Mafia Women: A Study on Language and Mental Representations of Women Engaged with Mafia Members

For a long time, women in the Mafia were considered victims who were unaware of the activities of the men in their families. However, it has recently been demonstrated that these women may play an important role in the organisation, particularly in the transmission of Mafia values. In this study, we explored the representations of self, relationships, and the Mafia world in women engaged with Mafia members. This was done by means of in-depth interviews and computer-assisted text analysis. A cluster analysis was applied to words used by the women in the interviews. Three clusters emerged that accounted for 85% of the principal contents of the interviews. These were interpreted as "representations of family", "representations of social relationships", and "ideals and values". The analysis of words included in each cluster suggested that Mafia women are deeply involved in the transmission of traditional Sicilian values to their offspring. These ideals and beliefs are deeply rooted in the Mafia organisation and they involve attributing a central role to family, religion, and honor within the Mafia culture. Findings of the study could be positively used for developing appropriate preventative and social measures that may help these women change their ideals and beliefs related to the Mafia world, thus breaking the transmission of Mafia values

Le strategie comunicative di Cosa nostra: una ricerca empirica

The following article proposes an empirical study to explore communication strategies in Cosa Nostra. Psychological studies on the characteristics of the language used within the criminal organization are undoubtedly recent, but crucial to thoroughly understand the characteristics of the implicit and explicit communication it adopts in the various contexts it works, as well as the power and value they assume. The data we have obtained from some videos concerning interviews and police interrogations to men of honor have been analyzed through a method which refers to the grounds of qualitative research in clinical psychology, the Grounded Theory (Glaser, Strauss; 1967). The analysis we have carried out and its relevant data show us a world of Mafia where the care for linguistic choices, for both form and contents, is characterized as a crucial activity, even when words are replaced by silence or gestures

From trauma to aggression: an empirical study on the relationship between interpersonal trauma, attachment styles and aggressive tendencies among adults

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between traumatic experiences, insecure attachment styles and psychiatric symptoms in adulthood. Self-report measures concerning trauma, attachment styles and psychopathology were administered to 59 adults (33.9% males, 66.1% females) ranging in age from 18 to 61 years old. Results showed that traumatic experiences were associated with insecure attachment styles and psychopathology, in particular concerning aggressive tendencies. Findings of the study suggest that the exploration of past experiences and current attachment relationships, in terms of interpersonal functioning, may be crucial for understanding aggressiveness

Stigma and mental health: the perception of the health professionals of the future and the feasible interventions

Stigma towards mental ill people is gaining importance within the field of mental health. The following paper tries to investigate the stigma phenomenon of undergraduates in Medicine, Psychology and Nursing. Since those are the key figures of the future in the treatment of the patients, their possible stigmatizing behaviors can influence negatively the therapeutic course of the patients themselves.For this purpose, a review of the major works concerned with the object of the study has been conducted, in order to survey feasible interventions to reduce stigma and negative attitudes from the students.</p

Populism as Fundamentalism: A Psychodynamic Reading of the Phenomenon

Today, the most disturbing political question seems to be of a psychodynamic nature: what occupies the minds of individuals and society in general, other than a wealth of contradictions and a great emptiness?  The accumulation of insensitivity and cruelty towards the world and towards oneself seems to be shaping up as the biggest problem facing this new century.To this end, the present study lays out an innovative psychodynamic reading of the political and cultural attitude of populism.  The phenomenon is herein analyzed using a psychodynamic perspective, which will enable us to deduce just how such an orientation, in its phenomenological aspects, lends itself to fundamentalist connotations typical of saturated thought.  If it can be said that the individual often acts in a manner that seeks to consciously utilize reason and emotion through the intermediary of the Ego, the masses tend to act impulsively and without any conscious awareness of their actions, on the basis of unmediated instinctual drives.  Understanding the unconscious dynamics that underlie the attitudes and behaviors which the general population assumes in the face of crises, social emergencies, diversity, economics, and ecology is an essential step towards developing sustainable, concrete solutions at the psychological, social, and political levels, precisely by taking as a starting point a profound awareness of the psychodynamic mechanisms which dictate the orientation of the perception of reality and the resulting decision-making process.</p

Pathological gambling in adolescence: a narrative review

Pathological gambling is an emerging and increasing phenomenon in Western counties. This work is aimed at reviewing the existing literature on this topic, paying special attention to its development, course and outcome in adolescence. We will explore epidemiological data, the instruments for the diagnostic and clinical assessment, the course and the outcome of the disorder, the comorbidity with other psychiatric syndromes and disorders. The main risk factors will be described at individual, social and community level. We provide an overview of the available pharmacological and psychological treatments and we report a clinical vignette in order to describe the psychological and psychopathological features of pathological gambling in adolescence. 

Colorectal Cancer Stage at Diagnosis Before vs During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

IMPORTANCE Delays in screening programs and the reluctance of patients to seek medical attention because of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 could be associated with the risk of more advanced colorectal cancers at diagnosis. OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was associated with more advanced oncologic stage and change in clinical presentation for patients with colorectal cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This retrospective, multicenter cohort study included all 17 938 adult patients who underwent surgery for colorectal cancer from March 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021 (pandemic period), and from January 1, 2018, to February 29, 2020 (prepandemic period), in 81 participating centers in Italy, including tertiary centers and community hospitals. Follow-up was 30 days from surgery. EXPOSURES Any type of surgical procedure for colorectal cancer, including explorative surgery, palliative procedures, and atypical or segmental resections. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was advanced stage of colorectal cancer at diagnosis. Secondary outcomes were distant metastasis, T4 stage, aggressive biology (defined as cancer with at least 1 of the following characteristics: signet ring cells, mucinous tumor, budding, lymphovascular invasion, perineural invasion, and lymphangitis), stenotic lesion, emergency surgery, and palliative surgery. The independent association between the pandemic period and the outcomes was assessed using multivariate random-effects logistic regression, with hospital as the cluster variable. RESULTS A total of 17 938 patients (10 007 men [55.8%]; mean [SD] age, 70.6 [12.2] years) underwent surgery for colorectal cancer: 7796 (43.5%) during the pandemic period and 10 142 (56.5%) during the prepandemic period. Logistic regression indicated that the pandemic period was significantly associated with an increased rate of advanced-stage colorectal cancer (odds ratio [OR], 1.07; 95%CI, 1.01-1.13; P = .03), aggressive biology (OR, 1.32; 95%CI, 1.15-1.53; P &lt; .001), and stenotic lesions (OR, 1.15; 95%CI, 1.01-1.31; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE This cohort study suggests a significant association between the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the risk of a more advanced oncologic stage at diagnosis among patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer and might indicate a potential reduction of survival for these patients

Un percorso attraverso la psicologia del fenomeno mafioso

La visione comune che il fenomeno mafioso andasse scandagliato e compreso in una tensione etica, ma anche scientifica e particolare, in una prospettiva interdisciplinare che ne sostenesse l„intendimento in un orizzonte di complessità e ne promuovesse il distanziamento dalle collusioni quotidiane, nonché la convergenza di interessi ed il dialogo tra campi del sapere distanti tra loro: quello giuridico giudiziario e quello psicodinamico e gruppoanalitico, ha partorito alla fine degli anni Novanta una fervida sezione di studi che hanno affiancato quelli sul sentire mafioso (Di Maria, 1995) e sul pensare mafioso (Fiore, 1997), sistematizzando le indagini sulla psiche mafiosa e riconoscendo nella mafia siciliana un„organizzazione/istituzione un sistema antropopsichico in cui cultura, famiglia, individuo e società si compermeano