Can we predict adolescent cannabis use? A Bayesian semi-parametric approach to project future trends.

Despite its decrease in many Western countries, cannabis remains the most used illicit substance among adolescents. This study aims to summarize cannabis consumption during the last two decades and project trends among 15-year-olds in the 2021-22 HBSC survey. A Bayesian semi-parametric hierarchical model was adopted to estimate the trend of cannabis consumption using data of about 287,000 adolescents from the 2001/2002 to the 2017/2018 HBSC wave and the 38 countries that met the inclusion criteria. Data show an overall decline in most countries for both boys and girls. However, in 22 countries of 38 cannabis use is expected to increase again in our projection. The discussion of these findings should take into account cultural, policy, social factors and unpredictable events such as the Covid-19 pandemic, that can significantly impact future trends leading to discrepancies between the projected and observed values. However, these discrepancies can provide insight into understanding the potential impact of preventive strategies and the underlying processes responsible for changes in cannabis use over time.

Yes, I will do it! Factors promoting the intention to volunteer after COVID-19 pandemic in Italy.

This cross-sectional study assessed the extent to which the intention to volunteer after the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with resilience, post-traumatic growth, and community service self-efficacy in a representative Italian sample (N = 295; Mage = 44.77; SD = 14.79; range = 18-83 years; 53.22% men). The model tested through a path analysis revealed a positive association between community service self-efficacy and intention to continue volunteering. Multi-group comparisons revealed that this relationship was maintained in participants who were active volunteers, while in the group of former volunteers, only a positive association between post-traumatic growth and intention to volunteer was found. This study contributed to highlight the importance of community service self-efficacy and post-traumatic growth in the volunteering experience and the intention to continue volunteering in the future.

The global development of community psychology as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology.

This commentary presents a virtual special issue on the global growth of community psychology (CP), particularly, but not exclusively, as reflected in the American Journal of Community Psychology (AJCP). CP exists in at least 50 countries all over the world, in many of those for over 25 years. Yet, aside from several early Israeli articles, AJCP rarely published work from or about countries outside the US and Canada until the early 2000s, when the number of international articles began to rise sharply. The focus of CP developed differently in different continents. CP in Australia and New Zealand initially followed North America's emphasis on improving social service systems, but has since focused more on environmental and indigenous cultural and decolonial issues that are as salient in those countries as in North America, but have drawn much more attention. CP came later to most of Asia, where it also tended to follow the North American path, but starting in Japan, India, and Hong Kong and now in China and elsewhere, it is establishing its own way. The other two global hotspots for CP for over 40 years have been Europe and Latin America. The level and focus of CP in Europe varies in each country, with some focused on applied developmental psychology and/or community services and others advancing critical and liberation psychology. CP in Latin America evolved from social psychology, but like CP in Sub-Saharan Africa, is also more explicitly political due to a history of political oppression, social activism, and the limitations of individualistic psychology to focus on social change, overcoming poverty, and interventions by (not just for) community members. Despite those differences, CP literature over the past 23 years suggests an increasingly common interest in social justice, multinational collaborations, and decoloniality. There is still a need for more truly (bidirectional) cross-cultural, comparative work for mutual learning, sharing of ideas, methods, and intervention practices, and for CP to develop in countries and communities throughout the globe where it could have the greatest impact.

On the lowest rung of the ladder: How social exclusion, perceived economic inequality and stigma increase homeless people's resignation.

Despite the relevance of social exclusion and economic inequality for homelessness, empirical studies investigating how these issues relate to homeless people's psychological well-being are scarce. We aimed to fill this gap by conducting two quasi-experimental studies on homeless and non-homeless groups. The first study (N = 200) showed that homeless (vs. non-homeless) people presented higher levels of resignation, characterized by depression, alienation, helplessness, and unworthiness (Williams, 2009). The second study (N = 183) replicated the findings from Study 1 and showed that perceived economic inequality could increase homeless people's resignation by emphasizing perceptions of social exclusion. Additional analyses found that identification with the stigmatized homeless group could mediate the relationship between perceived inequality and social exclusion, increasing the resignation. Overall, the results showed that chronic social exclusion of homeless people is associated with higher levels of resignation. Moreover, they showed the role of perceived economic inequality and homeless group stigmatized identification as group-specific mechanisms favouring social exclusion and ultimately worsening psychological well-being.

