The Mediational Role of Psychological Basic Needs in the Relation Between Conception of God and Psychological Outcomes.

Relatively few studies have examined the relationship between conception of God and psychological outcomes in a self-determination theory (SDT) framework. The aim of this study was to examine the role of basic psychological needs as a mediator of the association between conception of God and psychological outcomes. In a sample of 210 religious young adults, we found that the concept of a controlling God was positively associated with feelings of need frustration and depression, whilst the concept of an autonomy-supporting God was positively associated with feelings of need satisfaction and vitality. In turn, need satisfaction promoted feelings of vitality, whereas need frustration led to feelings of depression. The satisfaction of needs was a full mediator of the relationship between autonomy-supporting God and vitality, whilst the frustration of needs was a full mediator of the relationship between controlling God and depression. These findings are discussed in terms of SDT. We also discuss how future research may further increase our understanding of the dynamics involved in concepts of God and psychological outcomes.

A psychological preoperative program: effects on anxiety and cooperative behaviors.

AIM: To evaluate the effectiveness of a psychological preoperative program in reducing preoperative anxiety and in promoting compliance of pediatric participants with surgical procedures. METHODS: Fifty children and their mothers were subjected to two conditions of treatment to investigate whether psychological preparation activities and psychologist's support during all phases of the operatory iter (group 1) were as efficient in reducing mothers' and child's anxiety and in increasing the child's compliance as distraction activities (group 2). The observed child anxiety was assessed using mYPAS; compliant behaviors with Induction Compliance Checklist; and mothers' anxiety with Amsterdam Pre-operative Anxiety and Information Scale. RESULTS: Children of the first group were less anxious and more cooperative in the preoperative period and during anesthesia induction than in the other condition. The psychological program was also more efficient in reducing mothers' anxiety. Finally, the mothers of group 1 showed a significantly higher satisfaction and judged as significantly more effective the program proposed to prepare their children than the mothers of group 2. CONCLUSIONS: Preparing children through playful dramatization of the operative procedure, manipulation of medical instruments and psychologist's support may be useful in pediatric surgery structures.

Empathy, Social Self-Efficacy, Problematic Internet Use, and Problematic Online Gaming Between Early and Late Adolescence.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between empathy, social self-efficacy, problematic Internet use (PIU), and problematic online gaming (POG) and to evaluate how such relationship varies according to the age of the participants. A sample of 1,585 Italian students, both genders, aged 12-20 years, were divided into three groups according to the age filled in these self-report questionnaires: PIU; Game Addiction Scale for Adolescents; Interpersonal Reactivity Index; Scale of Social Self-Efficacy; Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. The results allow to confirm that in the Italian context the relationships between the examined constructs change across the three age groups considered in the study. PIU and POG, as well as prosocial behaviors and personal distress, tend to significantly decrease in late adolescence (age 18-20 years); 15-17 years adolescents reported more empathic concern compared with the other groups. PIU and POG are affected by empathy and social-self efficacy in different ways depending on age, suggesting that the two conditions have an at least partially different nature. The different components of empathy seem to play a different role in the development of either PIU or POG confirming the need to separate the components of empathy.

The relative contribution of parenting practices in predicting trait emotional intelligence in an Italian adolescent sample.

This study examines the relationship between trait emotional intelligence (trait EI), support, and parental psychological control practices. Three hundred adolescents, between 11 and 13 years old, took part in the study (163 were males and 137 were females). Participants completed the Perceptions of Parents Scales for the parental support, the Dependency (DPC)- and Achievement (APC)-oriented Psychological Control Scales for the parental psychological control, and the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Child Form for the child's trait EI. Trait EI was related to parenting variables, and also, parental practices (both support and psychological control) predicted global trait EI in adolescents. Some gender-specific differences were found: both APC and DPC were negative predictors of trait EI in males, whereas only APC significantly predicted trait EI in females. Future longitudinal studies are needed to examine these results and to shed light on the processes involved in the development of trait EI. STATEMENT OF CONTRIBUTION: What is already known on the subject? There exists strong evidence of the interaction between parenting practices and emotional development in children and adolescents. Therefore, parental psychological control is negatively correlated with peer support and self-esteem, and positively related to anxiety and aggressive behaviour in children. However, there is paucity on research examining the relationship between parenting and trait EI in children. What does this study adds? This study extends earlier work in this field and investigates whether there is a relationship between trait EI and parenting practices (parental support and psychological control) and whether it depends on child and parent gender. This study, therefore, aims to investigate, for the first time, parental factors that may, in addition to those constitutional, be related to trait EI in children. Specifically, the objective of the present study was to investigate whether parenting practices would predict adolescents' trait EI and whether these relations depend on the gender.