PhD supervisors and faculty members might help to avoid burnout as well as enhance engagement and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among PhD students.

There has been increased interest in the wellbeing and mental health of postgraduate students in light of the recent portrayal of the academic career as overworked and isolated. Research points to PhD students as being particularly at risk, yet the factors that contribute to PhD students’ compromised wellbeing are unclear. In this study (N = 392), we combine the social cure approach in social psychology with advances in organizational psychology to investigate potential predictors of work-related wellbeing and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among PhD studentsin the UK. In particular, we explore the relationships between social support, willingness to support others, clarity of role, group belonging, engagement, and burnout using structural equation modelling (SEM). Our results point to the importance of support provided by both the supervisor and faculty members in helping to avoid burnout and enhance engagement among students. We also found that students’ identification with supervisors and faculty members together with clarity of role are positively associated with students’ work-related well-being. Moreover, although particular processes differ for early vs. late stage PhD students, our findings suggest that support from faculty members is a key predictor of intentions to perform OCB. Thus, received support is positively related to performing OCB both directly and indirectly via a sense of identification with faculty members. We discuss the implications of our findings in relation to policies aiming at improving the well-being of PhD students

“Finding rhythms made me find my rhythm in prison”: the role of a music program in promoting social engagement and psychological well-being among inmates

This article presents a mixed-methods evaluation of the Finding Rhythms (FR) charity music program in U.K. prisons. Results across two studies indicate that FR group activities and the development of a shared FR identity lead to a positive well-being outcome. Furthermore, FR involvement dissolves rivalries between prisoners and provides them with a sense of purpose that extends into prison life and beyond. We provide evidence for the social cure properties of the FR group and the music program that promotes social engagement and psychological well-being among inmates

“I changed and hid my old ways”: how social rejection and social identities shape wellbeing among ex-prisoners

Being a member of a rejected group negatively affects well‐being but can also increase group identification, which can have positive effects on well‐being. However, this rejection‐identification model has never been investigated among the highly stigmatized group of ex‐prisoners. Furthermore, the potential buffering role of multiple group memberships has never been investigated within the rejection‐identification model. We conduct a novel investigation of a combined rejection‐identification and social cure model of group‐based rejection among ex‐prisoners. A survey of 199 ex‐prisoners found that experiencing group‐based rejection was associated with poorer well‐being and increased ex‐prisoner identification. However, identification as an ex‐prisoner magnified, rather than buffered, the relationship between rejection and reduced well‐being. Furthermore, the negative relationship between rejection and well‐being was particularly pronounced among ex‐prisoners with a higher number of group memberships. Ex‐prisoners with a greater number of group memberships experienced greater levels of rejection, suggesting group memberships increase their exposure to rejection. We therefore provide evidence of a boundary condition for the social cure properties of groups. Among members of strongly rejected social groups, multiple group memberships can be a social curse rather than social cure

The lockdown and social norms: why the UK is complying by consent rather than compulsion

The belief that ‘we are all in it together’ is more important than other factors in explaining why the UK public has complied with lockdown measures so far, early data suggests. Jonathan Jackson, Chris Posch, Ben Bradford, Zoe Hobson, Arabella Kyprianides, and Julia Yesberg discuss the first findings of a survey on lockdown compliance in ten UK cities

How the shift to online legal processes leaves many behind

The administrative justice system has moved to increasingly digital modes of operation. But does this enhance accessibility or deepen divides? Arabella Kyprianides, Naomi Creutzfeldt, Ben Bradford and Jonathan Jackson explore whether the shift to online legal processes – intended to streamline justice – has inadvertently side-lined the most vulnerable in society

Why are groups good for us? Social determinants of well-being behind bars and beyond

This thesis investigates the social determinants of well-being, behind bars and beyond. Through a series of four papers, it empirically tests some of the theoretical claims made by the social identity approach to health (also known as The Social Cure; C. Haslam, Jetten, Cruwys, Dingle, & Haslam, 2018a) which proposes that our social connections and, in particular, our social identity, lies at the heart of our well-being; and advances its applications by investigating its applicability amongst criminal offenders. Although research has highlighted the importance of differentiating between different types of social ties (C. Haslam, Cruwys, Milne, Kan, & Haslam, 2016a), Chapter 2 extends this by demonstrating experimentally that group ties are especially beneficial because they are internalized as part of a person’s social identity and, through this, provide a basis for beneficial forms of connectedness and self-worth. Furthermore, applied social cure research has demonstrated that group ties can protect people from adverse life experiences (C. Haslam et al., 2018a). Chapters 3, 4, and 5 provide the first investigation of the social cure amongst offenders. My findings make a novel contribution to the imprisonment and resettlement literatures that offer little insight into the impact that group ties have on adjustment, and the mechanisms through which group ties impact offender well-being. Chapter 3 demonstrates that strong prisoner ties and membership in groups are associated with greater prisoner well-being, and identifies psychological needs and group contact as explanatory mechanisms. Chapter 4 demonstrates that ex-prisoners have social stigma attached to them, and this can have negative consequences; but Chapter 5 shows that even in the case of stigmatized groups (prisoners), if the ‘right’ identities are part of these individuals’ social worlds, groups can be curative. Theoretical and practical implications of my findings are discussed, which open up interesting avenues for future research

