Crisis as Opportunity, Risk, or Turmoil: Qualitative Study of Youth Narratives About the COVID-19 Pandemic

PURPOSE

The present study employed a narrative approach in order to explore how young people constructed meanings regarding their sense of self in the context of COVID-19 experiences. Adolescents have been identified as a particularly vulnerable group, as the developmental challenges they face are superimposed and amplified by the accidental crisis caused by the pandemic.

METHODS

An in-depth narrative analysis was conducted on written accounts of 13 females aged 17-23 years from Serbia. We selected these narratives from a larger sample of 70 responses (M = 20.1; SD = 2.9; 85.7% female) collected via an online form. We used reflexive thematic analysis as a tool for the selection process of the narratives subjected to in-depth narrative analysis.

RESULTS

Young people told stories that differ significantly in coherence, affective tone, personal agency, and depth of self-exploration. Narrative analysis of the selected accounts identified three distinct types of stories: (1) crisis as an opportunity for personal growth, (2) crisis as a risk for the sense of self, and (3) crisis as inner turmoil.

DISCUSSION

Narrative analysis enabled us to recognize three distinct processes of youth meaning-making related to the sense of self in times of crisis, all reflecting a significant impact on their core developmental task. Personal narratives served different functions; for some, the pandemic was framed as a challenge one could grow from, while others were left devastated or overwhelmed. Narrative coherence reflected youths' capacities for integrating experiences not necessarily connected to their psychological well-being.

I enjoy hurting my classmates: On the relation of boredom and sadism in schools

Schools can be a place of both love and of cruelty. We examined one type of cruelty that occurs in the school context: sadism, that is, harming others for pleasure. Primarily, we proposed and tested whether boredom plays a crucial role in the emergence of sadistic actions at school. In two well-powered studies (N = 1038; student age range = 10-18 years) using both self- and peer-reports of students' boredom levels and their sadistic tendencies, we first document that sadistic behavior occurs at school, although at a low level. We further show that those students who are more often bored at school are more likely to engage in sadistic actions (overall r = .36, 95% CI [0.24, 0.49]). In sum, the present work contributes to a better understanding of sadism in schools and points to boredom as one potential motivator. We discuss how reducing boredom might help to prevent sadistic tendencies at schools.

Contribution to the Validation of the Expectancy-Value Scale for Primary School Students

Grounded in ‘expectancy-value’ theory, this paper reports on the psychometric properties of an instrument intended to measure students’ motivation in mathematics. The participants were 2045 third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students from Estonia, Finland, Norway, Portugal, Serbia and Sweden. The Expectancy-Value Scale (EVS) was found to be suitable for early grades of primary education in measuring competence self-perceptions and subjective task values relative to the mathematics field. The results indicate a good model fit aligned with the expectancy-value theory. The EVS dimensions showed good reliability, and scalar invariance was established. However, findings also indicated high correlations between some of the EVS dimensions, which is well documented for students at this age. The findings are discussed relative to the ‘expectancy-value’ theory framework and students’ age.

Does parochial cooperation exist in childhood and adolescence? A meta-analysis

Although previous meta-analytic evidence supports the existence of parochialism in cooperation among adults, the extent to which children and adolescents are more willing to incur a personal cost to benefit ingroups, compared to outgroups, is not yet clear. We provide the first meta-analysis on the existence and magnitude of parochialism in cooperation among pre-adults. Based on 20 experimental economics studies (k = 69, N = 5268, age = 3-19, 12 countries, published 2008-2019), a multilevel meta-analytic model revealed a small overall effect size indicating that children and adolescents were more cooperative towards ingroups (d = 0.22, 95% CI [0.07, 0.38]). A series of single-moderator analyses tested for the following conditions: participant age and sex; game type ([mini-]dictator game, prisoner's dilemma, public goods dilemma, trust game, ultimatum game); outcome interdependence; membership manipulation (between- vs. within-subjects); group type (natural vs. experimental); reward type (monetary vs. non-monetary); and country of the participant. Parochial cooperation did not vary with participants' age. Parochialism was larger in non-interdependent (dictator-type) compared to interdependent (bargaining and social dilemma) games. There were no moderating effects of group type, membership manipulation or reward type. To provide more data on how parochialism develops, primary studies should report age ranges more precisely and use more restricted age groups.

Don't Think That Kids Aren't Noticing: Indirect Pathways to Children's Fear of COVID-19

The present study is couched within Rachman's three-pathway theory of fear acquisition (Rachman, 1977, 1991). Besides the direct contact with the objects of fear, this model also includes two indirect pathways to fear acquisition: negative information transmission and modeling. The study aims to explore the contribution of these three factors to the level of children's fear of COVID-19. The sample consisted of 376 children (59.6% girls), aged 7-19 (M age = 12.77, SDage = 3.57), and one of their parents (M age = 42.88, SDage = 6.00). The survey was conducted online during the COVID-19 national state of emergency in the Republic of Serbia. The children assessed their fear of COVID-19, general fearfulness, negative information transmission, and modeling by their parents, as well as the level of exposure to negative information outside their home. The parents assessed their own fear of COVID-19 and trait anxiety. Parents' anxiety, children's age, and children's general fearfulness were used as covariates. The results of our path analysis provide support for Rachman's notion of indirect pathways. The more the parents were afraid of COVID-19, the more they expressed this (either verbally or through their behavior), which in turn led to an increase in the children's fear of COVID-19. Furthermore, children's exposure to negative information related to COVID-19, provided by their teachers and peers or stemming from the media, directly contributed to the level of children's fear. The results of the study emphasize the importance of caregivers' behavior during global health crises and provide some clues as to what caregivers may do to protect their children's mental health in such circumstances.

Searching for an Integrative Theoretical Framework for Psychology: Evolutionary Psychology is Needed, But Not Sufficient

The main purpose of this paper is to contribute to the reflection on a potential integrative framework for the psychological sciences based on the target paper in this special issue "Psychology: A Giant with Feet of Clay" by Zagaria, Andò & Zennaro. The paper is organized in three parts. In the first part we will discuss whether introductory textbooks provide a solid and reasonable basis for an analysis of the quality of conceptualization of key concepts in the psychology as well as whether the epistemological analysis could provide arguments for a conclusion that the psychology is a "soft(er)" science. In the second part, we will formulate our reasons why we share with Zagaria, Andò & Zennaro the conclusion that the evolutionary psychology might play a significant role in our quest for the integrative framework, but also why we are not convinced that evolutionary psychology can be integrative enough. In the third part, we are going to formulate an alternative starting point for exploration of for an integrative framework for psychological sciences and their practical applications supporting individuals and communities in their quest for a meaningful and productive existence and navigation of their future lives.

Analysis of the presence of prtR proteinase gene in natural isolates of Lactobacillus rhamnosus

The region of the prtR gene coding for the active site of PrtR proteinase was detected in natural isolates of lactobacilli, previously determined as Lactobacillus rhamnosus. This region was present in all L. rhamnosus strains with proteolytic activity. The PCR primers used were constructed on the basis of the sequence of the catalytic domain of the prtR proteinase gene. These primers generated in colony-PCR procedure specific 611 1-bp product with DNA from natural isolates of L. rhamnosus. No PCR amplifications using these primers were obtained for closely related bacteria of genus Lactobacillus, regardless of their proteolytic activity. In addition, these primers could be used singly or in multiplex PCR together with the Lactobacillus genus-specific primers. Compared with the other proteinases within the genus Lactobacillus (PrtP, PrtB and PrtH) which retained the activity in cell-free proteinase extracts, PrtR proteinase showed proteolytic activity only under in vivo conditions (whole cells of the producing strains).