Situational Variables Research Articles

Psychological analysis of the life situation of adolescents with orthopedic diseases

BACKGROUND: The situational approach is a promising direction in the study of the determinants of mental development and behaviors in modern psychological research. This study considered the possibility of using a situational approach in the study of psychological problems of children and adolescents with orthopedic diseases and discussed the objective and subjective characteristics of the life situation associated with orthopedic diseases and surgical treatment.
 AIM: The study aimed to examine the peculiarities of life situations in adolescents with various orthopedic diseases.
 MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study involved adolescents aged 1217 years diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis (n = 54) and juvenile chronic arthritis (n = 44) and healthy adolescents (n = 43). Clinicalpsychological and psychodiagnostic methods were used. Mathematical and statistical data processing was carried out.
 RESULTS: The life situation of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis and juvenile chronic arthritis was characterized by events that cause traumatic experiences. Objective factors of the life situation and traumatic life events presented in the mental picture of the disease of adolescents agree with the pronounced emotional problems of patients with orthopedic diseases. Compared with healthy adolescents, adolescents with orthopedic diseases had higher general index of PTS, which indicates a pronounced subjective difficulty of the life situation of adolescents with orthopedic diseases. The results are confirmed by the severity of the subjective negative emotional reactions to certain characteristics of the disease. The objective and subjective characteristics of the life situation of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis and juvenile chronic arthritis may determine the degree of difficulty and the degree of risk in the occurrence of emotional trauma for illness, hospitalization, and treatment.
 CONCLUSIONS: Understanding the life difficulties of adolescents with orthopedic diseases can improve the prediction of behavioral problems and adaptation opportunities in hospital settings and provide timely psychological assistance to adolescents with severe orthopedic diseases, taking into account situational variables.

Combating COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: A Synthetic Public Segmentation Approach for Predicting Vaccine Acceptance.

Vaccine hesitancy impacts the ability to cope with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) effectively in the United States. It is important for health organizations to increase vaccine acceptance. Addressing this issue, this study aimed to predict citizens' acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine through a synthetic approach of public segmentation including cross-situational and situational variables. Controlling for demographics, we examined institutional trust, negative attitudes toward, and low levels of knowledge about vaccines (ie, lacuna public characteristics), and fear of COVID-19 during the pandemic. Our study provides a useful framework for public segmentation and contributes to risk and health campaigns by identifying significant predictors of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. We conducted an online survey on October 10, 2020 (N = 499), and performed hierarchical regression analyses to predict citizens' COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. This study demonstrated that trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and federal government, vaccine attitude, problem recognition, constraint recognition, involvement recognition, and fear positively predicted COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. This study outlines a useful synthetic public segmentation framework and extends the concept of lacuna public to the pandemic context, helping to predict vaccine acceptance. Importantly, the findings could be useful in designing health campaign messages.

Variation Patterns in Interlanguage Pragmatics: Apology Speech Act of EFL Learners vs. American Native Speakers

Abstract Pragmatic competence consists of both pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic components. The choice of pragmalinguistic strategies aligned with sociopragmatic norms may vary based on situational, cultural, and individual variables. The relationship between these important aspects of second language pragmatic competence, however, is underdeveloped in the literature. To fill this gap, the present paper is aimed at investigating the pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic variations of the Iranian EFL learners from different proficiency levels. A written discourse completion task (WDCT) was adopted for collecting data. Data were analyzed using the coding categories for apologies developed in the previous benchmark studies. The findings of the study provided evidence showing both sociopragmatic and pragmalinguistic development across the levels of language proficiency. The findings can be used for the development of pragmatics-focused materials in L2 and pragmatics instruction.

Does employee empowerment moderate the effect of situational and dispositional variables on emotional exhaustion differently? The COVID-19 crisis context

Purpose Building on the conservation of resources (COR) theory, this study aims to investigate employee empowerment’s moderation effect on the relationship of situational (job satisfaction, affective commitment) and dispositional (positive affectivity, emotional intelligence) variables toward the emotional exhaustion of service employees amidst the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach In total, 288 service employees from various sectors in Indonesia participate as the study’s respondents. This study applies a two-stage structural equation modeling approach to test the hypotheses. Findings The results show that employee empowerment moderates situational and dispositional variables differently. While employee empowerment significantly influences situational variables, a different situation is found on dispositional variables, that employee empowerment does not significantly influence these variables. This study’s findings portray the COR theory in practice and clarify the importance of employee empowerment for employees with particular attributions. Research limitations/implications The present study bears four limitations: the cross-sectional design; no exploration of dispositional and situational variables’ antecedents; the findings are limited to the service workers; and lastly, this study only takes Indonesian samples. Practical implications From a practical perspective, this study reveals which type of service employees are responsive to empowerment policy and which are prone to experience emotional exhaustion, particularly during a crisis. Social implications By understanding what factors determine employee empowerment’s effectiveness, managers could maximize the impacts of their empowerment policies. Subsequently, it will create better service deliveries which might benefit the broader societal scope. Originality/value This study contributes to both theoretical and practical understanding. Theoretically, this study adds and promotes using a categorical lens to examine the pattern of interactions between organizations and employees.

Introduction to the Special Issue ofGroup Processes & Intergroup RelationsLess than Human: What People who are Dehumanized Think, Feel, and Do

Over recent years, social psychological research has investigated dehumanization (viewing and treating people as less than human) by primarily focusing on those who dehumanize—the perpetrators. Less is known about those who are dehumanized—the targets of dehumanization. This Special Issue aims to address this gap by assembling empirical works on metadehumanization (when targets perceive that they are being dehumanized by others) and self-dehumanization (when targets come to see themselves in dehumanized ways). In this introductory article, we summarize the state of the science and suggest a research agenda for further studying dehumanization from the target’s perspective, by considering: (a) the impact of dehumanizing portrayal used in media; (b) the role of cultural or societal features in shaping our humanness; (c) the individual or situational variables that trigger a dehumanizing versus rehumanizing reaction to dehumanization; (d) the influence of risk- or protective factors on the emerging of metadehumanizing or self-dehumanizing feelings; and (e) the phenomenon of ingroup dehumanization.

Studentsʼ Willingness to Communicate in English: Czech Adaptation of Willingness to Communicate Inside the Classroom Scale

Quality communication between a teacher and a student or students contributes to the process of learning a foreign language. Communication in foreign language teaching is both a means of communication and the content of teaching. The model of willingness to communicate in a foreign language describes individual characteristics and situational variables that affect a pupil’s readiness to enter dialogue with another person at some point. The present study provides information on the process and results of scale adaptation Willingness to Communicate Inside the Classroom scale. The process of adaptation to Czech conditions includes the verification of content validity, construct validity, and the identification of a factor structure of the instrument. Using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) procedures in the JASP program 0.14.1. the suitability of the use of the originally designed scale was verified and a reduction from twenty-seven to eighteen items was proposed. The internal consistency of the Czech version of the Willingness to Communicate Inside the Classroom scale showed a sufficient Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of .82, thus we can assume that the tested scales show sufficient reliability.

THE IMPACT OF PRODUCT DESCRIPTION OF INVOLVEMENT PLATFORM TOWARDS PURCHASE INTENTION AT ONLINE STORES ON THE MARKETPLACE PLATFORM

This quantitative method research aims to determine whether the product description influences purchase intention, with the mediation of enduring and situational involvement as part of platform involvement. This research is based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), Involvement theory, and previous research on product description, platform involvement, and purchase intention on online platforms. The number of samples in this study was 95 respondents, with the determination of the sample using a purposive sampling technique, with the respondent’s criteria being online consumers who had made transactions on the Tokopedia and Shopee marketplace platforms. The data analysis method is structural equation modelling Partial Least Square (SEM-PLS) with SmartPLS 3.3.7 software. The results of this study indicate that product description can positively and significantly affect enduring and situational involvement. However, the mediation between the product description and purchase intention is only fully found on the situational involvement variable, while enduring involvement does not affect purchase intention. It is different from the results of previous studies, which stated that enduring and situational involvement influence purchase intention. The implications for further researchers, it is recommended to reuse enduring involvement and purchase intention variables and other variables that can lead to enduring involvement concerning consumer purchase intention. Different types of products, populations, and analytical models, can be used to conduct further research to provide a more complete and appropriate description and data.

KOMUNIKASI INSTRUKSIONAL PADA PROGRAM KESETARAAN PAKET C

Students in the high school equivalency program have their own uniqueness including: age, marital status, and socioeconomic status. They have experienced dropout and have not carried out learning activities for a long time. During the COVID 19 pandemic, most of the learning process takes place online, which is not easy for them. The research entitled "Instructional Communication in the High School Equivalency Program" intends to find out how the instructional communication model between tutors and students of the high school equivalency program in PKBM Patrakomala Bandung. The purpose was to analyze the interaction between tutors and students, the application of learning methods, the use of media, and the obstacles faced in the instructional communication process. This study uses a qualitative method with a case study approach. This study also uses constructivism theory from Jesse Delia. The results show that offline interactions are transactional, while online interactions are interactional. The learning methods used are: independent learning methods, assignments, lectures, and questions and answers. Tutors have full authority to determine the learning method to be used. The media used are seTARA Daring and WhatsApp groups. The obstacles encountered come from personal and situational variables of the students.

