The European Federation of Psychology Students’ Associations Junior Researcher Programme : a review from two research project supervisors

The European Federation of Psychology Students’ Associations (EFPSA) Junior Researcher Programme (JRP) provides opportunities for students to gain experience of conducting or supervising international research projects. Two UK PhD students reflect on their experiences as supervisors on the current (2019–2020) programme, with a particular focus on the European Summer School, a week of social and research activities that initiates the programme. Summaries of their research projects are provided, as well as reflections on the benefits and challenges of taking part in the programme. This review is intended to serve as a useful resource for potential JRP applicants

Compare and despair or compare and explore? Instagram social comparisons of ability and opinion predict adolescent identity development

© 2007-2020 Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace. Whilst there is an emerging literature concerning social comparisons on social networking sites (SNSs), very little is known about the extent to which such behaviours inform adolescent identity. Drawing upon the three-factor model of identity development (Crocetti, Rubini & Meeus, 2008), this study seeks to determine the relationship between Instagram comparisons of ability and opinion and three identity processes: commitment, in-depth exploration, and reconsideration of commitment. 177 British adolescents responded to a paper survey (Mage = 15.45; Female, 54.8%) between December 2018 and February 2019. Instagram social comparisons of ability were positively associated with commitment and in-depth exploration, whilst their relationship with reconsideration of commitment was moderated by gender. In contrast, Instagram social comparisons of opinion were positively related with in-depth exploration and reconsideration of commitment. Findings suggest that although both forms of social comparison behaviour may evoke adolescents to explore their identity, Instagram social comparisons of ability may have less maladaptive identity implications for adolescent males

Social Comparisons on Instagram and Adolescent Identity Development: A Mixed-Methods Study

The formation of a coherent and synthesised sense of identity is a key developmental task for adolescents, and over the past decade, young people have increasingly been using social networking sites (SNSs) as platforms for self-expression, self-construction, and identity exploration. Whilst previous research has evidenced how self-presentations on SNSs can inform identity development, less is known about the identity implications of other-focused SNS behaviours. To shed light on this gap in the literature, this investigation drew upon social comparison theory to examine how social comparisons on Instagram inform the process of identity development during adolescence. Following the sequential explanatory design, an initial cross-sectional survey of British adolescents sought to determine the linear relationship between ability and opinion comparisons on Instagram and three key identity processes (commitment, in-depth exploration, and reconsideration of commitment). The moderator effects of age, gender, and Instagram network composition (network homophily and tie strength) were also examined. Subsequent qualitative interviews with adolescents built upon the results of the quantitative analysis and explored the nuances and mechanisms which may help to explain them. Overall, findings indicate that social comparisons on Instagram are not inherently ‘bad’ for young people (as is often suggested by the media and academic literature), and that both ability and opinion comparisons on the platform can support identity development during adolescence by increasing self-focus, strengthening commitments, and prompting further exploration. Nevertheless, females were more prone to experiencing the maladaptive implications of competitive ability comparisons on Instagram, whilst developmental maturity informed the comparison targets most supportive of identity development. Results therefore evidence the importance of Feed curation for ensuring that comparisons on Instagram have adaptive outcomes for young people, and the implications that these findings have for future research and practical work are discussed

Inspired by Friends: Adolescents' Network Homophily Moderates the Relationship between Social Comparison, Envy, and Inspiration on Instagram

© Copyright 2019, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. Research on the negative psycho-emotional implications of social comparisons on social network sites such as Instagram has rapidly accumulated in recent years. However, little research has considered the extent to which such comparisons can elicit positive motivational outcomes for adolescent users, specifically inspiration. Furthermore, little is known about whether it matters whom young people compare themselves to on Instagram (i.e., network composition) and how this may modulate the emotional outcomes of Instagram social comparisons. The present study thus sought to determine how adolescents' Instagram comparisons of ability associate with inspiration through the mechanism of benign and malicious envy. We further examined whether two key aspects of network composition - perceived similarity and the amount of strangers followed - moderated these relationships. Results from a paper survey among n = 266 British adolescents confirm the hypothesis that those adolescents who compare more strongly on Instagram also report more inspiration from Instagram use. While benign envy positively mediated this relationship, malicious envy worked in the opposite direction, indicating the need to distinguish these two types of envy in future research. In addition, while the amount of strangers followed did not significantly affect the relationships between social comparison, envy, and inspiration, higher perceived network homophily positively moderated the relationship between social comparison and inspiration by eliciting more benign and less malicious envy. Results overall suggest that social comparisons on Instagram may be more inspiring when adolescents compare themselves to similar others and avoid unachievable false role models in their online networks

Multi-domain quantitative recovery following Radical Cystectomy for patients within the iROC (Robot Assisted Radical Cystectomy with intracorporeal urinary diversion versus Open Radical Cystectomy) Randomised Controlled Trial: The first 30 patients

Many patients develop complications after radical cystectomy (RC) [1]. Reductions in morbidity have occurred through centralisation and technical improvements [2], and perhaps through robot-assisted RC (RARC). Whilst RARC is gaining popularity, there are concerns about oncological safety [3] and extracorporeal reconstruction [4], and randomised controlled trials (RCTs) find little difference [5]. We are conducting a prospective RCT comparing open RC and RARC with mandated intracorporeal reconstruction (Robot-assisted Radical Cystectomy with intracorporeal urinary diversion versus Open Radical Cystectomy [iROC] trial) [6]

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely