A Serious Game Approach in Anti-Doping Education: the Game Project

Anti-doping education has largely relied on traditional educational approaches such as face-to-face interaction and e-learning material. Current challenges in anti-doping education involve a) the development of modern educational tools suitable for the new generation of athletes, b) the use of state-of- art learning pedagogies that will enable effective engagement, learning and retention of the learned material, c) a systematic evaluation of the outcomes of anti-doping educational interventions on behavior and related cognition, and d) a positive approach to doping prevention. Project GAME aims to address these needs through the development of a serious game that will incorporate current empirical evidence on the psychological mechanisms underpinning the decision making process towards doping use in competitive and recreational sports. The aim of the present study is to highlight the importance of anti-doping education, conduct a state of the art literature review on serious games' design, present the prototype of a scenario that will be included in a serious game for anti-doping education, and discuss the project's activities related to the use of technologies in anti-doping education. +++++++++++++ Anti-doping education has largely relied on traditional educational aproaches such as face-to-face interaction and e-learning material. Current chalenges in anti-doping education involve a) the development of modern educational tools suitable for the new generation of athletes, b) the use of state-of- art learning pedagogies that will enable effective engagement, learning and retention of the learned material, c) a systematic evaluation of the outcomes of anti-doping educational interventions on behavior and related cognition, and d) a positive approach to doping prevention. Project GAME aims to address these needs through the development of a serious game that will incorporate current empirical evidence on the psychological mechanisms underpinning the decision making process towards doping use in competitive and recreational sports. The aim of the present study is to highlight the importance of anti-doping education, conduct a state of the art literature review on serious games' design, present the prototype of a scenario that will be included in a serious game for anti-doping education, and discuss the project's activities related to the use of technologies in anti-doping educatio

Evaluating Factors Contributing to Misalignment of the South African National Cybeersecurity Policy Framework

This paper evaluates factors contributing to misalignment of the South African National Cybersecurity Framework (SA-NCPF) and suggest better ways to align the national policy framework to national, regional and global cyberlaws. The SA-NCPF is designed to mitigate, address and provide the regulatory guidelines relating to escalating cybercrimes, however, the complexity and interplays of factors contributing to misalignment make it difficult to achieve and measure alignment of national cyberlaws. The SA-NCPF recognises the complexities, inconsistencies, fragmentation and poor coordination of e-legislation, thus, it is imperative to recommend the removal of hindrances. By reviewing various literature, we were able to discuss and integrate a number of theoretical works that explain inconsistencies/misalignments in law. We synthesised literature to produce an integrated theoretical framework, which is a major innovation of this study. The integrated theoretical framework provides a broader perspective of the influencing factors and their interplay resulting in complex relationships which are difficult to understand. The researchers used the integrative theoretical framework and the configuration approach to develop a conceptual model. This model guides the measurement of the extent of alignment of the influencing factors and the identification of that combinations of these factors that yields an effective Cybersecurity Policy Framework. The conceptual model will be validated in a later study

“They Deserved It”: Using the Just World Hypothesis to Understand Blaming, Apathy, and Support on Social Media

Social media offers a forum for individuals to share experiences after being wronged by an individual, an organization, a group, or a government. While some individuals gain support through sharing experiences on social media, other victims become the subject of attacks or receive little to no response from others regarding their injustice. An individual’s response to a victim’s social media post may be explained by the just world hypothesis. In this article, we explain the just world hypothesis and how this theory applies to when individuals respond to victims on social media. The just world hypothesis offers a means to understand factors that encourage negative social media behaviors. In this conceptual article, we explain how future research may leverage the just world hypothesis as a theoretical lens to examine why individuals engage in victim blaming, victim apathy, or victim support using social media

Comparing early adolescents’ positive bystander responses to cyberbullying and traditional bullying: the impact of severity and gender

Young people are frequently exposed to bullying events in the offline and online domain. Witnesses to these incidents act as bystanders and play a pivotal role in reducing or encouraging bullying behaviour. The present study examined 868 (47.2% female) 11-13-year-old early adolescent pupils’ bystander responses across a series of hypothetical vignettes based on traditional and cyberbullying events. The vignettes experimentally controlled for severity across mild, moderate, and severe scenarios. The findings showed positive bystander responses (PBRs) were higher in cyberbullying than traditional bullying incidents. Bullying severity impacted on PBRs, in that PBRs increased across mild, moderate, and severe incidents, consistent across traditional and cyberbullying. Females exhibited more PBRs across both types of bullying. Findings are discussed in relation to practical applications within the school. Strategies to encourage PBRs to all forms of bullying should be at the forefront of bullying intervention methods