Taliban 2.0 and US National Security Policy in Afghanistan

This article examines from the point of view of the US national security policy, the causes and contexts for the US exit from Afghanistan and the factors that will influence the US policy in Afghanistan in the coming decade. It reviews the logic behind post-9/11 US ‘grand strategy’ and the evolution of the US national security policy in this period, which included the invasion and occupation of Afghanistan. It examines the evolution of the US deployment and factors which complicated the US strategic objectives in Afghanistan, including the persistent tension in the US national security objectives between counter-terrorism and nation-building objectives. It argues that the US faces limited palatable options regarding its post-withdrawal Afghanistan policy and that moving forward, policy will be constrained by a mix of situational and structural variables. These include US domestic politics, the Taliban regime itself (and its relationship with ISIS-K) and the region’s geopolitical winds, notably the strategic positions of Iran, Pakistan, China and to a lesser extent Russia.

Legitimacy, Entrepreneur Characteristics and Financing Effect of New Ventures - Evidence From Chinese Start-Ups

Research shows that both corporate legitimacy and entrepreneurs' personal characteristics have a significant impact on the financing effect of new ventures. However, there are few studies on the complex causal relationship between corporate legitimacy, entrepreneurs' personal characteristics and corporate financing effect. In this study, the legitimacy of new ventures is regarded as an important node of enterprise development, and the legitimacy of start-ups is regarded as two different situation variables of logical "yes" and "no" and the characteristics of entrepreneurs to complete the construction of the model. And the path to achieve high financing effect is deeply analyzed and discussed under the circumstance that the entrepreneur's personal characteristics are restricted by enterprise legality. Results show: in the enterprise legitimacy for logic "not" scenario, entrepreneurs with high education level and the business failure of personal characteristics is the necessary condition to obtain high financing effect, enterprise legitimacy as the logic of "is" scenario, entrepreneurs with high education level of personality is the necessary condition to obtain high financing effect.

Contemporary drug use and driving patterns: A qualitative approach to understanding drug-driving perceptions from the context of user patterns

Abstract This study aimed to identify the typologies of drug users and examine how they differed in drug-driving tendencies. A sample of drug users (N = 52) from Queensland, Australia, completed a telephone interview. Thematic analyses identified three unique user types: (a) sporadic recreational users, who used a variety of drugs and drug drove depending on situational variables; (b) frequent recreational users, who favoured cannabis and methamphetamine, and did not typically regulate their driving; and (c) frequent medicinal users, who used cannabis for a medical condition and were more responsible in regulating both their use and driving. While frequent recreational users may drug drive more often, sporadic users (who are proportionally larger in size) may be more at risk due to a low tolerance and an increased likelihood of poly-substance use. The findings of this study may inform the development of tailored police interventions but also inform current policy discussions.

Depressive symptoms and conspiracy beliefs

AbstractConspiratorial beliefs can endanger individuals and societies by increasing the likelihood of harmful behaviors such as the flouting of public health guidelines. While scholars have identified various correlates of conspiracy beliefs, one factor that has received scant attention is depressive symptoms. We use three large surveys to explore the connection between depression and conspiracy beliefs. We find a consistent association, with the extent of the relationship depending on individual and situational factors. Interestingly, those from relatively advantaged demographic groups (i.e., White, male, high income, educated) exhibit a stronger relationship between depression and conspiracy beliefs than those not from such groups. Furthermore, situational variables that ostensibly increase stress—such as having COVID‐19 or parenting during COVID‐19—exacerbate the relationship while those that seem to decrease stress, such as social support, vitiate it. The results provide insight about the development of targeted interventions and accentuate the need for theorizing about the mechanisms that lead depression to correlate with conspiracy beliefs.

Exploring the Dark side of conscientiousness. The relationship between conscientiousness and its potential derailers: perfectionism and narcissism

The current study aimed to identify what individual differences and situational variables cause derailment in highly conscientious people. Data were from a representative working sample of 716 participants across 27 industries, spanning both management and non-management roles. We tested four hypotheses with regard to bright- and dark-side personality traits and the relationship between boss/manager and staff member. Hierarchical linear regressions revealed mixed findings for Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) as a stressor. For maladaptive perfectionism it was confirmed, but not for adaptive perfectionism or narcissism. Results suggest introverts may be more prone to maladaptive perfectionism, even with higher levels of conscientiousness if there are lower LMX levels. Overall, the findings suggest selecting for conscientiousness alone and discounting other personality traits and situational variables may be detrimental in practice. Further implications are discussed alongside the study limitations.

