Revised environmental identity scale: Adaptation and preliminary examination on a sample of Italian pet owners

The Revised Environmental Identity (EID) Scale is a tool proposed by Clayton in 2021 to replace her 2003's EID Scale and aims to measure individual differences in a stable sense of interdependence and connectedness with nature. Since an Italian version of this scale was still missing, the present study presents an adaptation of the Revised EID Scale in Italian. The scale has been translated, back-translated, and administered online to 163 pet owners living in Italy in the context of a study about pet attachment. A parallel analysis suggested the existence of two factors. The exploratory factor analysis (EFA) identified the same number of factors: "Connectedness to nature" (nine items) and "Protection of nature" (five items); the two subscales were found to be consistent. This structure explains more variance compared with the traditional one-factor solution. Sociodemographic variables do not seem to affect the scores of the two EID factors. This adaptation and preliminary validation of the EID scale have relevant implications for studies in the Italian context as well as on specific population groups such as pet owners, and more generally, for international studies on EID

Place attachment satisfies psychological needs in the context of environmental risk coping: experimental evidence of a link between self-determination theory and person-place relationship effects

The present paper aims to provide some empirical evidence of how the ability of places to satisfy psychological needs might be an antecedent for the creation of an affective bond with those places by using visualization techniques for place attachment manipulation and exploring the similarities between two main frames of reference in literature, place attachment literature and Self-Determination Theory (SDT). The paper has three main hypotheses: 1) showing that the basic needs hypothesized by SDTand those hypothesized by Place Attachment Literature are both affected by place features and have similar affective and behavioral outcomes; 2) showing that the ability of a place to satisfy individual’s needs is associated with the individual attachment to the place; 3) showing that the place attachment developed by the perception of needs satisfaction affects individual’s place-related behaviors. Two experimental studies were conducted manipulating place attachment toward a new evacuation site in a virtual location affected by natural hazards, with two scenario manipulations. One manipulation is realized on the basis of the needs emerged by place attachment literature taxonomies. The second manipulation aims to the same target on the basis of Self-Determination Theory. Study 1 shows that both manipulations affect psychological need satisfaction and place attachment; Study 2 shows that they also affect risk coping place-related behavior. Results confirm the three hypotheses and shed light on how psychological needs satisfaction is linked to place attachment and its practical relevance for environmental risk perception and coping in natural hazard contexts, possibly improving risk coping plans in emergency situations and, ultimately, saving lives. Moreover, these results could be applied also to other settings, like shelters or temporary settlements improving wellness conditions in these environments

Psicologia sociale e ambientale per la resilienza umana nelle emergenze ambientali. Social and environmental psychology for human resilience during environmental emergencies

L'articolo presenta i principali approcci della psicologia sociale e ambientale applicata ai contesti di rischio ambientale e, in particolare al terremoto. L'articolo illustra quali fattori psicologico-sociali influenzano il comportamento nelle varie fasi della gestione del rischio (prima, durante e dopo il terremoto). Sono approfonditi in particolare, il ruolo dell'attaccamento al luogo e di altri costrutti psicologici nella fase precedente al terremoto, i comportamenti che le persone mettono in atto al momento della scossa e il ruolo giocato dai social network nell'elaborazione dell'evento e nella creazione della relativa rappresentazione sociale nella fase post-evento

An exploratory survey to develop a questionnaire on social-psychological aspects of stem cell phenomenon

Stem cells (SC) are among the most promising research venues in medicine. They are also studied in social sciences (e.g., Nielsen et al., 2009), but the literature is fragmented and generally lacks standard tools. This paper has three aims: investigating SC social representation; presenting a first validation of some SC-relevant social-psychological constructs’ scales; comparing the two main SC donation techniques as for their relation with some social-psychological variables. Scales for the following SC-related variables were employed: subjective and objective knowledge, sources of information, attitudes, previous behaviors, motivations and deterrents, behavioral intentions, norms, satisfaction with information, perceived environmental impact of SC. Schwartz's PVQ (Schwartz et al., 2001) and PANAS (Watson et al., 1988) were also included. 78 Italian valid subjects answered a questionnaire with these scales. Some scales were adapted from existing tools found in the literature, other scales were created ex novo from literature analysis. Each scale's factorial structure (via exploratory PCA and Cronbach's alpha) and correlations between donation intentions and other variables were explored. Results show that the SC’ social representation focuses on some general medical concepts and the specific concept of umbilical cord blood SC donation. Most of the scales have been found to have a satisfactory factorial structure and internal consistency (α>.60). As for comparing the two kinds of donation, correlational analyses highlight some interesting relations, e.g. descriptive norms seem to have a positive moderate correlation (r=.40 p<.001) only to bone marrow SC donation, while umbilical cord blood donation is more related to affective reactance (r=-.26 p>.05). Results are discussed according to the literature and directions for tools development and future research are suggested. Authors acknowledge Prof. Marino Bonaiuto for this contribution's research programme