Homeless people's recovery in Housing First and Traditional Services: The role of working alliance in Italian housing services.

This study aims to investigate whether a working alliance could represent a potential mechanism that explains the effectiveness of housing services in terms of user recovery, comparing the Housing First (HF) model with Traditional Services (TS). This study included 59 homeless service users in Italy (29 = HF; 30 = TS). Recovery was assessed upon entering the study (T0) and after 10 months (T1). Results indicate that participants inserted in HF services were more likely to report stronger working alliances with social service providers at T0 that, in turn, was directly associated with higher levels of users' recovery at the beginning of the study and indirectly (through recovery at T0) with recovery at T1. Implications of the results are discussed with respect to research and practice on homeless services.

Left behind: inequalities in the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic among adolescents in the WHO European Region: impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young people’s health and well-being from the findings of the HBSC survey round 2021/2022

This report summarizes findings from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey round 2021/2022regarding the unequal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents’ health and health behaviours in22 countries and regions of the WHO European Region. Risk factors contributed to different extents to thepandemic’s impact on adolescents’ health and health behaviours. More girls and 15-year-olds than boys andyounger adolescents reported negative impacts of the pandemic on the four health outcomes considered.The largest gender and age inequalities were seen in mental health. Social inequalities, such as havingan immigration background, coming from a family that was not well-off, having at least one unemployedparent and/or living in a single-parent household, were linked to adolescents experiencing negative impactsof the pandemic on their health and health behaviours in many countries and regions. Having experiencedthe hospitalization of a family member due to COVID-19 was also an important risk factor for negative healthand health behaviour outcomes in more than half of the countries and regions. The large cross-country/regionvariation in the contribution (or lack of contribution) of different risk factors to negative pandemic impactsunderlines the need for country-/region-specific interventions in times of crises.

Structural gender inequality and gender differences in adolescent substance use: A multilevel study from 45 countries.

-Societal gender inequality relates to gender differences in adolescent substance use.-The gender gap in adolescent substance use is larger in countries with higher levels of gender inequality.-Girls in these countries were less likely to get drunk, use alcohol or smoke cigarettes than boys.

Using a modified version of photovoice in a European cross-national study on homelessness.

This study proposes an innovative use of a modified version of photovoice for cross-national qualitative research that allows participants to express their ideas, experiences, and emotions about a topic through photographic language. We examine factors affecting social service providers' work on people experiencing homelessness in Europe. We highlight five advantages of using photovoice in cross-national research: visual language, methodological flexibility, participatory data analysis, the bottom-up process, and the promotion of social change. Moreover, we identify key stages of the process: writing a detailed protocol for the implementation and fidelity of the projects, using two levels of data analysis, and disseminating the results. This study provides lessons learned for others who may want to use photovoice in cross-national research.

Problematic gaming risk among European adolescents: a cross-national evaluation of individual and socio-economic factors.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Previous research has identified numerous risk and protective factors of adolescent problematic gaming (PG) at the individual and social levels; however, the influence of socio-economic indicators on PG is less known. This study aimed to measure the contribution of individual and socio-economic factors involved in PG risk among adolescents from 30 European countries. DESIGN: Multi-level logistic regression analysis of survey data from the 2019 European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) cross-sectional study using self-administered anonymous questionnaires. SETTING: Thirty European countries. PARTICIPANTS: A representative cohort of 15-16-year-old students (n = 88 998 students; males = 49.2%). MEASUREMENTS: The primary outcome measure was adolescents' (low and high) risk of PG. Individual key predictors included self-report assessments of socio-demographic characteristics, time spent gaming and family variables (parental regulation and monitoring, family support). Main country-level predictors comprised Gini coefficient for economic inequalities and benefits for families and children (% gross domestic product), retrieved from international public data sets and national thematic reports. The data analysis plan involved multi-level logistic regression. FINDINGS: Participants who reported stronger parental regulation [odds ratio (OR) = 0.81, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.79-0.83] and higher family support (OR = 0.93, 95% CI = 0.91-0.95) reported lower risk of PG. At the country-level, economic inequalities (OR = 1.05, 95% CI = 1.03-1.07) were positively associated with the risk of PG, while benefits for families and children (OR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.70-0.89) were negatively correlated with the risk of PG. CONCLUSIONS: Supportive family environments, lower country-level economic inequalities and higher government expenditures on benefits for families and children appear to be associated with a lower risk of problematic gaming among European adolescents.

