Are Anti-Prostitution Advertising Campaigns Effective? An Experimental Study.

Many governments invest public funds in communication interventions and campaigns against prostitution and sexual exploitation in an attempt to change attitudes toward prostitution and eventually decrease its consumption. Despite the considerable investment that public institutions have made in campaigns against prostitution and sexual slavery, no known empirical studies have evaluated the effectiveness of such campaigns on attitudes and behavioral change. The messages of these campaigns usually center on one of two thematic focuses: Prostituted women who suffer exploitation and male consumers of prostitution. The present study examines the impact of different anti-prostitution advertisements on attitudes among male participants (N = 155 male participants). Specifically, the experiment aims to test the differential effect of these two focuses, compared to a no-advertisement control condition, on social support for prostitution, negative and incorrect beliefs about prostitutes, and family values related to prostitution. The results show that compared with the no-advertisement control condition, advertisements focused on men who use prostitutes have a significant effect on social support toward prostitution and incorrect beliefs about prostitutes, whereas advertisements focused on female prostitutes have no effect. The results have practical implications for governments and councils regarding the efficacy of this kind of public communication campaign against prostitution consumption.

Happiness at Work among Public Relations Practitioners in Spain.

Happiness at work is a consolidated topic. Perhaps the PR and communication sector, often at the forefront of organizational change, is one of the industries where most progress has been made in this regard. The objective of the present study was to carry out an exploratory analysis on the extent to which PR is a profession that enables the development of happiness in the workplace. To this end, a questionnaire was administered to a sample of PR professionals in Spain (N = 256). The questionnaire consisted of the PERMA-profiler, a model where work relationships, engagement, positive affections/emotions, vital sense/purpose and achievements are measured. The results show a remarkable level of happiness among surveyed professionals, especially among women, who obtained higher scores on all five factors, although with a statistically significant difference only in two of the five factors in PERMA (Engagement and Relationships). Neither age nor the hierarchical level of the respondent had any incidence. Therefore, PR can be a profession that notably enables human flourishing at work, even more so among women.

Are Anti-Prostitution Advertising Campaigns Effective? An Experimental Study

Many governments invest public funds in communication interventions and campaigns against prostitution and sexual exploitation in an attempt to change attitudes toward prostitution and eventually decrease its consumption. Despite the considerable investment that public institutions have made in campaigns against prostitution and sexual slavery, no known empirical studies have evaluated the effectiveness of such campaigns on attitudes and behavioral change. The messages of these campaigns usually center on one of two thematic focuses: Prostituted women who suffer exploitation and male consumers of prostitution. The present study examines the impact of different anti-prostitution advertisements on attitudes among male participants (N = 155 male participants). Specifically, the experiment aims to test the differential effect of these two focuses, compared to a no-advertisement control condition, on social support for prostitution, negative and incorrect beliefs about prostitutes, and family values related to prostitution. The results show that compared with the no-advertisement control condition, advertisements focused on men who use prostitutes have a significant effect on social support toward prostitution and incorrect beliefs about prostitutes, whereas advertisements focused on female prostitutes have no effect. The results have practical implications for governments and councils regarding the efficacy of this kind of public communication campaign against prostitution consumption. (AU)

Exploratory Study of the Relationship Between Happiness and the Rise of Media Consumption During COVID-19 Confinement.

The confinement of the population into their homes as a result of COVID-19 has entailed a notable increase in the consumption of diverse media. This exploratory study aimed to examine how the increase in media consumption was related to subjective happiness and psychological well-being. For this purpose, a questionnaire was administered to a sample of Spanish adults (n = 249; 53.8% women; aged between 18 and 75, M age = 42.06, SD = 12.37) to assess their consumption of different media before and during confinement. Moreover, participants were evaluated for hedonic, eudaimonic, social, and experienced happiness by using the Pemberton Happiness Index (PHI). The results underlined the great increase in the consumption of TV for entertainment and social networking sites (SNS) during confinement. Furthermore, it was found that higher consumption was negatively correlated with the level of happiness, so that, people who reported greater well-being, both subjective and psychological, spent less time watching TV and using SNS. In contrast, no association was found between the level of happiness and the consumption of news (regardless of the media) and radio. Therefore, it seems that far from cultivating greater happiness, those who engaged in heavy consumption of TV entertainment and SNS during confinement were less happy than those who did so more moderately and spent more time using other media or performing other activities.

La medición de la felicidad a través del Test de Asociación Implícita y su relación con la depresión y el bienestar autoinformados / The measurement of happiness with Implicit Association Test and its relationship with self-reported depression and well-being

Resumen: La evaluación del bienestar subjetivo y psicológico ha alcanzado considerable evidencia científica, principalmente a través de diferentes pruebas de autoinforme. Sin poner en cuestión este tipo de medición, lo cierto es que estas mediciones presentan la desventaja de estar basadas en declaraciones subjetivas y manipulables conscientemente por parte del sujeto. El objetivo de este trabajo es presentar un diseño bajo el paradigma del Test de Asociación Implícita de Greenwald y Farnham (2000) para aplicarlo a la medición implícita del bienestar subjetivo y psicológico. Así, se realizó un estudio transversal descriptivo con una muestra de 327 adultos (51,7% hombres; M = 38,69, DT = 11,98), que completaron un Test de Asociación Implícita para la medida objetiva del bienestar psicológico, y dos medidas autoinformadas para evaluar por un lado la felicidad y por otros posibles síntomas depresivos. Los resultados mostraron una buena fiabilidad del Test de Asociación Implícita, así como asociaciones débiles con las medidas de autoinforme. Una asociación implícita más fuerte con los afectos positivos que con los afectos negativos estuvo relacionada con una mayor felicidad subjetiva y menos síntomas depresivos. Estos resultados sugieren la posibilidad de completar la evaluación del bienestar usando medidas objetivas.

Abstract: The assessment of subjective and psychological well-being has reached considerable scientific evidence, mainly through different self-report tests. Without questioning this type of measurement, the fact is that these measurements have the disadvantage of being based on subjective statements that can be consciously manipulated by the subject. The aim of this work is to present a new instrument following the paradigm of the Implicit Association Test by Greenwald and Farnham (2000) in order to provide the implicit measurement of subjective and psychological well-being. Thus, a descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out with a sample of 327 adults (51.7% men; M = 38.69, SD = 11.98), who completed an Implicit Association Test for the objective measurement of psychological well-being, and two self-reported measures to assess happiness and depressive symptoms. The results showed good reliability of the Implicit Association Test, as well as weak associations with the self-report measures. A stronger implicit association with positive affects than with negative affects was related to higher subjective happiness and fewer depressive symptoms. These results suggest the possibility of completing the well-being assessment using objective measures.