How European adolescents get engaged with films?: Psychometric properties of the narrative engagement scale

Narrative engagement is a fundamental factor in understanding the enjoyment of narratives and their effects. This study seeks to develop a measure of engagement for youngsters and to gather evidence of validity and reliability for a sample of European adolescents. After watching a dramatic film, 310 European high school students (68.71% Italian, 17.74% Spanish and 13.55% German) responded to the proposed narrative engagement scale. The results confirmed the existence of a common factorial model of four factors for Germans and Italians and invariance measurement between samples. The mean score comparison shows that German adolescents have a greater understanding of the narrative than Italians. Also, Germans demonstrated greater emotional understanding than Spaniards. These results contribute to the comprehension of the narrative engagement and illuminate the conceptualization of the psychological phenomena related to the reception of dramatic narratives by youngsters of different cultures across Europe

Understanding radio art reception

Radio art is understood as radio made by artists. The term is typically applied to sound-based artifacts produced and broadcast by means of the creative use of radio media affordances, infrastructure, and technologies. Radio art is known as any sound work conceived to expand the creative and aesthetic possibilities of the medium through the use of the elements of radiophonic language (voice, words, music, sound effects, and silence) with the intention to produce aesthetic messages and to move radio listeners. This study introduces radio art reception as a subject of scientific scrutiny. It proposes a model of radio art processing that includes involvement, art reception, and positive emotions as predictors of the willingness to listen to such works. After listening to each of two pieces of radio art, 126 Singaporean undergraduate communication students (MAge = 22.7, SD = 1.7) completed a questionnaire measuring involvement, art reception, perceived emotions, and willingness to listen to another radio art feature. The main results confirm our model of radio art reception: involvement predicts the audience’s cognitive stimulation generated by radio art, their artistic evaluation, and the positive attraction experienced by audiences towards them. The positive emotions experienced during consumption have a direct effect on the attraction towards radio art. Moreover, the specific radio art content affects the audiences’ responses. These results allow us to understand psychological responses to sound art. The hope is to attract the attention of communication and art researchers and invite them to deepen the existing knowledge about artistic sound through empirical studies, since debates about radio art and sound works are almost lacking from scientific literature

Rasgos de personalidad como variables mediadoras en la edad de inicio del juego patológico y su severidad

El objetivo de este estudio es evaluar el rol de los rasgos de personalidad como variables mediadoras en la edad del juego patológico y su perfil clínico. Se administran diversas pruebas que evalúan los rasgos de personalidad a una muestra clínica de 1632 pacientes y se realiza un SEM para establecer las variables mediadoras. El modelo muestra unos buenos índices de ajuste así como una capacidad predictiva global buena. La edad de inicio es una variable mediadora de la severidad del juego patológico y la severidad de los síntomas de depresión percibidos. El sexo afecta a la edad de inicio del juego patológico y al número de síntomas de depresión percibidos. Búsqueda de novedades y autotrascendencia influyen sobre la edad de inicio, la severidad y el número de síntomas percibidosL'objectiu d'aquest estudi es avaluar el rol dels trets de personalitat com a variables mediadores entre l'edat d'inici del joc patològic i el seu perfil clínic. S'administren diverses proves que avaluen els trets de personalitat a una mostra clínica de 1632 pacients i es realitza un SEM per establir les variables mediadores. El model mostra bons índex d'ajustament així com una capacitat predictiva global bona. L'edat d'inici es una variable mediadora de la severitat del joc patològic i la severitat dels símptomes de depressió percebuts. El sexe afecta a l'edat d'inici del joc patològic i al número de símptomes de depressió percebut. Cerca de novetats y autotrascendencia influeixen sobre l'edat d'inici, la severitat i el número de símptomes de depressió percebut

Correlational network visual analysis of adolescents' film entertainment responses

This study aims to shed light on adolescents' characterizations of their preferred film entertainment. It seeks to describe the psychological responses of youngsters from two European countries (Italy and Spain) to dramas from the European region about current social/human issues. The study also seeks to determine if the adolescents' responses differ according to the film and the cultural context (country) to which they belong. For doing so, the research applies an innovative visual research technique in Media Communication: a correlational network analysis. A total of 234 Italian and Spanish adolescents watched three European dramas. Later, they completed four questionnaires measuring hedonic (enjoyment), eudaimonic (appreciation) responses and predictors of them (narrative engagement and perceived realism). The results present the visual intercorrelations of the studied variables, which give deeper insights into youngsters' gratifications in film consumption. These results suggest that films appear to be more influential than country in adolescents' responses. They also show there are specific models of responses for each film in each situation. The application of the visual quantitative tool broadens our knowledge on adolescents' entertainment through dramatic film and on the role of the cultural context and the audiovisual stimulus in the entertainment responses. It also challenges empirical studies using a single stimulus

Opinion of television managers about their viewers and their interest in science : audience images and lack of scientific content on television