How Communication Technology Fosters Individual and Social Wellbeing During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Preliminary Support For a Digital Interaction Model.

The aim of the present study was to test an explanatory model for individual and social wellbeing which incorporates the advantages of using digital technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was carried out in Italy, one of the countries that has been most severely affected by the pandemic worldwide. The study was designed to include variables that might be specifically pertinent to the uniqueness of the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. Adults living in Italy (n = 1412) completed an online survey during the lockdown period in March 2020. Results showed two distinct digital interaction processes highlighted by the facilitating use of online emotions ("e-motions") and online social support ("e-support"). In short, e-motions were positively related to posttraumatic growth, which in turn was positively associated with positive mental health and higher engagement in prosocial behaviors. Moreover, individuals who perceived themselves as having greater e-support were characterized by higher levels of positive mental health, which it turn was positively associated with prosocial behaviors. Collectively, these two digital interaction processes suggest that digital technologies appear to be critical resources in helping individuals cope with difficulties raised by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Country-Level Meritocratic Beliefs Moderate the Social Gradient in Adolescent Mental Health: A Multilevel Study in 30 European Countries.

PURPOSE: Adolescents with higher socioeconomic status (SES) report better mental health. The strength of the association-the "social gradient in adolescent mental health"-varies across countries, with stronger associations in countries with greater income inequality. Country-level meritocratic beliefs (beliefs that people get what they deserve) may also strengthen the social gradient in adolescent mental health; higher SES may be more strongly linked to adolescent's perceptions of capability and respectful treatment. METHODS: Using data from 11-15 year olds across 30 European countries participating in the 2013/2014 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study (n = 131,101), multilevel regression models with cross-level interactions examined whether country-level meritocratic beliefs moderated the association between two individual-level indicators of SES, family affluence and perceived family wealth, and three indicators of adolescent mental health (life satisfaction, psychosomatic complaints, and aggressive behavior). RESULTS: For family affluence, in some countries, there was a social gradient in adolescent mental health, but in others the social gradient was absent or reversed. For perceived family wealth, there was a social gradient in adolescent life satisfaction and psychosomatic complaints in all countries. Country-level meritocratic beliefs moderated associations between SES and both life satisfaction and psychosomatic complaints: in countries with stronger meritocratic beliefs associations with family affluence strengthened, while associations with perceived family wealth weakened. CONCLUSIONS: Country-level meritocratic beliefs moderate the associations between SES and adolescent mental health, with contrasting results for two different SES measures. Further understanding of the mechanisms connecting meritocratic beliefs, SES, and adolescent mental health is warranted.

Factors Associated with Providers' Work Engagement and Burnout in Homeless Services: A Cross-national Study.

The complexity of homeless service users' characteristics and the contextual challenges faced by services can make the experience of working with people in homelessness stressful and can put providers' well-being at risk. In the current study, we investigated the association between service characteristics (i.e., the availability of training and supervision and the capability-fostering approach) and social service providers' work engagement and burnout. The study involved 497 social service providers working in homeless services in eight different European countries (62% women; mean age = 40.73, SD = 10.45) and was part of the Horizon 2020 European study "Homelessness as Unfairness (HOME_EU)." Using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), findings showed that the availability of training and supervision were positively associated with providers' work engagement and negatively associated with burnout. However, results varied based on the perceived usefulness of the training and supervision provided within the service and the specific outcome considered. The most consistent finding was the association between the degree to which a service promotes users' capabilities and all the aspects of providers' well-being analyzed. Results are discussed in relation to their implications for how configuration of homeless services can promote social service providers' well-being and high-quality care.

