A structural model of well-being, spontaneity and self-efficacy: Italian validation between adolescents and young adults

Abstract Introduction: The passage from adolescence to young adulthood introduces many challenges and chances aimed at promoting independence, financial self-sufficiency, assumption of responsibilities and separation from parents. Literature shows that in the continuum between these two phases of life, many factors intervene, producing significant differentiations. Methods: This study considered three dimensions - well-being, measured through the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation-Outcome Measure (CORE-OM); spontaneity, measured through the Spontaneity Assessment Inventory-Revised (SAI-R); and self-efficacy, measured through the General Self-Efficacy scale (GSE). The study involved two groups of Italian participants: 495 adolescents, aged between 13 and 19 years, selected at a high school; and 368 young adults, aged between 18 and 30 years, recruited by snowball sampling. Results: Results of confirmatory factor analysis for each instrument in each group indicate the validity of the three instruments for both age groups. No significant differences were found between adolescents and young adults on total or subtotal scores of the CORE-OM, except for the risk factor. Conversely, the mean scores obtained with SAI-R and GSE were very different between adolescents and young adults. Conclusions: The results of path analysis show a significant mediation of spontaneity in the link between self-efficacy and all specific psychological distress domains for adolescents. Instead, there is a significant mediation of spontaneity between self-efficacy and all specific psychological distress domains except the risk domain for young adults

A Realist Explanatory Case Study Investigating How Common Goals, Leadership, and Committed Staff Facilitate Health in All Policies Implementation in the Municipality of Kuopio, Finland

Background: Health in All Policies (HiAP) encompasses collaboration across government and the consideration of health in various governmental sector’s policies and decisions. Despite increasing advocacy, interest, and uptake in HiAP globally, empirical and evaluative studies are underrepresented in this growing literature, particularly literature on HiAP implementation at the local level. Finland has been a pioneer in and champion for HiAP. Methods: A realist explanatory case study design was used to test hypotheses about how HiAP is implemented in Kuopio, Finland. Semi-structured interviews with ten government employees from various sectors were conducted. Data from interviews and literature were analyzed with the aims of uncovering explanatory mechanisms in the form of context-strategy-mechanism-outcome (CSMO) configurations related to implementation strategies. Evidence was evaluated for quality based on triangulation of sources and strength of evidence. We hypothesized that having or creating a common goal between sectors and having committed staff and local leadership would facilitate implementation. Results: Strong evidence supports our hypothesis that having or creating a common goal can aid in positive implementation outcomes at the local level. Common goals can be created by the strategies of having a city mandate, engaging in cross-sectoral discussions, and/or by working together. Policy and political elite leadership led to HiAP implementation success because leaders supported HiAP work, thus providing justification for using time to work intersectorally. How and why the wellbeing committee facilitated implementation included by providing opportunities for discussion and learning, which led to understanding of how non-health decisions impact community wellbeing, and by acting as a conduit for the communication of wellbeing goals to government employees. Conclusion: At the municipal level, having or creating a common goal, leadership from policy and political elites, and the presence of committed staff can facilitate HiAP implementation. Inclusion of not only strategies for HiAP, but also the explanatory mechanisms, aids in elucidating how and why HiAP is successfully implemented in a local setting.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

The mother who cannot provide liberation: family atom analysis of women victims of domestic violence

The present contribution presents the discussion about the analysis carried out on family atoms that were completed in the first psychodrama group meetings carried out in all the Empower Daphne III program partner countries. The issue of the relationship with the mother is central to the aim of the project, in that we hypothesise that the mothers of victims are incapable of educating their daughters about personal autonomy in relation to men, due to the traditional culture in which they grew up in. The article presents information about the use and processing of the survey tool “Family atom” created by Jacob Moreno and the analysis of the data that emerged in parallel to the reports sent periodically by the psychodramatists to the monitoring and analysis team. From the results three types of maternal relationships emerge (positive, negative and incongruent) that enable us to confirm the initial hypothesis of this action researc

Global maps of soil temperature

Research in global change ecology relies heavily on global climatic grids derived from estimates of air temperature in open areas at around 2 m above the ground. These climatic grids do not reflect conditions below vegetation canopies and near the ground surface, where critical ecosystem functions occur and most terrestrial species reside. Here, we provide global maps of soil temperature and bioclimatic variables at a 1-km² resolution for 0–5 and 5–15 cm soil depth. These maps were created by calculating the difference (i.e., offset) between in-situ soil temperature measurements, based on time series from over 1200 1-km² pixels (summarized from 8500 unique temperature sensors) across all the world’s major terrestrial biomes, and coarse-grained air temperature estimates from ERA5-Land (an atmospheric reanalysis by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts). We show that mean annual soil temperature differs markedly from the corresponding gridded air temperature, by up to 10°C (mean = 3.0 ± 2.1°C), with substantial variation across biomes and seasons. Over the year, soils in cold and/or dry biomes are substantially warmer (+3.6 ± 2.3°C) than gridded air temperature, whereas soils in warm and humid environments are on average slightly cooler (-0.7 ± 2.3°C). The observed substantial and biome-specific offsets emphasize that the projected impacts of climate and climate change on near-surface biodiversity and ecosystem functioning are inaccurately assessed when air rather than soil temperature is used, especially in cold environments. The global soil-related bioclimatic variables provided here are an important step forward for any application in ecology and related disciplines. Nevertheless, we highlight the need to fill remaining geographic gaps by collecting more in-situ measurements of microclimate conditions to further enhance the spatiotemporal resolution of global soil temperature products for ecological applications

