Scandinavian journal of psychology最新文献

Social media offers numerous advantages, yet the dark side of it haunts youth. One of the several potential detrimental aspects appears as social media addiction (SmA), which poses risks to the psychological well-being (PW) of youth. Among university students, excessive social media use can lead to SmA and a subsequent decrease in PW. This study scrutinizes the mediating effects of techno-invasion (TI) and techno-overload (TO), instigated by SmA, on students' psychological well-being, a relationship that previous research has not conclusively explored. Our research constructs a model to examine the moderating effects of social capital, specifically through the lenses of social bonding and social bridging, on the nexus between social media-induced challenges and psychological well-being. This investigation examines the associations between SmA, TO and TI through self-esteem among students. Data collected through a three-wave time-lagged design from 991 university students in Abu Dhabi, UAE, were analyzed with the PROCESS macro. The findings reveal that SmA is significantly negatively related to students' self-esteem, which in turn is associated with increased levels of TI and TO, ultimately reducing psychological well-being. Moreover, the study verifies the moderating roles of social bonding and social bridging in the TI-PW and TO-PW relationships. The paper concludes by addressing the broader implications of these findings and suggesting avenues for future research in this domain. This study demonstrates how SmA reduces self-esteem, which in turn increases TO and TI, ultimately leading to a decline in PW. The findings suggest that improving self-esteem and enhancing social capital through stronger connections with family and friends can help alleviate the negative consequences of SmA on students' well-being, offering valuable contributions to the literature on digital stress and mental health.

Stress is a potential risk factor for other serious health concerns. Studies show an association between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and stress due to impairments in emotional regulation and executive functioning that are typical of the disorder. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) is among the most widely used measures of perceived stress, and its four-item version (PSS-4) lacks validation in Norwegian contexts. This study aims to evaluate the construct validity of the PSS-4 in an adult ADHD sample, to facilitate effective and valid measurements of perceived stress in this population. A total of 423 adults with ADHD were recruited through a Norwegian user involvement organization. Confirmatory factor analysis with a two- and a one-factor model was applied. Gradually, more restricted models were evaluated in terms of model fit and compared with each other to test measurement invariance across sexes. Pearson correlations were calculated for the association with related constructs. Our results favored the two-factor model, which demonstrated a good fit, over the one-factor model. Our results indicated that the PSS-4 posits measurement invariance across sexes at the configural, metric, and scalar levels. All correlations aligned with expected directions and strengths. These results indicate that the Norwegian PSS-4 posits good construct and structural validity, and measurement invariance across sexes in this population. In sum, our results support the use of the PSS-4 as a short and valid measure of perceived stress among adults with ADHD.

Evidence has shown that rights-claiming initiatives by disadvantaged groups can elicit negative (reactionary) responses from the advantaged. The present work analyzes the effect of rights-claiming initiatives of a disadvantaged minority group (Moroccan immigrants) on the stereotypes, emotions, behavioral intentions, and support for collective actions manifested by the advantaged majority group (Spaniards) toward them. Following a mixed-methods sequential exploratory design, one qualitative (Study 1) and two experimental studies (Study 2 and 3) were conducted. Furthermore, we examine the differential effect of rights-claiming initiatives and upward social mobility (Study 2; N = 683) and the influence of group membership and different levels of vindication on attitudes toward the rights-claiming group (Study 3; N = 402). The main results show that: (1) Moroccans were perceived as an active minority but also as a group engaged in upward mobility; (2) Perceiving Moroccans as an active minority compared to upwardly mobile led to less positive affective reactions and behavioral intentions due to perceiving Moroccans as more immoral and less sociable; (3) Only when both Spaniards and Moroccans were presented as active did Spanish participants perceive Moroccans compared to Spaniards as more immoral and, in turn, manifest less positive affective reactions and behavioral intentions toward the target group. Although the rights initiatives by the disadvantaged did not seem to undermine the attitudes of the advantaged group toward them, the findings suggest that these initiatives have a more negative impact on intergroup attitudes than other social change strategies and have the potential to induce intergroup bias.