Relational and instrumental perspectives on compliance with the law among people experiencing homelessness

Objective: We conducted an exploratory study testing procedural justice theory with a novel population. We assessed the extent to which police procedural justice, effectiveness, legitimacy, and perceived risk of sanction predict compliance with the law among people experiencing homelessness. Hypotheses: We did not develop formal a priori hypotheses but examined five general research questions. First, are there positive associations between police procedural justice, police legitimacy, and compliance? Second, do procedural justice and legitimacy differentially predict compliance, depending on the particular type of offending? Third, are there positive associations between police effectiveness, perceived risk of sanction, and compliance? Fourth, does the perceived risk of sanction differentially predict compliance, depending on the particular type of offending? And fifth, are there positive associations between moral judgments about different offending behaviors and compliance? Method: Two hundred people (87% male, 49% aged 45–64, 37% White British) experiencing homelessness on the streets of an inner London borough completed a survey that included measures of procedural justice, police legitimacy, perceived risk of sanction, morality, and compliance with the law. Results: Procedural justice and police legitimacy were only weakly (and not significantly) associated with any of the three types of compliance (compliance with laws prohibiting low-level crimes, behaviors specific to the street population, and high-level crimes). Police effectiveness positively predicted compliance via perceived risk of sanction, but only for street-populationspecific offenses that can be important for survival on the streets, such as begging and sleeping in certain localities. Morality was positively associated with all three types of compliance behaviors. Supplementary analyses suggested a small amount of instability in the results, however, possibly because of the relatively small sample size. Conclusions: The lack of relevant relational connections to legal authority may explain why procedural fairness and perceptions of police legitimacy were not particularly important predictors of compliance in this context. More research is needed into the types of marginalized communities for whom structural factors of alienation and lack of access to resources may serve to reduce normative group connections. Future work should test whether the need to survive on the streets leads people to discount some social and relational constraints to behavior, making people (almost by definition) more instrumental in relation to law and law enforcement

PhD supervisors and faculty members might help to avoid burnout as well as enhance engagement and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among PhD students.

There has been increased interest in the wellbeing and mental health of postgraduate students in light of the recent portrayal of the academic career as overworked and isolated. Research points to PhD students as being particularly at risk, yet the factors that contribute to PhD students’ compromised wellbeing are unclear. In this study (N = 392), we combine the social cure approach in social psychology with advances in organizational psychology to investigate potential predictors of work-related wellbeing and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among PhD students in the UK. In particular, we explore the relationships between social support, willingness to support others, clarity of role, group belonging, engagement, and burnout using structural equation modelling (SEM). Our results point to the importance of support provided by both the supervisor and faculty members in helping to avoid burnout and enhance engagement among students. We also found that students’ identification with supervisors and faculty members together with clarity of role are positively associated with students’ work-related well-being. Moreover, although particular processes differ for early vs. late stage PhD students, our findings suggest that support from faculty members is a key predictor of intentions to perform OCB. Thus, received support is positively related to performing OCB both directly and indirectly via a sense of identification with faculty members. We discuss the implications of our findings in relation to policies aiming at improving the well-being of PhD students

What makes Britons trust police to enforce the lockdown fairly?

What do people think about pandemic policing? Should the police get extra powers to enforce the lockdown? A survey by Krisztián Pósch (LSE), Julia Yesberg (UCL), Jonathan Jackson (LSE), Ben Bradford (UCL), Arabella Kyprianides (UCL) and Zoe Hobson (UCL) found some measures (such as checkpoints and issuing fines) are much more popular than others (like mobile phone and facial recognition tracking). Importantly, people’s perception of the legitimacy of the police is crucial in establishing public consent for enhanced police powers. In turn, legitimacy is rooted in people’s experience of everyday policing

PhD supervisors and faculty members might help to avoid burnout as well as enhance engagement and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among PhD students.

There has been increased interest in the wellbeing and mental health of postgraduate students in light of the recent portrayal of the academic career as overworked and isolated. Research points to PhD students as being particularly at risk, yet the factors that contribute to PhD students’ compromised wellbeing are unclear. In this study (N = 392), we combine the social cure approach in social psychology with advances in organizational psychology to investigate potential predictors of work-related wellbeing and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among PhD students in the UK. In particular, we explore the relationships between social support, willingness to support others, clarity of role, group belonging, engagement, and burnout using structural equation modelling (SEM). Our results point to the importance of support provided by both the supervisor and faculty members in helping to avoid burnout and enhance engagement among students. We also found that students’ identification with supervisors and faculty members together with clarity of role are positively associated with students’ work-related well-being. Moreover, although particular processes differ for early vs. late stage PhD students, our findings suggest that support from faculty members is a key predictor of intentions to perform OCB. Thus, received support is positively related to performing OCB both directly and indirectly via a sense of identification with faculty members. We discuss the implications of our findings in relation to policies aiming at improving the well-being of PhD students