María Soledad Palacios-Gálvez

Relational developmental systems theory integrates a positive youth development (PYD) perspective on the transition to adulthood. Meanwhile, the developmental assets (DAs) model describes the personal and contextual resources that nurture PYD. This study examined the fulfillment of DAs and experience of social contribution in a sample of 23 Spanish undergraduates from seven universities (age range 18–25, M _age = 20.57, SD = 2.06). Data were collected from seven focus groups, each comprising undergraduate students from different academic years, universities, and degree programs. All interviews were conducted in Spanish for 50–65 min and comprised eight questions divided into three sections (internal assets, external assets, and social contribution and barriers). The results indicated that among internal assets, positive values, social competencies, and positive identity were important for adolescents. Additionally, the external asset of social support was a highly relevant resource. Regarding social contribution, the participants showed empathy towards the needs of the community and reported that helping others was rewarding. Clearly, the youth’s perspectives on their development should be considered while creating prevention and promotion programs that foster internal and external assets.

This chapter considers the educational effects of Participatory Budgeting from a psychosocial perspective. Drawing on some of the theoretical frameworks in this field, analysis is performed of the designs and empirical data of the different studies. The results show how participation can develop democratic skills while at the same time improve group relations. The Ágora Infantil process is discussed in particular depth due to its design aimed at minimizing self-selection and incorporating those less likely to participate. The studies of this process show an improvement in group cohesion, identification, inclusion, friendship and work networks, a reduction of negative interactions and increased psychological empowerment. As a whole, the cases studied illustrate the importance of taking into account the interaction between individuals and their context in both the design of processes and the interpretation of their results.

Introduction. Somatic symptoms with no organic cause are more prevalent among women than among men, with mental health problems generated by gender and social norms mainly being presented by females, to which the health system tends to provide an exclusively medicalised response. It is possible to implement group interventions that address the consequences of divergent socialisation hinging on gender as regards mental health, with these efforts having a positive impact on perceptions of well-being. The aim of this paper is to assess the impact of socio-educational groups on the participants, using a qualitative methodology. Methodology. We conducted ten semi-structured interviews with participants in the socio-educational groups. Sample selection was intentional, selecting ten participants on the basis of the following variables: age, level of education, marital status, employment status, income level, and the size of the municipality in which they resided. This theoretical sampling technique allowed us to guarantee the heterogeneity of the participants and their discourse. To analyse the information, we applied a phenomenological and critical approach, and conducted a process of thematic analysis. Results. Well-being is the main theme that emerges from the analysis of the information, grouping together different sub-themes and properties. In the female participants discourse we noted that socio-educational groups helped them approach their lives differently, allowing them to feel better on the personal and relational levels. The coping mechanisms observed included problem-focused (questioning, gender awareness, acting on the problem, self-determination, social relations and integration into the labour market) and emotion-focused strategies (relativisation, acceptance and living in the present, relaxation techniques and emotional expression). Discussion. This study contributes to an understanding of how socio-educational groups offered a good strategy to improve participants’ mental health and perceived wellbeing by applying group work with a gender perspective. They provided a forum in which the participants became gender-aware, leading them to reconsider themselves and their lives, find new explanations for their experiences, and realise their ability to develop their creativity in the face of guilt and fear, allowing them to pursue new life projects. Conclusions. The results are consistent with the literature, which indicates the existence of gender norms adversely affecting participants' mental health problems. These problems could be reduced through work undertaken in socio-educational groups that enables them to develop new coping strategies. The implications for social policies include evaluating the potential of incorporating this type of strategy into the portfolio of public health services, as well as assessing the relevance of creating and carrying out socio-educational groups with men. With a view to the future, it would be valuable to establish qualitative measures over time to observe any changes in the participants’ discourse and experiences.

El objetivo de este texto es el estudio de la relación entre el uso de redes sociales digitales y el grado en que la población apoya varias teorías de la conspiración referidas al contexto español. Los resultados muestran una asociación entre un mayor grado de uso de redes sociales y un mayor grado de apoyo a las teorías de la conspiración en al menos 3 de las 4 teorías consideradas. El análisis multivariante ha encontrado en todos los casos que, además del uso de redes sociales digitales, múltiples variables sociodemográficas, políticas y psicosociales intervienen en esta relación y de una manera específica en cada caso. Se concluye que este es solo un primer resultado que necesita de varias matizaciones y futuros estudios que profundicen en la naturaleza de esta asociación.

At the beginning of 2020, COVID-19 became a global problem. Despite all the efforts to emphasize the relevance of preventive measures, not everyone adhered to them. Thus, learning more about the characteristics determining attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic is crucial to improving future interventions. In this study, we applied machine learning on the multinational data collected by the International Collaboration on the Social and Moral Psychology of COVID-19 (N = 51,404) to test the predictive efficacy of constructs from social, moral, cognitive, and personality psychology, as well as socio-demographic factors, in the attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic. The results point to several valuable insights. Internalized moral identity provided the most consistent predictive contribution—individuals perceiving moral traits as central to their self-concept reported higher adherence to preventive measures. Similar results were found for morality as cooperation, symbolized moral identity, self-control, open-mindedness, and collective narcissism, while the inverse relationship was evident for the endorsement of conspiracy theories. However, we also found a non-neglible variability in the explained variance and predictive contributions with respect to macro-level factors such as the pandemic stage or cultural region. Overall, the results underscore the importance of morality-related and contextual factors in understanding adherence to public health recommendations during the pandemic.

Objetivo. El objetivo principal del presente estudio es analizar la relación entre la tolerancia hacia el ciberacoso en el noviazgo (CBN) y las siguientes variables que han sido estudiadas tradicionalmente en la investigación sobre violencia de género (VG): el sexismo ambivalente, los mitos del amor romántico y los mitos sobre la VG. Además, se han analizado las diferencias en función del sexo en todas las variables. Método. 390 estudiantes universitarios/as (M=20.76; DT=4.83) cumplimentaron voluntariamente un cuestionario anónimo. Resultados. Los resultados revelaron una correlación positiva entre la tolerancia hacia el CBN y el resto de variables. En cuanto a la variación por sexo, los hombres mostraron mayores creencias sexistas, mayor interiorización de mitos del amor romántico y de la VG, y mayor tolerancia hacia el CBN que las mujeres. Conclusiones. Dada la relevancia social del tema y los resultados obtenidos, se recomienda abordar estas cuestiones en la formación/prevención del alumnado universitario y se ofrecen algunas sugerencias para futuras investigaciones.

The new pandemic-lockdown situation has caused empowerment of new technologies; mobile phones and computers have gained further importance. Homes have become the new educators of health since health education has decreased or stopped during the pandemic. The lack of knowledge in the child and adolescent population about how to incorporate healthy habits in their daily lives, along with the rise of health devices and the introduction of healthcare in the syllabus, has led to the realization of the present study. The aim of this study was to identify the relevant health topics in a sample of adolescents for the later development of a mobile application (Healthy Jeart) that promotes the adoption of healthy lifestyle habits in adolescence. The information was gathered through the technique of nominal groups. The sample was recruited by nonprobability purposive sampling, with a total of 92 students from 4 educational centers of the province of Huelva (Spain). According to the obtained results, the most relevant categories were physical wellbeing (40.81%), psychological wellbeing (22.13%), interpersonal relationships and social skills (21.58%), toxic substances and addictions (10.35%) and sex habits (1.83%). This technique allowed identifying and selecting the most relevant content areas of the “Healthy Jeart” application.