This study explores how Norwegian leaders in rural municipalities attend to disaster risk governance and prepare for resilient response to threats from systemic, interconnected, and cascading hazards. Systemic risk management in the Norwegian municipalities will depend on the context and how critical organizational processes are managed by the municipal leaders. Following the COVID-19 pandemic and an increased awareness of climate-related threats, 12 Norwegian municipal leaders (7 men and 5 women) participated in semi-structured interviews on crisis management and disaster risk preparedness in their municipality. The analysis identified three main themes: (a) Facing the unknown: addressing their emotional perception of risk, responsibilities, and the constant struggle to balance their everyday tasks and prioritize crisis preparedness; (b) Procedures are needed but relations are key: pointing to the need for collaboration, the value of trust, and to maintain good interpersonal relations; (c) We need to train: acknowledging the value of training and crisis preparedness in searching for viable ways to prepare for the unexpected. The study underscores the role of municipal leaders and highlights the value of interpersonal relations and trust when faced with decision dilemmas, uncertainty, and training needs in local disaster risk governance.

Human mate selection is a critical precursor to reproduction and involves three key dimensions: physical attractiveness, resources, and good parenting. The behavioral immune system influences these mate standards, with pathogen threats increasing emphasis on physical attractiveness as health indicators. This study investigated whether modern disease prevention measures, such as sterile medical gloves, can affect individuals' ideal mate standards by altering behavioral immune system activation. Sixty-six Chinese undergraduate students were randomly assigned to wear sterile medical gloves (gloved condition) or not (ungloved condition) while reading a contaminated newspaper to simulate pathogen threat exposure. Participants then completed measures of disgust, mood, anxiety, and ideal mate standards across the three dimensions: physical attractiveness, resources, and good parenting. Following pathogen threat exposure, participants using sterile medical gloves showed significantly reduced disgust responses (indicating lowered behavioral immune system activation) and enhanced mood compared to ungloved participants. Crucially, gloved participants demonstrated decreased emphasis on physical attractiveness while simultaneously increasing their requirements for partners' resource acquisition abilities and parenting potential. Mediation analyses identified reduced disgust as the key mediator for the decreased focus on physical attractiveness. Enhanced mood provided an additional mediating pathway, reducing both physical attractiveness and resource requirements. Beyond these emotional mediators, sterile medical glove use exhibited significant direct effects on resource and parenting standards. These results suggest that disease prevention measures can systematically alter ideal mate standards following pathogen threat exposure by altering behavioral immune system activation. This study provides the first empirical evidence that modern disease prevention technologies can influence fundamental aspects of human mate selection through effects on evolved pathogen avoidance mechanisms, highlighting the adaptability of mate standards to modern disease prevention practices in contemporary societies.

Previous studies have examined different variables related to trust in science and associated trust in science with personal or psychological variables. In this study, we assessed the role of personal agency beliefs (free will, scientific determinism, fatalistic determinism, and unpredictability) and personality traits, focusing on the psychological underpinnings of trust in science. The study, which was conducted with 1019 individuals from a Turkish sample, revealed that psychological factors were more strongly predictive of trust in science than demographic factors. The results showed that free will and scientific determinism were associated with trust in science. In addition, individuals with conscientious personality traits were found to have higher confidence in science. By emphasizing the role of psychological factors, our study reveals the importance of supporting the relationship between science and society with more comprehensive research in the future.

Living under the threat of natural disasters affects mental health. Natural disasters that are more likely to occur in a specific season represent a special case that is becoming more frequent with the consequences of climate change. Therefore, they deserve special attention regarding their potentially seasonal mental health implications. We investigated seasonal and non-seasonal natural disasters and levels of exposure in terms of threatened safety in an online survey in Iceland. Among a total of 335 participants, there were 252 participants who had experienced natural disasters in the past or who lived under the threat of natural disasters to happen in their area of residency. We found that all participants who were exposed to natural disasters or their threat to happen had a higher risk perception for natural disasters than the control group, but disaster-related anxiety was increased only among individuals who had their safety threatened because of a natural disaster (p < 0.001). Individuals who lived under the threat of seasonal disasters or who had their safety threatened by seasonal disasters had a lower risk perception for non-seasonal disasters as compared to controls (p < 0.001). There was also an association between the experience of depression-specific seasonal symptoms and disaster anxiety (p < 0.001). The research shows the critical impacts of compromised safety due to natural disasters on risk perception and mental health, but more specifically disaster anxiety, which in turn is related to an increased vulnerability to experience seasonal symptoms.

