The Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Italian Nature-Based Programs in the Educational, Therapeutic, Training and Leisure Areas

In these times of global crisis caused by Covid-19, there is an urgent need to address the topic of nature-based experiences in education: the pandemic has strongly highlighted both the interdependence between human beings and nature, and the need for mending the dichotomic vision that keeps them separate. Experiential education in natural contexts within an ecological framework might have a strategic role in this crucial period to develop anthropologic, civic, and dialogic conscience (Morin, 2001). Through this study, CEFEO Research Center had the objective of investigating the socio-economic impact of Covid-19 on Italian nature-based programs in the educational, therapeutic, training, and leisure areas. From 28 May to 19 June 2020, an online questionnaire was distributed with the purpose of understanding the socio-economic impact of the pandemic on nature-based programs during the lockdown period and during the period of first reopening, and the related needs and new opportunities for the future. The results highlight a paradox: the Covid-19 crisis has caused more problems for a sector which was already suffering from a lack of funding and of social and institutional acknowledgment. Many agencies working in the field lost months of income and numerous working days, and they are uncertain about the future: they are having difficulties surviving in a moment when we need them more

Representações Sociais de Mulher Cigana entre População Não-Cigana Brasileira e Italiana: Ancoragem Psicológica e Social

Based on the non-consensual approach of the Theory of Social Representations, the present study aimed to investigate the processes of social and psychological anchoring regarding the social representations of the gypsy woman, dimension which allows analyzing the modulation of the social objects from the interindividual positioning and the experiences shared by subjects of the representation according to their sociocultural context of insertion. The study included 643 non-gypsy, Brazilian and Italian individuals with mean age of 22.81 years (SD=5.73). Once lexical correspondence analysis was conducted, the process of psychological anchoring indicated the formation of eight clusters, which characterize different representations, according to the following dimensions: magical-religious, maternity and care of the family-group, social exclusion, and female figures. Through the analysis of the social anchoring process, we verified that variables such as contact, gender, and nationality act in the modulation of these different representations over the object, producing ambiguities that have historically led to processes of discrimination against gypsy groups.Referenciados pela abordagem não consensual da Teoria das Representações Sociais, objetivou-se investigar os processos de ancoragem psicológica e social frente às representações sociais de mulher cigana. Participaram do estudo 643 sujeitos não ciganos, brasileiros e italianos, com idade média de 22.81 anos (DP= 5.73). Aplicando a análise de correspondência lexical, o processo de ancoragem psicológica indicou a formulação de oito clusters, que caracterizam diferentes representações, segundo as dimensões: mágico-religiosa, maternidade e cuidado com o grupo-família, exclusão social e figuras do feminino. Por meio da análise do processo de ancoragem social, verificou-se que variáveis como contato, sexo e nacionalidade atuam na modulação dessas diferentes representações sobre o objeto, produzindo ambiguidades que, historicamente, têm orientado processos de discriminação contra grupos ciganos

Lo stato dell’arte dei progetti nature-based in ambito educativo, formativo, terapeutico e ricreativo in Italia: quadro concettuale e una possibile categorizzazione dei settori/contesti

National and international literature on nature-based programs in the educational,training, therapeutic and leisure areas reveals a lack of homogeneityin using the different terminologies: the various terms are used with differentmeanings, both by practitioners and by scholars. The present work is theconceptual premise of a research which outlined a quantitative and qualitativemapping of the Italian organizations that use nature-based approachesand methodologies. This paper provides both a literature review of the theoreticalroots which support nature-based experiences, and a reconnaissanceof the national situation regarding the use of terminology and thedifferentiation in the various specific practical fields. In order to properly introducethe mapping research, this work proposes a conceptual organizationdefining four macro-areas of the nature-based sector. This categorization,which is organized around some indicators, aims to be flexible and to havepermeable borders; and it has the goal to help orienting in the complexframework of the numerous nature-based proposals in Italy.Dall’analisi della letteratura nazionale e internazionale sulle pratiche naturebasedin ambito educativo, formativo, terapeutico e ricreativo, emerge disomogeneitànell’utilizzo delle diverse terminologie, utilizzate con significatitalvolta molto diversi sia dagli stessi soggetti che se ne occupano, sia daglistudiosi che ne teorizzano e concettualizzano le pratiche. Il presente contributoè la premessa concettuale di una ricerca* effettuata per disegnare unamappa quantitativa e qualitativa delle realtà che operano in Italia utilizzandometodologie e approcci nature-based e propone sia una rassegna delle radiciteoriche che sostengono le esperienze nature-based, sia una ricostruzionedel panorama nazionale in merito all’utilizzo della terminologia e alla differenziazionenei diversi ambiti specifici di operatività. Ai fini della suddetta rilevazione,inoltre, il lavoro propone un’organizzazione concettuale chedelinea quattro macro-aree del settore nature-based; la categorizzazione proposta,organizzata intorno ad alcuni indicatori, intende essere fluida e daiconfini permeabili ed è finalizzata a facilitare l’orientamento nel complessoquadro delle numerose proposte nature-based presenti sul territorio italiano