Science does not occupy a prominent place on Spanish television, possibly due to those in charge of the creation, production, organization, and programming of content. Previous research has shown that television executives have mental images of their audiences that they actively use in their professional practice. This study adopts a mixed, qualitative-quantitative method to determine the beliefs of Spanish television executives regarding the attitudes of their audiences toward scientific programs and content. The study began with two focus groups, each made up of five professionals, to identify a wide range of attitudes. A Likert-scale questionnaire was then applied to examine the level of agreement with those attitudes among 450 employees of different types of private and public networks from six different regions of Spain. The main findings are that Spanish television managers do not believe that their viewers enjoy scientific topics or have any interest in them. However, professionals with previous experience of the production of scientific content tend to have a slightly more positive attitude about the opinion of general audiences regarding televised science. Hence, familiarity with televised science positively impacts the appreciation of such content on television. This research highlights the fundamental role of network managers in explaining the lack of science on Spanish media. Its results are coherent with previous studies confirming that TV professionals have preconceived images about their audiences that are derived from their own preferences and that guide their decisions

Understanding the lack of science on Tv : network decision-makers' opinions towards televisual science

The lack of science on the Spanish TV is explained through the people responsible for content production, scheduling and offer. Two focus groups made up of five decision-makers identified the professionals' opinions: science on TV is needed, the function of televisual science is educating audiences, public channels are responsible for showing such contents, government should urge scientific programming, science on TV contributes in increasing the cultural level of audiences, and people holding power positions are not interested in improving society's level of literacy. Later, the generality of those opinions was measured through a questionnaire applied to 450 TV managers. A latent profile statistical analysis showed that individual characteristics of professionals (i.e., gender, age, educational level) do not play a role in shaping their opinions but work related (i.e., area of coverage, TV ownership) do.La falta de ciencia en la televisión española puede ser explicada mediante las personas responsables de la producción, programación y oferta de contenidos televisivos. Dos grupos focales formados cada uno por cinco personas responsables de tomar decisiones sobre dichos aspectos en cadenas televisivas permitieron identificar sus opiniones: la ciencia en la televisión es necesaria, la función de la ciencia televisiva es educar a la audiencia, las cadenas públicas son las responsables de mostrar contenidos científicos, el gobierno debería obligar a programar contenidos científicos, la ciencia en la televisión contribuye a aumentar el nivel cultural de la audiencia, y las personas que ocupan puestos de poder no están interesadas en mejorar el nivel de alfabetización de la sociedad. Posteriormente, la generalidad de esas opiniones se observó mediante un cuestionario aplicado a 450 personas con cargos directivos de televisión. Un análisis estadístico de perfil latente mostró que las características individuales de los profesionales (i.e., el género, la edad, el nivel educativo) no influyen en la formación de esas opiniones, pero sí influyen los aspectos relacionados con el desempeño profesional (i.e., el área de cobertura, la titularidad de la televisión)

Intervenciones para la promoción de actividad física basadas en la teoría de la autodeterminación : una revisión narrativa (2011-2016)

El objetivo del presente estudio es revisar intervenciones recientes orientadas a la promoción de la actividad física mediante un enfoque basado en la Teoría de la Autodeterminación (SDT). Así, presentamos ideas apoyadas por la evidencia que los investigadores pueden utilizar para desarrollar sus futuros programas. Nuestro estudio incluye artículos publicados entre 2011 y 2016 que cumplen los siguientes criterios de inclusión: (a) SDT como principal marco teórico, (b) participantes sanos con edades ≥ 12 años, y (c) foco en la promoción de la actividad física y/o variables relacionadas. Presentamos los resultados en tres categorías: (a) estructura, enfoque teórico y aspectos generales, (b) desarrollo, y (c) evaluación. En relación con la estructura, encontramos dos tipos de intervención: aquellas desarrolladas en un contexto existente, donde los profesionales responsables reciben una formación específica que puede influir indirectamente en los estudiantes/pacientes, e intervenciones desarrolladas desde cero, dónde los participantes reciben la formación o información directamente. Los resultados muestran que el enfoque más habitual para desarrollar la intervención es el apoyo y la satisfacción de la autonomía. En cuanto al desarrollo de la intervención, es crucial entender las necesidades de la población diana y aplicar intervenciones hechas a medida que incluyan la SDT no solo como conceptos a explicar sino también como una manera de guiar el desarrollo de la intervención. Por último, para la evaluación de la intervención destacamos: (a) utilizar métodos mixtos, (b) evaluar medidas objetivas y autopercepciones, y (c) medir la satisfacción de los participantes con la intervención.The purpose of the present study is to review recent interventions aimed at promoting physical activity using selfdetermination theory (SDT) framework. We present evidence-based proposals that researchers could find useful to develop their own interventions. Our narrative review includes journal articles published between 2011 that meet the following inclusion criteria: (a) using SDT as reference framework, (b) targeting healthy participants with age ≥ 12 years old, and (c) pursuing a main goal of promoting physical activity or related variables. Results are presented in three categories: (a) structure, theoretical approach and general aspects of the intervention, (b) development, and (c) assessment. Regarding the structure, two types of interventions emerged: those conducted within an existing setting, where professionals in charge receive specific training that is expected to indirectly affect their students/patients; and interventions developed from zero, where participants receive direct training or information. Results showed that the most common background to develop SDT interventions is autonomy support and autonomy satisfaction. Concerning the development of the intervention, it appears essential to understand the needs of the target population and to develop tailored interventions that consider SDT not only as concepts to explain but also as a way of thinking that guides the development of the interventions. Regarding the assessment of the intervention, researchers could consider (a) using mixed-methods approach, (b) including objective and self-reported measures and (c) measuring participants' satisfaction with the intervention

