, and AI infrastructure providers, from datacenters to electrical energy suppliers. Second, responsibilities of AI scientists concerning climate warming mitigation actions are disentangled from responsibilities of other involved actors. Third, to implement these responsibilities nudging interventions are suggested, leveraging on AI competitive games which would prize research combining better system accuracy with greater computational and energy efficiency. Finally, in addition to the AI carbon footprint, it is argued that another ethical issue with a genuinely global dimension is now emerging in the AI ethics agenda. This issue concerns the threats that AI-powered cyberweapons pose to the digital command, control, and communication infrastructure of nuclear weapons systems.

Beyond categories: dynamic qualitative analysis of visuospatial representation in arithmetic

Visuospatial representations of numbers and their relationships are widely used in mathematics education. These include drawn images, models constructed with concrete manipulatives, enactive/embodied forms, computer graphics, and more. This paper addresses the analytical limitations and ethical implications of methodologies that use broad categorizations of representations and argues the benefits of dynamic qualitative analysis of arithmetical-representational strategy across multiple semi-independent aspects of display, calculation, and interaction. It proposes an alternative methodological approach combining the structured organization of classification with the detailed nuance of description and describes a systematic but flexible framework for analysing nonstandard visuospatial representations of early arithmetic. This approach is intended for use by researchers or practitioners, for interpretation of multimodal and nonstandard visuospatial representations, and for identification of small differences in learners’ developing arithmetical-representational strategies, including changes over time. Application is illustrated using selected data from a microanalytic study of struggling students’ multiplication and division in scenario tasks.

Teaching Offensive Lab Skills

This chapter identifies and discusses the learning outcomes to be achieved because of hands-on lab exercises using ethical hacking. It discusses the ethical implications associated with including such labs in the information security curriculum. The discussion is informed by analyses of log data on student malicious activities, and the results of student surveys. The examination of student behavior after acquiring hands-on offensive skills shows that there is potentially a high risk of using these skills in an inappropriate and illegal manner. While acknowledging the risk and the ethical problems associated with teaching ethical hacking, it strongly recommends that information security curricula should opt for a teaching approach that offers students both offensive hands-on lab exercises coupled with ethical practices related to the techniques. The authors propose steps to offer a comprehensive information security program while at the same time minimizing the risk of inappropriate student behavior and reducing institutional liability in that respect and increasing the ethical views and practices related to ethical hacking.

AI Chatbots in Mental Health

People with mental health problems often struggle in getting the suitable treatment regarding not only the type of interventions available but also the conditions required for a proper treatment, mainly cost, locality, and frequency. The use of AI chatbots for this population is a new trend and can reduce the gap between the need for mental health care making them accessible in a cost-effective way. Although chatbots are not a substitute for formal treatments, they are sometimes used in tandem with other treatments with positive results. This chapter provides a review on the subject, presenting several chatbots for mental health problems and also addressing some concerns such as privacy, data security, AI limitations, and ethical implications. Future research directions are also discussed.