The role of place attachment in promoting refugees’ well‐being and resettlement: e literature review

Refugees are at great risk of developing mental health problems. Yet, little is known about how to optimally help this vulnerable group as there is a lack of evaluated refugee mental health interventions. The current article presents the results of a literature review which investigates the importance of place attachment for the promotion of refugees’ well‐being in the resettlement pro-cess. This review concentrated on the most recent and current literature regarding the potential role, importance, and relevance of people–place bonds in the dynamic process of refugee resettlement. It examines literature from the field of positive and environmental psychology, highlighting key the-oretical concepts and research findings as well as gaps in research. The review revealed that little is known about the dynamics of place bonding, while the debate rages on about the geometry of the psychological constructs of person–place relationships. Yet, knowing more about which needs should be satisfied for easing place bonding could be of crucial importance for facilitating refugee well‐being. Ultimately, improving the knowledge and understanding of the phases of this dynamic process could be useful for a more successful implementation of refugee resettlement practices and activities

La valutazione post-occupativa in un intervento di riqualificazione di edilizia residenziale pubblica a Roma: soddisfazione residenziale e relazione con l’ente gestore

Non present

Sustainable technology acceptability: Mapping technological, contextual, and social-psychological determinants of EU stakeholders’ biofuel acceptance

The acceptance of biofuels is of paramount importance for the EU sustainable energy transition. This qualitative study identifies barriers and facilitators regarding biofuel technology acceptability. Stakeholders initially selected for their interest and influence in the EU biofuel field were asked about biofuel acceptance and four clusters of variables associated with the acceptability according to the literature on similar sustainable technologies: technology per se, economic and market-related aspects, political and administrative aspects, and social-psychological features of the person. Results from a qualitative content analysis based on 32 stakeholders interviews confirmed the presence of contents in these four clusters, highlighting specific issues linked to biofuel technology acceptability. Facilitating and inhibiting aspects of each cluster are discussed; quantitative research developments as well as applied implications are envisioned towards biofuel acceptance

Green versus grey break: children's place experience of recess-time in primary schools' natural and built area

Studies regarding the experience of children in schools' outdoor environments report several benefits of nature on children's cognitive, emotional, and physical development; thus, there is a need to systematically assess the characteristics of children's place experience considering their own activities and social interactions. The present study investigated the perceptions of the physical environment and children-environment interactions during recess-time in natural (vs. built) schoolyards. In a between-subjects quasi-experiment in two Italian Primary schools, we collected and analyzed 298 children's drawings and written descriptions regarding the activities they engage during recess time, developing a detailed coding system. Results showed how during the green break (vs. grey) children significantly engaged in more exploratory behaviors, rough and tumble behaviors, and active conversation, while in the grey break their play was more structured and left less space for free activities. In drawings, the natural environment (vs. built) is pictured as significantly more green, open, and rich in biodiversity and details, compared to the built environment that is depicted as grey, closed, and more crowded. Implications are discussed in both theoretical and practical terms on how natural schoolyards can afford different place experiences and play and non-play behaviors in children, contributing to improve their well-being during school-time

Perceived Residential Environment Quality Indicators (PREQIs) relevance for UN-HABITAT City Prosperity Index (CPI)

This paper presents some relevant tools for UN-HABITAT CPI, addressing the relationship between residential neighbourhood assessment, neighbourhood attachment and overall residential satisfaction of residents in the Iranian the city of Tabriz. The first aim of the study is to validate some cross-cultural tools e focusing on the Quality of Life (QOL) spoke of the CPI's wheel of urban prosperity e for use in an urban residential context (Fornara et al., 2010); specifically an abbreviated version of the Perceived Residential Environment Quality Indicators (PREQIs) and the Neighbourhood Attachment Scale (NAS), as well as items for measurement of Residential Satisfaction (RS). The instruments consist of 11 scales measuring PREQIs, one scale measuring Neighbourhood Attachment and three items about RS. The second aim is to test a model of the links among the constructs measured by these tools that deal with different features of QOL. For example, if some global PREQIs (i.e., pace of life) mediate the relationship between other, more specific PREQIs and Neighbourhood Attachment; and then if they ultimately predict RS, they may be considered as final outcome criteria. PREQIs, NAS and RS items are included in a selfreport questionnaire, (translated from English into Farsi language) and then administered to 239 residents of Tabriz, Iran. Multivariate statistical analyses of the survey results extends the cross-cultural validity of the tools, as well as testing relationship models going from specific to global PREQIs, to NAS, finally predicting RS. The discussion argues for the relevance of PREQIs, NAS and RS constructs and tools in deepening the knowledge on the QOL spoke within the UN-HABITAT CPI