Lo stato dell’arte dei progetti nature-based in ambito educativo, formativo, terapeutico e ricreativo in Italia: i dati di una ricerca di mappatura

The main purpose of this study is to outline a quantitative and qualitative map of the Italian organizations working in the socio-educational, training,therapeutic, and leisure areas, that use nature-based methodologies. The second goal is to understand the professional identities of these organizations,through an analysis of their history, practical proposals, practitioners’ qualifications, evaluation practices. 99 participants, selected through nonprobabilitysampling, answered a questionnaire that was partly developed with the collaboration of stakeholders’ representatives. The conclusions focus on a reflection on the findings and on the perspectives for further research. This paper follows another one named “The state of art of naturebased programs in the educational, training, therapeutic, and leisure areas in Italy: conceptual framework and possible categorization of sectors/contexts.”, which had the aim to outline the Italian state of art regarding the terminology and the differentiation of the various nature-based areas.La ricerca che qui presentiamo è stata finalizzata principalmente a disegnare una mappa quantitativa e qualitativa delle realtà che operano in Italia utilizzando metodologie e approcci nature-based negli ambiti socio-educativo, formativo, didattico (extrascuola), terapeutico e per il tempo libero. Il secondo obiettivo è stato quello di comprendere le identità professionali di tali soggetti analizzando la loro storia, le loro proposte operative, la preparazione professionale e i titoli di studio, la prassi di effettuare valutazioni delle proposte realizzate. La ricerca ha coinvolto un campione non-probabilistico formato da 99 soggetti coinvolti nella compilazione di un questionario ideato anche con la collaborazione di stakeholdher, rappresentanti del comparto nature-based. Le conclusioni esplicitano le riflessioni scaturite dai dati raccolti e disegnano le prospettive di sviluppo di ulteriori fasi e studi futuri. Il presente contributo è il seguito di una prima parte dal titolo “Lo stato dell’arte dei progetti nature-based in ambito educativo, formativo, terapeutico e ricreativo in Italia: quadro concettuale e una possibile categorizzazione dei settori/contesti.”, in cui viene ricostruito il quadro del panorama nazionale in merito all’utilizzo della terminologia e alla differenziazione nei diversi ambiti specifici di operatività

Human, Animal and Automata Attributions: an Investigation of the Multidimensionality of the Ontologization Process

The ontologization process involves the use of social representation relating to the human–animal binary to classify ingroup and outgroup members. To date, no study has investigated the multidimensional nature (i.e. human, animal and automata) of the ontologizing process via structural equation modelling (SEM). Four hundred and twenty-one Italian participants were asked to attribute 24 positive/negative, human/animal/automata associates to each of three target groups: typical Roma/Chinese/Italian. Results showed that the proposed six-factor model (i.e. positive/negative, human/animal/automata essence) was statistically robust for each of the three groups. The Roma group was animalized by attributing more animal negative associates than any other target group, whereas the Chinese group was mainly given a robot positive essence

Czynniki chroniące i czynniki ryzyka związane z zaangażowaniem w sprawstwo bullyingu i cyberbullyingu