Global maps of soil temperature

Research in global change ecology relies heavily on global climatic grids derived from estimates of air temperature in open areas at around 2 m above the ground. These climatic grids do not reflect conditions below vegetation canopies and near the ground surface, where critical ecosystem functions occur and most terrestrial species reside. Here, we provide global maps of soil temperature and bioclimatic variables at a 1-km2 resolution for 0–5 and 5–15 cm soil depth. These maps were created by calculating the difference (i.e. offset) between in situ soil temperature measurements, based on time series from over 1200 1-km2 pixels (summarized from 8519 unique temperature sensors) across all the world\u27s major terrestrial biomes, and coarse-grained air temperature estimates from ERA5-Land (an atmospheric reanalysis by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts). We show that mean annual soil temperature differs markedly from the corresponding gridded air temperature, by up to 10°C (mean = 3.0 ± 2.1°C), with substantial variation across biomes and seasons. Over the year, soils in cold and/or dry biomes are substantially warmer (+3.6 ± 2.3°C) than gridded air temperature, whereas soils in warm and humid environments are on average slightly cooler (−0.7 ± 2.3°C). The observed substantial and biome-specific offsets emphasize that the projected impacts of climate and climate change on near-surface biodiversity and ecosystem functioning are inaccurately assessed when air rather than soil temperature is used, especially in cold environments. The global soil-related bioclimatic variables provided here are an important step forward for any application in ecology and related disciplines. Nevertheless, we highlight the need to fill remaining geographic gaps by collecting more in situ measurements of microclimate conditions to further enhance the spatiotemporal resolution of global soil temperature products for ecological applications

Global maps of soil temperature.

Research in global change ecology relies heavily on global climatic grids derived from estimates of air temperature in open areas at around 2 m above the ground. These climatic grids do not reflect conditions below vegetation canopies and near the ground surface, where critical ecosystem functions occur and most terrestrial species reside. Here, we provide global maps of soil temperature and bioclimatic variables at a 1-km2 resolution for 0-5 and 5-15 cm soil depth. These maps were created by calculating the difference (i.e. offset) between in situ soil temperature measurements, based on time series from over 1200 1-km2 pixels (summarized from 8519 unique temperature sensors) across all the world's major terrestrial biomes, and coarse-grained air temperature estimates from ERA5-Land (an atmospheric reanalysis by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts). We show that mean annual soil temperature differs markedly from the corresponding gridded air temperature, by up to 10°C (mean = 3.0 ± 2.1°C), with substantial variation across biomes and seasons. Over the year, soils in cold and/or dry biomes are substantially warmer (+3.6 ± 2.3°C) than gridded air temperature, whereas soils in warm and humid environments are on average slightly cooler (-0.7 ± 2.3°C). The observed substantial and biome-specific offsets emphasize that the projected impacts of climate and climate change on near-surface biodiversity and ecosystem functioning are inaccurately assessed when air rather than soil temperature is used, especially in cold environments. The global soil-related bioclimatic variables provided here are an important step forward for any application in ecology and related disciplines. Nevertheless, we highlight the need to fill remaining geographic gaps by collecting more in situ measurements of microclimate conditions to further enhance the spatiotemporal resolution of global soil temperature products for ecological applications

Seasonal effects on ice-wedge thermal variation in East Antarctica: a time series approach

This research aims at studying the thermal variation of ice wedges at various depths. In particular, the analysis of ice-wedge top and bottom, ground surface and air temperatures are undertaken. The active layer depth is calculated through seasons and years using hourly data at three sites in northern Victoria Land: Baker Rocks, Boomerang Glacier and Mount Jackman. The recording period is from 2004 to 2013 at Baker Rocks and Boomerang Glacier, and from 2006 to 2013 at Mount Jackman. Daily mean ground surface temperatures (DMGST) and daily mean air temperatures are highly correlated at Baker Rocks (r2=0.96), Boomerang Glacier (r2 =0.95), and Mount Jackman (r2=0.92) sites. This shows that the ground surface temperature at measurement sites responds strongly to air temperature. Moreover, hourly ground surface temperature and DMGST are generally lower than the air temperature in the winter season, which shows the absence of a significant snow cover. Standard deviations of the hourly temperature show that high temperature variability can exist over one month, with higher variability in winter than in summer. Frequent and large temperature fluctuations are common throughout winter with either a sharp drop or a rapid increase both in air and ground surface temperature. Variations of 25°C to 30°C were recorded over periods of one to four days. The overall variability of temperatures is decomposed using spectral analysis in order to isolate seasonal effects from cycles and long term trends. Moreover, spectral analysis is also applied to the long term temperature data (26 years) from six automatic weather stations, located in northern Victoria Land, to compare the temperature series recorded over different time spans and to identify possible fitting trends. The time series approach in the frequency domain is quite new in this field and it represents therefore the main contribution to the existing literature