The coping pattern of individuals who experience different cultures is influenced by different worldviews and ways of dealing with problems. This study aimed to estimate the psychometric properties of the BriefCOPE inventory and to compare coping strategies between Brazilian and Finnish university students. The study also aimed to identify how individual characteristics relate to coping strategies and explore the interconnections among strategies within the student samples from both countries. This is a cross-sectional observational study. Data was collected in Brazil using paper-and-pencil (n = 398, female = 66.6%; mean age = 21.0, SD = 2.2 years) and in Finland using an online survey (n = 165, female = 67.3% mean age = 26.9, SD = 7.2 years) during 2023 and 2024. A demographic questionnaire and the BriefCOPE Inventory were used. The fit of BriefCOPE to the samples was estimated using confirmatory factor analysis. Prevalences of coping strategies commonly used by students were calculated using a 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Multiple logistic regression models were developed, and the odds ratio (OR) was estimated considering each sample and its characteristics. Network analysis was carried out to identify the interconnection among coping strategies. The BriefCOPE Inventory presented adequate psychometric properties in both samples after refinement. Brazilian students showed a higher prevalence of using "Planning" and "Self-Distraction" strategies, while Finnish students showed a more uniform and balanced use of all coping strategies. In Brazil, students who reported having some type of mental health care had a greater probability of using adaptive strategies ("Active Coping": OR = 3.51). In Finland, individual characteristics seem to have little effect on the choice of coping strategies. For both samples, "Planning" was the main strategy in maintaining networks. Finnish students have a larger and diverse repertoire to face everyday problems and better manage psychosocial demands compared to Brazilian students. Expanding students' coping repertoire can be important in preventing the development of symptoms associated with mental disorders in response to stress.

Illegitimate tasks are tasks that are perceived as unnecessary or unreasonable. They act as stressors and are expected to induce various strains on employees, including motivational strains. In previous studies, only the association between illegitimate tasks and intrinsic motivation was examined. In the present three-wave longitudinal study, the examination was expanded to include the full motivational continuum described in self-determination theory. Structural equation modeling was used to examine both cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between illegitimate tasks and behavioral regulations among Finnish working adults. In addition to intrinsic motivation, illegitimate tasks were observed to also be strongly associated with amotivation and more moderately associated with external regulation, introjected regulation, and identified regulation in the expected directions. In longitudinal analyses, illegitimate tasks were observed to predict an increase in amotivation and a decrease in autonomous motivation; introjected regulation was observed to predict an increase in illegitimate tasks; and autonomous motivation was observed to predict a decrease in illegitimate tasks. Illegitimate tasks and motivation described in self-determination theory may have reciprocal associations over time. Examining other behavioral regulatory styles in addition to intrinsic motivation is recommended.

Previous research on adolescents with minority ethnic backgrounds has often centered on risks and vulnerabilities due to the effects of racism in society. This however leaves a gap in the literature when it comes to positive aspects of ethnic identity, and the gap is even more pronounced when it comes to European contexts since the few previous studies have largely been performed in the United States. Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore positive ethnic identity content among adolescents with minority ethnic backgrounds living in Sweden. Fifteen late adolescents, self-identifying with a minority ethnic background, who reported that their ethnicity was central to their sense of self and who had explored what their ethnic identity meant to them, were interviewed. The interviews were inductively coded and were analyzed using thematic analysis. Three main themes with subthemes were identified. The first main theme was A Minority Ethnic Identity - a Sense of Belonging, in which the adolescents' positive content related to their minority ethnic background was characterized as being close to their hearts and connected to family and home. The second, A Swedish Identity - Being an Active Part of Swedish Society, contained positive content about values in Swedish society, such as tolerance and gender equality as well as their agency in utilizing opportunities in society. In the last theme, A Pluricultural Identity - Cultural Richness, positive content centered around an appreciation of having several ethnicities and cultural backgrounds as part of one's ethnic identity, rendering a whole that is more than the sum of its parts. The present study illuminates differences in what constitutes positive ethnic identity content among minority adolescents in Sweden depending on which aspect of their ethnic identity is in focus. This has implications for research on ethnic identity as it underlines the need to be deliberate and specific when formulating questions about someone's ethnic identity, lest valuable information and complexity go undiscovered.