The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of bullying and cyberbullying perpetration among adolescents and to test the role of demographic (gender, age) and psychosocial variables (self-esteem, loneliness and school climate) associated with these aggressive behaviours. An anonymous questionnaire was fi lled in by 2.326 adolescents from Italian middle and high schools. Results showed that cyberbullying appeared to be less frequent as compared with traditional forms of bullying. Logistic regression analyses revealed a strong continuity between traditional bullying and cyberbullying. Loneliness perceived in the relationships with parents was a very relevant predictor of both forms of bullying (traditional and cyber): i.e. the adolescents who perceived parents as distant were more involved in bullying. A negative relationship with teachers and a low self-esteem about school were other signifi cant risk factors for traditional and cyber perpetration. Besides these common predictors, some differences were found among predictors in traditional bullying and cyberbullying. In fact, males and students of high schools declared to be more involved in the role of a traditional bully than female and younger preadolescents, while gender and age had no predictive role for cyberbullying. A high perception of self-esteem in rela-tionships with peers, a low aversion to loneliness and a perception of unsafety at school triggered cyberbullying, while a high perception of self-esteem in sports activities and of a poor support at school increased the probability of becoming a traditional bully. The results have been discussed focussing on the family and school contexts as crucial relational environments to be considered for intervention programs aimed at preventing not only traditional bullying but also forms of aggression in the virtual world.Celem tego badania było określenie częstotliwości sprawstwa w zakresie bullyingu i cyberbullyingu wśród adolescentów. Badano związki tego zjawiska z cechami społeczno-demografi cznymi (płeć, wiek) oraz zmiennymi psychospołecznymi (tj. samooceną, samotnością, czy klimatem społecznym szkoły).Anonimowy kwestionariusz został wypełniony przez 2326 adolescentów z wło-skich szkół. Cyberbullying okazał się zjawiskiem rzadziej występującym niż bullying, jednak regresja logistyczna wykazała wyraźnie współwystępowanie tych zjawisk.Samotność doświadczana w relacjach z rodzicami okazała się być predykatorem obu rodzajów przemocy rówieśniczej. Podobnie niska samoocena i złe relacje z nauczycielami korelowały dodatnio z zaangażowaniem w obydwa rodzaje prze-mocy rówieśniczej.Pojawiło się także kilka mniej oczywistych zależności. Starsi nastolatkowie częściej angażowali się jako sprawcy w tradycyjny bullying (w porównaniu z młodszymi chłopcami i dziewczętami). Zmienne te okazały się bez znaczenia przy zaangażowaniu w cyberbullying. Wysoka samoocena w relacji z rówieśnikami, niskie poczucie samotności i postrzeganie szkoły jako niebezpiecznej korelowało z cyberbullyingiem. Z kolei, wysoka samoocena w zakresie kompetencji sportowych i niskie wsparcie w szkole zwiększało prawdopodobieństwo stania się sprawcą tra-dycyjnej agresji. Wyniki potwierdzają, że kluczowe środowiska – rodzina i szkoła – są istotne nie tylko dla zaangażowania w tradycyjną, ale też wirtualną agresję. Powinny one być zatem uwzględniane w programach profi laktycznych dotyczących obydwu tych zjawisk

Princípios Organizadores das Representações de Rural e Cidade

O estudo foi desenvolvido com o propósito de conhecer os princípios que orga­nizam as tomadas de posição de integrantes de um grupo rural em frente às representa­ções de rural e cidade, a partir da análise dos processos de ancoragem psicológica, social e psicossocial. Foram realizadas entrevistas individuais com 200 integrantes de uma co­munidade rural, distribuídos em quatro gerações. O roteiro foi composto por questões que focalizavam: (1) dados sociodemográficos referentes ao sexo, idade, geração e se o participante já havia vivido em áreas urbanas; (2) experiência de preconceito, expec­tativa de vida na cidade para não migrados e recomendação para viver na cidade pelos participantes que já tinham vivido em território urbano; (3) valores sociais do rural; e (4) evocações livres associadas aos objetos de representação. Os resultados, sistematizados por meio da Análise de Conteúdo e processados por meio do software SPAD-T, indicaram a presença de três princípios organizadores dos significados vinculados aos objetos rural vs. cidade: mundo natural vs. mundo artificial, vida feliz vs. vida ruim e quase autossufi­ciente vs. centro dos recursos. As discussões focalizaram as funções das representações nos processos de elaboração da identidade social, destacando-se entre elas a de produzir equilíbrio e sustentar a defesa do espaço de pertencimento

Adolescents with Mental Disorders: The Efficacy of a Multiprofessional Approach

In the book "Mental Illnesses - Evaluation, Treatments and Implications" attention is focused on background factors underlying mental illness. It is crucial that mental illness be evaluated thoroughly if we want to understand its nature, predict its long-term outcome, and treat it with specific rather than generic treatment, such as pharmacotherapy for instance. Additionally, community-wide and cognitive-behavioral approaches need to be combined to decrease the severity of symptoms of mental illness. Unfortunately, those who should profit the most by combination of treatments, often times refuse treatment or show poor adherence to treatment maintenance. Most importantly, what are the implications of the above for the mental health community? Mental illness cannot be treated with one single form of treatment. Combined individual, community, and socially-oriented treatments, including recent distance-writing technologies will hopefully allow a more integrated approach to decrease mental illness world-wide