Individual differences in contingencies between situation characteristics and personality states.

Contingencies between situational variables and psychological states have been proposed as key individual difference variables by many theoretical approaches to personality. Despite their relevance, the basic properties, nomological correlates, and factor structure of individual differences in contingencies have not been examined so far. We address these fundamental questions in five studies with overall N = 952 participants and N = 32,052 unique assessments. Individual differences in situation characteristic-state contingencies (SCSCs) between DIAMONDS situation characteristics and Big Five personality states were examined in everyday life. SCSCs showed substantial variation across participants, and individual differences in them were moderately reliable (average meta-analytic reliability = .47) and short-term stable (average meta-analytic latent stability = .43). They were weakly and inconsistently related to average personality states, self-reported personality traits, subjective happiness, and sociodemographic variables across studies. However, there were meaningful intercorrelations among SCSCs that could be described by four factors: contingencies involving (1) positive states and situational problems, (2) positive states and situational rewards, (3) thinking/work and requirements of thinking/work, and (4) neurotic states. Overall, our findings support the notion of SCSCs as potentially important individual difference variables, and we sketch future lines of research on contingencies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

“Elder Scam” Risk Profiles: Individual and Situational Factors of Younger and Older Age Groups’ Fraud Victimization

In an attempt to understand how differently fraud works depending on a victim’s age, we have examined the effects of situational (lifestyle-routine activities), self-control, and sociodemographic variables on scam victimization across age groups. The analysis was carried out on a national sample of 2,558 Americans, representative by age, sex, and race, and includes additional factors such as their education, living arrangement, employment, and propensity for reporting a crime or asking for help. The results substantiate research findings of the contribution of self-control and LRAT in predicting victimization in general but could not identify major situational and individual differences between older and younger Americans’ scam victimization. However, employment can function as a protective factor for older individuals in some online fraud scenarios. Furthermore, older adults show significantly more reluctance in asking for help or reporting than do younger ones. Future research must address these differences. The author also suggests developing specific variables for measuring how lifestyle-routine activity theory works in scam victimization.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SELF-EFFICACY, STATE-TRAIT ANXIETY AND COGNITIVE TEST ANXIETY: A STUDY AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN ARGENTINA

This study aims to explore and analyze the relationship between general self-efficacy, state and trait anxiety and test anxiety in private university students of psychology and psycho-pedagogy careers from Argentina. Results showed positive correlations between trait anxiety and test anxiety, and between state anxiety and test anxiety. Negative correlations emerged between general self-efficacy and state anxiety, trait anxiety and test anxiety. It was possible to verify that high levels of general self-efficacy together with low levels of trait anxiety predicted 27% test anxiety variance. While similar results were found in previous works, these findings amplify the scope of research to specific contexts such as Latin American university students. It is recommended to continue the study of these variables in situations as close as possible to the exam situation and considering changes in educational setting worldwide due to the COVID-19 pandemic, thus allowing the promotion of student’s welfare throughout programs that promote general self-efficacy as a protective variable.

Testing a psychosocial model of sexual communication and sexual risk-taking: A cross-sectional, online survey study of Australian University students

ObjectiveSexually transmitted infection rates are higher among young people relative to other age groups. Despite much investigation, there is not enough research about in-the-moment factors associated with risky sexual behaviour, such as relational and situational variables. The present study sought to test a comprehensive psychosocial model of sexual risk-taking that included a range of factors: individual (emotion dysregulation, impulsivity), relational (attachment, communication), societal (norms, gender), and situational (dating application use, alcohol use). Methods1244 young people aged 18 to 25 years (82.9 % women; 59.2 % single, 36.0 % in a monogamous relationship) participated in an online survey. The cross-sectional model was tested using Structural Equation Modelling. ResultsSexual communication mediated the relationship between attachment anxiety and sexual risk. However, contrary to predictions, greater sexual communication was related to higher risk. Post-hoc analysis showed that this unexpected relationship may be due to the way sexual risk was measured, as an alternative model specifying casual unprotected sex as the outcome showed no positive relationship between sexual communication and risk. ConclusionFindings indicate that young people with anxious attachment are less confident communicating about sexual health. Measures of sexual risk focusing on specific risk activities in context yield different findings to those assessing general sexual behaviours. Findings support interventions focusing on addressing perceived sexual risk norms and the dating application context to reduce risk.