Problematic social media use: associations with health complaints among adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: Problematic Social Media Use (PSMU) has an addictive potential for young users. The aim of this study was to show the prevalence of PSMU across Italian regions and its association with health complaints. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data are gathered from the Italian 2018 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey using a representative sample of Italian adolescents aged 11, 13 and 15 years (50.6% males). Participants completed self-administered questionnaires assessing PSMU and health complaints. RESULTS: PSMU affects 8.9% adolescents in Italy and the prevalence is quite consistent across regions. 13-year-olds girls showed the highest percentage of PSMU (13%). Problematic users of social media are more likely to report multiple somatic (OR = 1.84 [95% CI 1.82-1.85]) and psychological (OR = 2.60 [95% CI 2.58-2.63]) symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: PSMU represents a widespread problem in Italy. National prevention interventions are needed in order to promote a positive use of social media.

Sexual behaviour in 15-year-old adolescents: insights into the role of family, peer, teacher, and classmate support.

OBJECTIVE: The aim was to investigate the role of different forms of social support in early sexual intercourse and contraceptive use. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study sample included 18,918 15-year-olds who took part in the 2018 Italian Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study. Multivariable multilevel logistic regressions were performed taking into account geographical region and socioeconomic status. RESULTS: 21.7% of adolescents reported early sexual intercourse. 71.9% used a condom at last sexual intercourse, 12.2% oral contraceptives 41.2% other contraceptive methods (multiple response question). High support from family and from teachers were associated with a lower likelihood of early sexual intercourse in both genders, while peer support was shown to increase this likelihood among boys. Adolescents with high social support were more likely to use condoms. CONCLUSIONS: Social support can have a positive influence on adolescents' sexual behaviour. Sexual education programmes should aim to engage peers and those significant adults who can influence adolescents' lives, in and out of school.

[Work-related stress of providers in homelessness services: a comparison among workers in traditional services and housing first]. / Lo stress lavorativo negli operatori dei servizi dedicati alle persone senza dimora: confronto tra operatori di servizi tradizionali e di servizi di Housing First.

SUMMARY: Burnout has recently been identified as a disorder by the World Health Organization. Although helping professions are the most exposed to burnout, there is a lack of research on work-related stress in social service workers, such as frontline workers in homeless services. The aim of this study is to evaluate burnout in a sample of Italian providers working in homelessness services, exploring the differences between traditional services and Housing First. Burnout was measured through the Link Burnout Questionnaire, consisting of four dimensions investigating Psychophysical exhaustion, Depersonalization, Professional inefficacy and Disillusion. A total of 69 participants (40 social providers and 29 educators of both types of service) responded to the survey. The results show similar levels of burnout in providers and educators working in the two types of services.

Can Mentoring Promote Self-esteem and School Connectedness? An Evaluation of the Mentor-UP Project / ¿Puede la mentoría fomentar la autoestima y la conexión escolar? Evaluación del proyecto Mentor-UPP

Research in the United States has shown that youth mentoring is a promising strategy for increasing self-esteem and school connectedness in at-risk youth. There has been little confirmation of those findings internationally. The current study evaluates the impact of mentoring by trained university students on children's self-esteem and school connectedness compared to schoolmates not involved in the program. Mentor-UP is a school- and community-based weekly mentoring program implemented in northern Italy over a period of seven months. Participants (209 students - 34 in the experimental group and 175 in the comparison group - aged between 11 and 13, 56% male, 27% immigrants) reported their levels of self-esteem and school connectedness at the beginning and at the end of the program. Results showed a significant increase in mentees' self-esteem compared to the control group, while the difference in school-connectedness was nonsignificant. The findings support the effectiveness of Mentor-UP in nurturing youth's self-esteem

La investigación en EE. UU. ha demostrado que la mentoría juvenil es una estrategia prometedora para aumentar la autoestima y la conexión escolar en jóvenes en situación de riesgo. Sin embargo, ha habido escasa confirmación de estos hallazgos a nivel internacional. El estudio actual evalúa el impacto de la mentoría por parte de estudiantes universitarios capacitados en autoestima y conexión escolar de los niños en comparación con los compañeros de escuela que no participaron en el programa. Mentor-UP es un programa de mentoría semanal llevado a cabo en la escuela y la comunidad que se implementó en el norte de Italia durante un período de siete meses. Los participantes (209 estudiantes, 34 en el grupo experimental y 175 en el grupo de comparación de edades comprendidas entre 11 y 13 años, 56% hombres, 27% inmigrantes) informaron de su nivel de autoestima y conexión escolar al principio y al final del programa. Los resultados mostraron un aumento significativo en la autoestima de los niños mentorizados en comparación con el grupo de control, mientras que la diferencia en la conexión escolar no fue significativa. Los hallazgos respaldan la efectividad de Mentor-UP para fomentar la autoestima de los jóvenes

Homeless Adults' Recovery Experiences in Housing First and Traditional Services Programs in Seven European Countries.

Across Europe, as governments turn to housing-led strategies in attempts to reverse rising rates of homelessness, increasing numbers of Housing First (HF) programs are being implemented. As HF programs become more widespread, it is important to understand how service users experience them compared to the more prevalent traditional treatment-first approach to addressing long-term homelessness. Although there is a large body of research on service users' experiences of Housing First compared to treatment-first in North American contexts, comparatively less is known about how these two categories of homeless services are experienced in the European context. In a correlational and cross-sectional study, part of a larger examination of homelessness in Europe, participants (n = 520) engaged with either HF (n = 245) or traditional services (TS; n = 275) programs in seven countries completed measures of their experiences of services (consumer choice, housing quality, and service satisfaction) and recovery (time in independent housing, psychiatric symptoms, and community integration). Across the seven countries, participants engaged with HF programs reported experiencing more consumer choice, better perceived housing quality, and more satisfaction with services than participants engaged in TS programs. Participants in HF programs also reported a greater proportion of time in independent accommodation, fewer psychiatric symptoms, and more community integration. Varying patterns of association between experiences of services and recovery outcomes were observed. Findings indicate HF consistently predicts greater recovery than TS across diverse sociopolitical and economic contexts. Implications of findings for configurations of homeless services and homeless services policy are discussed.

Goals and Principles of Providers Working with People Experiencing Homelessness: A Comparison Between Housing First and Traditional Staircase Services in Eight European Countries.

The implementation and adaptation of the Housing First (HF) model represented profound changes the structure and delivery, goals, and principles of homeless services. These features of homeless services directly influence providers, their work performance and the clients' outcomes. The present research, conducted in eight European countries, investigated how social providers working in HF or TS (Traditional Staircase) describe and conceptualize the goals and the principles of their services. Data were collected through 29 focus group discussions involving 121 providers. The results showed that HF and TS had similar and different goals for their clients in the following areas: support, social integration, satisfaction of needs, housing, and well-being. HF providers emphasized clients' autonomy and ability to determine their personal goals, with housing being considered a start on the path of recovery, while TS were more focused on individual clients' basic needs with respect to food, health and finding temporary accommodations. HF providers privileged the person-centered approach and housing as a right, while TS providers were more focused on helping everyone. Implications of the results are discussed as suggestions both for practice and for research.

Emotion Regulation and Desire Thinking as Predictors of Problematic Facebook Use.

Research evidence suggests that problematic Facebook use (PFU) affects large numbers of people worldwide. A variety of studies have investigated the relationship between PFU and psychological dysfunction, revealing that negative mood and cognitive self-regulation are common among problematic Facebook users. The aim of the present study was to examine the role of craving, emotion regulation and desire thinking in predicting PFU. An online survey was administered to 750 participants (Mage = 23.38 years; SDage = 5.72). Correlation analyses indicated that all predictor variables were positively associated with PFU. Path analysis showed that imaginal prefiguration was associated with craving, which, in turn, was associated with verbal prefiguration that was directly linked to PFU, beyond the direct effect of emotion regulation. These findings provide further support for the importance of desire thinking in predicting problematic behaviours. Desire thinking and emotion regulation should be considered in the modification of problematic Facebook use.

Protecting youth from gang membership: Individual and school-level emotional competence.

The current study examined the association between adolescent emotional competence, operationalized and measured at both the individual and the school levels, and gang membership. The study involved a sample of 12,040 students (51.4% females; mean = 16.9 years) participating in the biennial state department of education coordinated California Healthy Kids Survey, which assesses a range of adolescent health-related behaviors. Hierarchical linear modeling indicated that higher levels of individual emotional competence were associated with a lower likelihood of identifying as a gang member. Moreover, a stronger negative association between emotional competence and identifying as a gang member was found when emotional competence was operationalized at the school level. Implications include the role of schools in promoting emotional regulation, empathy, and behavioral regulation of their entire student body as part of an overall strategy to reduce individual student's attraction to gangs.