Understanding radio art reception

Radio art is understood as radio made by artists. The term is typically applied to sound-based artifacts produced and broadcast by means of the creative use of radio media affordances, infrastructure, and technologies. Radio art is known as any sound work conceived to expand the creative and aesthetic possibilities of the medium through the use of the elements of radiophonic language (voice, words, music, sound effects, and silence) with the intention to produce aesthetic messages and to move radio listeners. This study introduces radio art reception as a subject of scientific scrutiny. It proposes a model of radio art processing that includes involvement, art reception, and positive emotions as predictors of the willingness to listen to such works. After listening to each of two pieces of radio art, 126 Singaporean undergraduate communication students (MAge = 22.7, SD = 1.7) completed a questionnaire measuring involvement, art reception, perceived emotions, and willingness to listen to another radio art feature. The main results confirm our model of radio art reception: involvement predicts the audience's cognitive stimulation generated by radio art, their artistic evaluation, and the positive attraction experienced by audiences towards them. The positive emotions experienced during consumption have a direct effect on the attraction towards radio art. Moreover, the specific radio art content affects the audiences' responses. These results allow us to understand psychological responses to sound art. The hope is to attract the attention of communication and art researchers and invite them to deepen the existing knowledge about artistic sound through empirical studies, since debates about radio art and sound works are almost lacking from scientific literature.Radioarte es el nombre que recibe la radio hecha por artistas. Usualmente, el término se aplica a los objetos sonoros producidos mediante el uso creativo de las aplicaciones, infraestructuras y tecnologías radiofónicas. El radioarte es un trabajo sonoro concebido para expandir las posibilidades creativas y estéticas del medio radiofónico gracias al uso de los elementos del lenguaje sonoro (voces, palabras, músicas, efectos sonoros y silencio) con la intención de producir mensajes estéticos y conmover a los oyentes radiofónicos. Este estudio presenta la recepción de radioartes como objeto de es-crutinio científico. Específicamente, propone un modelo de procesamiento de estas obras que incluye la implicación, la evaluación artística y las emociones positivas como predictores de la disposición a escucharlas. Después de oír cada uno de dos radioartes, 126 estudiantes de comunicación de Singapur (MEdad= 22,7, DT = 1,7) completaron un cuestionario que medía su implicación, su evaluación de la obra artística, las emociones experimentadas y la disposición a escuchar otros radioartes. Los principales resultados confirman nuestro modelo de recepción del arte sonoro: la implicación predice la estimulación cognitiva de las audiencias generadas por los radioartes, su percepción artística y la atracción positiva ex-perimentada hacia estas obras. Las emociones positivas experimentadas durante el consumo tienen un efecto directo en la atracción hacia los radioartes. Luego el contenido específico de la obra artística sonora afecta a las respuestas de sus audiencias. Estos resultados permiten comprender las respuestas psicológicas al arte sonoro. También, buscan atraer la atención de los investigadores de la comunicación y del arte e invitarles a profundizar empíricamente en el conocimiento del sonido artístico porque los debates sobre las artes radiofónicas y las obras sonoras son lamentablemente muy esca-sos en la bibliografía científic

The Emotional Competence Assessment Questionnaire (ECAQ) for Children Aged from 3 to 5 Years : Validity and Reliability Evidence

In order to assess emotional competence in children, it is necessary to have psychometrically sound measures. To the best of our knowledge, there is no available tool to assess emotional competence in children from 3 to 5 years old that assesses the five emotional competences of the Bisquerra model and can be easily and quickly answered in the school environment. The objective of this study is to develop a measure, the Emotional Competence Assessment Questionnaire (ECAQ), and to provide evidence of its psychometric quality. Qualitative evidence was obtained from a systematic review, from two expert committees and from five discussion groups. On the other hand, quantitative validity and reliability evidence was obtained from a sample of 1088 students and other smaller subsamples. The results suggest that the ECAQ is a short and easy-to-use tool, easily understood by administrators. The quantitative results confirm a general factor of emotional competence adjusted for three specific factors. This factor has excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability. The ECAQ has therefore been shown to be a promising tool for assessing emotional competence in children between 3 and 5 years of age