A structural model of well-being, spontaneity and self-efficacy: Italian validation between adolescents and young adults

Abstract Introduction: The passage from adolescence to young adulthood introduces many challenges and chances aimed at promoting independence, financial self-sufficiency, assumption of responsibilities and separation from parents. Literature shows that in the continuum between these two phases of life, many factors intervene, producing significant differentiations. Methods: This study considered three dimensions - well-being, measured through the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation-Outcome Measure (CORE-OM); spontaneity, measured through the Spontaneity Assessment Inventory-Revised (SAI-R); and self-efficacy, measured through the General Self-Efficacy scale (GSE). The study involved two groups of Italian participants: 495 adolescents, aged between 13 and 19 years, selected at a high school; and 368 young adults, aged between 18 and 30 years, recruited by snowball sampling. Results: Results of confirmatory factor analysis for each instrument in each group indicate the validity of the three instruments for both age groups. No significant differences were found between adolescents and young adults on total or subtotal scores of the CORE-OM, except for the risk factor. Conversely, the mean scores obtained with SAI-R and GSE were very different between adolescents and young adults. Conclusions: The results of path analysis show a significant mediation of spontaneity in the link between self-efficacy and all specific psychological distress domains for adolescents. Instead, there is a significant mediation of spontaneity between self-efficacy and all specific psychological distress domains except the risk domain for young adults

Padre e uomo d’onore. “Cosa nostra” come cornice morale nell’inculturazione familistica

The article presents the third part of a quali-quantitative survey that points out the representation of gender roles and their implications on the basis of the texts provided by the group of study directed by Girolamo Lo Verso. The survey is divided in three parts and in its wholeness it is oriented to improve the discussion on the possibilities to modify the networks that hold familism and the dynamics of the mafia. In fact the conviction of the researchers is that the recognition of the symbolic system on which the relationships are constructed may be changed. Another point of reference of the whole research is that the same symbolic pattern recognition may orientate the social intervention and its work in the construction of new cultural model, different from the traditional ones that correspond to the subculture of the mafia. In this article, on one hand, we resume what pointed out in the previous two parts of the whole research (Testoni, 2007a; Testoni, et al. 2008) and, on the other hand, we discuss some important aspects about the masculine role. In specific, we recognise in the figure of the “father” a bond of “familistic iperconnection” that ties micro and macro-system. In fact, it may be considered as the pivot of the meso-system of “cosa nostra”, because it is the traitunion between old and new mafias. The hypothesis is that the paternal model serves as moral framework in the anomic criminal systemsL’articolo presenta la terza parte dei risultati di una ricerca qualitativo-quantitativa finalizzata alla rilevazione delle rappresentazioni dei ruoli di genere e alle loro implicazioni in testi di collaboratori di giustizia, messi a disposizione dal gruppo dell’Università di Palermo facente capo a Girolamo Lo Verso. Divisa in tre parti, l’indagine nel suo complesso è funzionale alla discussione intorno alle possibilità di modificazione dei network che sostengono il familismo e con esso le dinamiche mafiose, grazie al cambiamento che può essere operato tramite il riconoscimento dei sistemi simbolici su cui si strutturano le reti di relazione e l’intervento sociale finalizzato alla costruzione di modelli di riferimento culturali diversi da quelli tradizionalmente tramandati in territori di mafia. In questa sede per un verso si riassume quanto evidenziato nelle prime due parti della ricerca (Testoni, 2007a; Testoni, et al. 2008) e per l’altro vengono discussi alcuni aspetti degni di nota relativi alla figura maschile. In particolare riconosciamo in quella del “padre” un nodo di “iperconnessione” familistica tra microsistema e macrosistema, cardine che agisce nel mesosistema di cosa nostra utilizzando il medesimo come trait-union tra mafie vecchie versus quelle nuove. Si ipotizza che il modello paterno funga da cornice di riferimento morale per il rafforzamento dell’equilibrio di sistemi criminali più arretrati rispetto a cosa nostra e fortemente anomic

Empower agency. Emotional itineraries of psychodramatic elaboration of violence from anger to independence

The present contribution presents the discussions concerning the textual analysis of the reports on the psychodrama sessions that were carried out as part of Empower, a project that is within the scope of the Daphne III Program, and aimed at improving agency of female victims of domestic violence, in order to change their condition of subordination. Adopting feminist and cultural psychology perspectives, according to which human processes can never be separated from the context in whic