The Swedish Perception of European Security in the Light of the Crisis in Ukraine

The events in Ukraine, the annexation of Crimea, and the Russian attitude towards Ukraine show an evident change in European relations. The escalation of conflict between Russia and Ukraine however does not affect only those two countries, but also those in the nearest vicinity. Especially in Scandinavian and Nordic countries change in social ambience can be observed. The aim of this article is essentially to analyze Swedish reaction to the Ukrainian Crisis, the change in Swedish attitude towards international security systems, especially NATO, and Swedish perception of its national safety

Introduction

Publication within the project “The V4 towards migration challenges in Europe. An analysis and recommendations” is financed by Visegrad Fund

Discourse on the Multicultural Policy in Sweden in Light of the Charlie Hebdo Terrorist Attack

Multicultural policy has recently been undergoing a marked crisis and is subject to wide criticism. In the light of recent terrorist attacks it is often highlighted that the reason for such situations might be too much openness towards foreigners. Most European countries are changing their immigration and integration policies limiting their social security and restricting the possibilities of an influx of immigrants. Sweden, which is perceived as one of the most open and tolerant states in Europe also faces new challenges concerning the future of its multicultural policy. The crisis in tolerance towards foreigners is quite visible and it is obvious that the social moods in this state are evolving. Therefore, the aim of the article is to analyze changes in the attitude towards Swedish immigration and its integration policy in the light of the attack on the Charlie Hebdo weekly offices

Migration as a Political and Public Phenomenon: The Case of Poland

Publication within the project “The V4 towards migration challenges in Europe. An analysis and recommendations” is financed by Visegrad Fund

Mniejszość fińska w Szwecji – poszukiwanie kompromisu

Udostępnienie publikacji Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego finansowane w ramach projektu „Doskonałość naukowa kluczem do doskonałości kształcenia”. Projekt realizowany jest ze środków Europejskiego Funduszu Społecznego w ramach Programu Operacyjnego Wiedza Edukacja Rozwój; nr umowy: POWER.03.05.00-00-Z092/17-00

Anorexic readiness in girls and young women

Introduction. The inspiration to start research about anorexia readiness were reports about the increase of anorexia nervosa rate among young people, especially girls. In some cases, due to presenting incomplete syndromes, there is observed anorexic readiness rather than fully symptomatical anorexia nervosa. Anorexic readiness is understood as a predisposition to control quantity and quality of food, tendency to losing weight, conviction about social lust of women slimness and fear of putting on weight. The aim of research was to find an answer to a question how common is anorectic readiness in girls and young women. Material and methods. 92 females aged 14–26 (coming from Kujawsko-Pomorskie province) were examined using a questionnaire constructed by authors. Statistic analysis showed that the questionnaire has satisfying psychometric features. Results. 6,5% females presented symptoms of anorexic readiness. It occured that anorexic readiness appeared mostly in the dimension of attributing highly value to body slimness and - a little less - in dimension of concentration on body shape and its weight. It was significant that the younger females, the more they concentrate on their body and avoid putting on weight using laxatives. Conclusions. The results confirmed the significant impact of culture and society on eating disorders and decrease in age of people who strive for low weight and slim body. Psychiatry 2008; 5: 7-12Wstęp. Inspiracją do podjęcia badań nad gotowością anorektyczną były doniesienia o wzroście zachorowalności na jadłowstręt psychiczny u młodych osób, szczególnie dziewcząt. U części osób, ze względu na prezentowane syndromy, nie diagnozuje się pełnoobjawowej anoreksji; w ich przypadku można jednak mówić o tak zwanej gotowości anorektycznej, rozumianej jako skłonność do kontrolowania ilości i jakości spożywanego jedzenia, dążenie do utraty wagi, przekonanie o społecznym pożądaniu szczupłości u kobiet oraz obawa przed przybieraniem na wadze. Celem badania było znalezienie odpowiedzi na pytanie, jakie jest rozpowszechnienie zjawiska gotowości anorektycznej u dziewcząt i młodych kobiet. Materiał i metody. Przebadano 92 osoby płci żeńskiej w wieku 14-26 lat (mieszkające w województwie kujawsko-pomorskim). Narzędziem badawczym była skonstruowana przez autorki ankieta. Na podstawie analizy statystycznej wykazano, że posiada ona zadowalające własności psychometryczne. Wyniki. W przebadanej grupie podwyższoną gotowość anorektyczną prezentowało 6,5% osób. Okazało się, że gotowość anorektyczna ujawniła się najsilniej w wymiarze przypisywania nadmiernie pozytywnego znaczenia szczupłej sylwetce i - choć nieco słabiej - w wymiarze koncentracji na kształcie i masie ciała. Znaczące, że im młodsze osoby, tym częściej skupiają się na wymiarach swojego ciała i zapobiegają przyrostowi wagi przez przeczyszczanie się. Wnioski. Wyniki badania potwierdzają istotny wpływ tła społeczno-kulturowego na pojawianie się zaburzeń w odżywianiu oraz obniżanie się granic wieku w zakresie dążenia do niskiej wagi i szczupłości. Psychiatria 2008; 5: 7-1

