Adjustment of Refugees in Greece as a Social Identity Process: A Longitudinal Study

Many refugees moving into Greece and other European countries often struggle to adjust to their new life. Over and above other factors, social isolation seems to be a major contributor in their poor adjustment outcomes, yet the underlying psychological mechanisms of their links are not well understood. Based on the Social Identity Model of Identity Change, we conceptualized refugees’ adjustment as a major life transition that depends on (i) the maintenance of existing pre-migratory group memberships (social identity continuity pathway), (ii) the development of new post-migratory social identities (social identity gain pathway), and (iii) the perceived compatibility between pre- and post-migratory identities. Belonging to multiple groups before displacement should facilitate both pathways. To test this idea, a longitudinal study with two measurement points over four months was conducted. The sample consisted of 60 asylum seekers in Greece. Using multilevel modeling, we found that social identity continuity and gain were positively related to socio-cultural adjustment, health-related adjustment, and well-being. Adjustment outcomes at Time 2 were predicted by the levels of social identity continuity at Time 1, and by group memberships before displacement through the two pathways at Time 1. Significant interactions also emerged between perceived compatibility and the two pathways. In general, the findings are consistent with SIMIC’s theorizing suggesting that to understand refugees’ adjustment in host countries, it is important to systematically consider the social identity processes that unfold over time

What is Socially Responsible During a Pandemic? Exploring the Role of Values, Trust and Adherence to Covid-19 Preventive Measures With a Mixed-Methods Study on Italian and Greek Young People

The COVID-19 pandemic is having a huge impact on people’s lives. Especially at the first stages, adherence to preventive measures was key to decreasing the number of cases, and institutions have been recommending citizens to act in a socially responsible way. Still, during the pandemic people might experience dilemmas on what it means to do so. We employed a mixed-methods approach to investigate similarities and differences in what is perceived as socially responsible among young people in Greece and Italy (Study 1), and to explore the relationships between these different meanings and their antecedents (trust, human values) and consequences (adherence to COVID-19 preventive guidelines) (Study 2). In Study 1 we found that different conceptualizations of social responsibility (SR) are driven by different ideas on what it means to be considerate of others, and these included ways to protect others’ physical and/or mental health; in Italy, acting responsibly mostly assumed a connotation of “respecting the rules”, while Greek participants stressed the importance of the role of “critical thinking”. Coherently, Study 2 provided further evidence that compatibility between what is considered socially responsible and compliance to COVID-19 preventive guidelines is higher in Italy than in Greece; the same pattern was observed for self-reported adherence and trust in institutions. We also found that the meanings of SR are shaped, at least to a certain extent, by human values and level of trust in various societal agents, which may account in part for country differences in behavioral responses to governmental recommendations and measures against spreading of the disease. Our findings raise implications for institutions and scientists on the importance of implementing strategies to effectively foster trust and to frame guidelines in line with the prevalent value systems

Acute Delta Hepatitis in Italy spanning three decades (1991–2019): Evidence for the effectiveness of the hepatitis B vaccination campaign

Updated incidence data of acute Delta virus hepatitis (HDV) are lacking worldwide. Our aim was to evaluate incidence of and risk factors for acute HDV in Italy after the introduction of the compulsory vaccination against hepatitis B virus (HBV) in 1991. Data were obtained from the National Surveillance System of acute viral hepatitis (SEIEVA). Independent predictors of HDV were assessed by logistic-regression analysis. The incidence of acute HDV per 1-million population declined from 3.2 cases in 1987 to 0.04 in 2019, parallel to that of acute HBV per 100,000 from 10.0 to 0.39 cases during the same period. The median age of cases increased from 27 years in the decade 1991-1999 to 44 years in the decade 2010-2019 (p < .001). Over the same period, the male/female ratio decreased from 3.8 to 2.1, the proportion of coinfections increased from 55% to 75% (p = .003) and that of HBsAg positive acute hepatitis tested for by IgM anti-HDV linearly decreased from 50.1% to 34.1% (p < .001). People born abroad accounted for 24.6% of cases in 2004-2010 and 32.1% in 2011-2019. In the period 2010-2019, risky sexual behaviour (O.R. 4.2; 95%CI: 1.4-12.8) was the sole independent predictor of acute HDV; conversely intravenous drug use was no longer associated (O.R. 1.25; 95%CI: 0.15-10.22) with this. In conclusion, HBV vaccination was an effective measure to control acute HDV. Intravenous drug use is no longer an efficient mode of HDV spread. Testing for IgM-anti HDV is a grey area requiring alert. Acute HDV in foreigners should be monitored in the years to come

What is socially responsible during a pandemic? A mixed-methods study in Italy and Greece

We employed a mixed-methods approach to investigate similarities and differences in what is perceived as socially responsible during the COVID-19 pandemic among young people in Greece and Italy (Study 1), and to explore the relationships between these different meanings and their antecedents (trust, human values) and consequences (adherence to COVID-19 preventive guidelines) (Study 2)

Sm@RT: Identifying sheep and goats farmers' technological needs and potential solutions

Session 68 - Théâtre 5International audienceSm@RT (Sm@ll Ruminant Technology) is a thematic network, involving 8 countries, with the objective of improving the uptake of digital and precision livestock farming (PLF) technologies by sheep and goat producers, for labour efficiency and farm profitability. In 2023, representatives of the nine partners undertook a fact-finding tour to New Zealand (NZ) to study (1) the use and uptake of innovative PLF approaches; (2) barriers to PLF uptake; and (3) means to facilitate PLF uptake, for the small ruminant sectors. Similar barriers exist in NZ as in EU, namely cost, perceived lack of return on investment, lack of producer interest, additional management input, ease to use, lack of follow-up support, data interoperability and network coverage. A further issue identified in NZ is the absence of compulsory electronic identification (EID) in sheep. Simple tools instead are used at flock level (not at animal level), e.g. weight crate and manual drafting systems to sort lambs according to weight. As in EU, PLF uptake in NZ is higher in the dairy sector (sheep and goat) both for genetic and flock management. For the emerging dairy sheep sector, some companies propose a PLF package that includes digital tools, advice and training for uptake by their suppliers. Findings from the study tour suggest the following steps for PLF uptake: (1) identify issues at farm level; (2) determine if they can be solved without PLF; (3) if not, identify potential relevant PLF tools; (4) purchase and transfer the technology. The use of digital technologies by NZ researchers is important and can inspire EU researchers for digital, landscape management and agroecological studie