ANALYSIS OF SITUATION CONTEXT VARIABLES FOR EXPOSING A POINT OF VIEW IN OPINION ARTICLE

Este artigo apresenta um estudo que teve como objetivo descrever e analisar como a desconstrução e a leitura detalhada, duas fases do programa Ler para Aprender (ROSE; MARTIN, 2012), propiciaram a análise das variáveis do contexto de situação e de que forma colaborou para a exposição de pontos de vista em artigos de opinião produzidos por uma turma da 2° série do Ensino Médio. A investigação em questão foi conduzida à luz dos princípios da pesquisa-ação, ocorrida no contexto do Programa de Residência Pedagógica / Núcleo de Língua Portuguesa, e está ancorada no arcabouço teórico-metodológico da Linguística Sistêmico-Funcional de Halliday, concentrando o interesse mais especificamente na Pedagogia de gêneros da Escola de Sydney. Para o desenvolvimento da pesquisa foram analisadas as produções textuais dos alunos (dois exemplares de um universo de dezoito textos) e as respostas a uma atividade de interpretação elaborada com vistas à exploração das variáveis do contexto de situação. A análise evidenciou que as etapas de desconstrução e de leitura detalhada propiciaram a compreensão das variáveis contextuais (campo, relação e modo). Tal compreensão foi determinante para que a produção textual ocorresse na fase de escrita autônoma, vindo a impactar diretamente nas escolhas léxico-gramaticais e semântico-discursivas dos alunos nos textos analisados.

Linguistic variation within registers: granularity in textual units and situational parameters

AbstractRegister studies have focused on accounting for linguistic variation between culturally recognized register categories. This comparative approach to register has consistently demonstrated that culturally recognized register categories can predict language variation at all linguistic levels. Nevertheless, it has also been shown by previous research that even the most well-established register categories have substantial internal linguistic variation. We propose that at least some of this unexplained variance could be the result of how a text is defined, as well as whether and how researchers account for situational variables within registers. We present four case studies that explore the extent to which linguistic variationwithinregisters is influenced by the definition of the textual unit and the situational parameters. We show that the functional correspondence between situation and language use exists evenwithinregister categories and discuss the theoretical and methodological implications of these findings for register research.

Status and Determinants of Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression among Food Delivery Drivers in Shanghai, China.

(1) Background: The psychological status of employees, especially vulnerable populations, has received considerable research attention. However, as a newly emerging and popular occupation in the gig industry, food delivery drivers have received little attention. The majority of these workers are immigrants who are already in a precarious position due to a lack of available jobs, inadequate medical care, poor diets, and communication and acculturation difficulties even before they take these jobs, which involve long working hours and exposure to the elements. (2) Methods: To examine the anxiety and depression symptoms of these workers and possible influencing factors, a cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of food delivery drivers working for the Meituan Company (one of the largest e-platform companies in China). Anxiety and depression scales were adapted from the GAD-7, and the PHQ-9 was used to assess participants’ related symptoms. Differences were compared in terms of sociodemographic, work situation, and lifestyle variables. Binary logistic regressions were conducted to analyze the effects of various factors on the two psychological dimensions. (3) Results: Among the 657 participants, the proportions of participants reporting anxiety and depression symptoms were 46.0% and 18.4%, respectively. Lack of communication with leaders (ORAN = 2.620, 95% CI: 1.528–4.493, p < 0.001; ORDE = 1.928, 95% CI: 1.039–3.577, p = 0.037) and poor sleep quality (ORAN = 2.152, 95% CI: 1.587–2.917, p < 0.001; ORDE = 2.420, 95% CI: 1.672–3.504, p < 0.001) were significant risk factors for both anxiety and depression symptoms. Women (OR = 2.679, 95% CI: 1.621–4.427, p < 0.001), those who climbed ≥31 floors per day (OR = 2.415, 95% CI: 1.189–4.905, p = 0.015), and those with a high frequency of breakfast consumption (OR = 3.821, 95% CI: 1.284–11.369, p = 0.016) were more likely to have anxiety symptoms. Participants who earned less than 5000 RMB (OR = 0.438, 95% CI: 0.204–0.940, p = 0.034), were unwilling to seek medical help (OR = 3.549, 95% CI: 1.846–6.821, p < 0.001), or had a high frequency of smoking (OR = 5.107, 95% CI: 1.187–21.981, p = 0.029) were more likely to be depressive. (4) Conclusion: The existence of communication channels with leaders and good sleep quality are protective factors for anxiety and depression symptoms. Participants who were female, climbed ≥31floors per day, and had a high frequency of eating breakfast were more likely to have anxiety symptoms, while earning less, unwillingness to seek medical help, and a high frequency of smoking were risk factors for depression symptoms.