The negative implications of Russia’s doping scandal on the country’s international image

In December 2014, Russia was accused of developing a state-organized doping system in the second decade of the twenty-first century. The scandal resulted in many Russian athletes being banned from competing in the Olympics in Rio in 2016 and the IOC’s suspension of the Russian National Olympic Committee prior to the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang. The research presented in this article aims to answer the research question of whether the doping scandal actually affected the international image of Russia. The research was conducted with the use of frame analysis of public discourse. The hypothesis to be tested states that the Russian doping scandal contributed to the intensification of a negative external image of this state

Anxiety, Coping Strategies and Resilience among Children and Adolescents during COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

COVID-19 pandemic is a global challenge that affects people’s mental health worldwide. Experiencing anxiety by children and adolescents, who are vulnerable to the impact of sustained stressors during developmentally sensitive periods, can lead to long-lasting effects on their health. The article brings insight into the short and long-term consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on the children and adolescents’ mental health. The particular aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between anxiety, stress, and resilience in young individuals in the context of COVID-19. A review of the psychological effects of pandemic on children and adolescents was done using electronic databases. Most reviewed studies reported risk factors of psychosocial problems among children and adolescents during pandemics, resilience and positive coping as protective factors for the occurrence of anxiety and stress symptoms, and mediating role of parents’ stress impact on children’s behavioral and emotional problems. Clinical implications are discussed and additional research is suggested

Cell Wall Anchoring of the Campylobacter Antigens to Lactococcus lactis

Campylobacter jejuni is the most frequent cause of human food-borne gastroenteritis and chicken meat is the main source of infection. Recent studies showed that broiler chicken immunization against Campylobacter should be the most efficient way to lower the number of human infections by this pathogen. Induction of the mucosal immune system after oral antigen administration should provide protective immunity to chickens. In this work we tested the usefulness of Lactococcus lactis, the most extensively studied lactic acid bacterium, as a delivery vector for Campylobacter antigens. First we constructed hybrid protein – CjaA antigen presenting CjaD peptide epitopes on its surface. We showed that specific rabbit anti-rCjaAD serum reacted strongly with both CjaA and CjaD produced by a wild type Campylobacter jejuni strain. Next, rCjaAD and CjaA were fused to the C-terminus of the L. lactis YndF containing the LPTXG motif. The genes expressing these proteins were transcribed under control of the L. lactis Usp45 promoter and their products contain the Usp45 signal sequences. This strategy ensures a cell surface location of both analysed proteins, which was confirmed by immunofluorescence assay. In order to evaluate the impact of antigen location on vaccine prototype efficacy, a L. lactis strain producing cytoplasm-located rCjaAD was also generated. Animal experiments showed a decrease of Campylobacter cecal load in vaccinated birds as compared with the control group and showed that the L. lactis harboring the surface-exposed rCjaAD antigen afforded greater protection than the L. lactis producing cytoplasm-located rCjaAD. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt to employ LAB (Lactic Acid Bacteria) strains as a mucosal delivery vehicle for chicken immunization. Although the observed reduction of chicken colonization by Campylobacter resulting from vaccination was rather moderate, the experiments showed that LAB strains can be considered as an alternative vector to deliver heterologous antigens to the bird immune system. Additionally, the analysis of the structure and immunogenicity of the generated rCjaAD hybrid protein showed that the CjaA antigen can be considered as a starting point to construct multiepitope anti-Campylobacter vaccines