Understanding the Bystander Audience in Online Incivility Encounters: Conceptual Issues and Future Research Questions

This paper presents a theoretical exploration of how and why the 1960’s bystander theory is a valuable lens through which to study contemporary uncivil online communication, particularly in user commenting spaces. Based on the literature on bystander intervention, which includes extensive field and experimental research on bystander behavior in emergency situations, this paper understands non-target readers of uncivil comments as the bystander audience, which is made up of people who encounter an emerging form of online emergencies and can decide whether and how to intervene. In doing so, some particularities of online affordances are taken into account to predict how they might challenge the application of traditional bystander literature. Through such considerations, this paper identifies a set of future research questions about the underlying conditions, causes, and consequences of intervention against online incivility, and then concludes with some limitations and implications of the proposed approach

Social Tie Strength and Online Victimization : An Analysis of Young People Aged 15-30 Years in Four Nations

Online interaction through the use of social networking sites (SNS) continues to be a significant component of the socialization of young people today, yet little research exists toward linking various relational forms to prevalent and much-studied online risks cross-nationally. This article provides a link between relational dynamics and online risks identified in previous research toward a new perspective on how social tie strength is related to experiences of hate victimization and harassment online. The analysis is based on survey data of Finnish (n = 555), American (n = 1033), German (n = 978), and British (n = 999) young people aged 15-30 years. Variables, including age, gender, main activity, SNS use, quantity, and extent of online and offline social networks including social tie strength and online community identification, were analyzed toward finding their associations with online hate victimization and harassment. Results showed that experiences of hate victimization and harassment were similar cross-nationally and that those who were personally harassed online also reported high SNS activity. Furthermore, no association was found between social network size and negative experiences. Notable cross-national differences were also detected in the results. Findings emphasize the importance of understanding variables fostering online risks for young people while providing a new perspective on what aspects of social life may help negate negative effects online.Peer reviewe

Virtually Standing Up or Standing By? Correlates of Enacting Social Control Online

Research has consistently established the robustness of the bystander effect, or the tendency of individuals to not intervene on behalf of others in emergency situations. This study examines the bystander effect in an online setting, focusing on factors that lead individuals to intervene, and therefore enact informal social control, on behalf of others who are being targeted by hate material. To address this question, we use an online survey (N=647) of youth and young adults recruited from a demographically balanced sample of Americans. Results demonstrate that the enactment of social control is positively affected by the existence of strong offline and online social bonds, collective efficacy, prior victimization, self-esteem, and an aversion for the hate material in question. Additionally, the amount of time that individuals spend online affects their likelihood of intervention. These findings provide important insights into the processes that underlie informal social control and begin to bridge the gap in knowledge between social control in the physical and virtual realms

The Situational-Cognitive Model of Adolescent Bystander Behavior: Modeling Bystander Decision-Making in the Context of Bullying and Teen Dating Violence.

Objective: Despite the proliferation of bystander approaches to prevent aggression among youth, theoretical models of violence-related bystander decision making are underdeveloped, particularly among adolescents. The purpose of this research was to examine the utility of 2 theories, the Situational Model of Bystander behavior (SMB) and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), for identifying mechanisms underlying adolescent bystander behavior in the context of bullying and teen dating violence (TDV). Method: Data were collected via face to face (local) and online (national) focus groups with 113 U.S. adolescents aged 14-18 and were subsequently analyzed using deductive and inductive coding methods. Results: Youth endorsed beliefs consistent with both the SMB and TPB and with additional constructs not captured by either theory. Adolescents reported a higher proportion of barriers relative to facilitators to taking action, with perceptions of peer norms and social consequences foremost among their concerns. Many influences on bystander behavior were similar across TDV and bullying. Implications: Findings are organized into the proposed Situational-Cognitive Model of Adolescent Bystander Behavior, which synthesizes the SMB and TPB, and supports the tailoring of bystander interventions. For teens, intervening is a decision about whether and how to navigate potential social consequences of taking action that unfold over time; intervention approaches must assess and acknowledge these concerns. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved