Showing papers by "Salesian Pontifical University published in 2021"

Detecting Coached Feigning of Schizophrenia with the Inventory of Problems – 29 (IOP-29) and Its Memory Module (IOP-M): A Simulation Study on a French Community Sample

Abstract: Evaluating the credibility of the respondent’s cognitive and psychological complaints is a core component of forensic mental health assessment. The Inventory of Problems-29 (IOP-29) and a new IOP-M...

Catholic priesthood and psychological temperament: a replication among priests in Italy

Abstract: This study draws on psychological temperament theory (a development from psychological type theory) to map the characteristics of 105 Catholic priests serving in Italy, who completed the Francis Ps...

Is premature birth an environmental sensitivity factor? A scoping review protocol.

Abstract: Introduction Globally, around 10% of children are born preterm and are more at risk of negative developmental outcomes. However, empirical evidences and theoretical reasoning also suggest that premature birth can be a susceptibility factor, increasing sensitivity to the environment for better and for worse. Because available findings are controversial, with the current scoping review we will explore if, based on the available literature, preterm birth can be seen as an environmental sensitivity (ES) factor. In doing so, we will consider a series of moderating variables, including the level of prematurity, the type of environment and the outcome investigated. Methodological aspects, as the type of measures used and study design, will be considered. Methods and analysis The scoping review will be conducted following the Joanna Briggs Institute Methodology guidelines. The report will follow the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews checklist. We will perform the search between 15 January 2022 and 1 February 2022. Data will be chartered by independent reviewers. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval is not required, as primary data will not be collected. This scoping review will be the first to explore whether prematurity is associated with an increased ES. This review can have important implications for tailoring prevention and intervention programmes. Results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

Predictors of Human Rights Attitude and Activism in the Multi-religious Context of Indian Democracy: Educational Implications

Abstract: Do religions uphold or undermine human rights? Do different religious traditions play differential role with regard to human rights? Our empirical research among college students in Tamil Nadu, India, has brought to light significant results with regard to the impact of religion on human rights attitude and activism. The findings reveal that among all the categories of human rights, the socioeconomic rights and the right to life issue of abortion for psycho-economic reasons emerge as distinct categories in the perception of the young. The young respondents manifest a clear agreement tendency with regard to socioeconomic rights, with Christians expressing significantly stronger agreement than Muslims and Hindus. The three religious groups affirm that they might engage in human rights activism. We also find that variables related to religion, democracy and personal traits have stronger and more numerous cases of association with socioeconomic rights than with human rights activism. The paper spells out the implications of these findings for the formal education and religious education of the young, taking into account the religious and cultural pluralism that characterize the educational institutions. Consolidating the human rights attitude and human rights activism among the young can be an essential way to upholding the universality of human dignity and promoting the common good in multi-religious contexts, and eventually forge a future worthy of humanity.

Determinants of workers’ well-being during the COVID-19 outbreak: An exploratory study

Abstract: Inspired by the Conservation of Resource theory (Hobfoll, 1989), this study investigated the role of a broad set of personal vulnerabilities, social, and work-related stressors and resources as predictors of workers’ well-being during the COVID-19 outbreak. Participants were 594 workers in Italy. Results showed that personality predispostions, such as positivity, neuroticism and conscientiousness as well as key aspects of the individuals’ relationship with their work (such as job insecurity, type of employment contract or trust in the organization) emerged as factors promoting (or hampering) workers’ adjustment during the COVID -19 outbreak. Interactions between stressors and resources were also found and discussed.

The Impact of Religion on Human Rights in Italy. An Empirical Research Among Secondary School Students

Abstract: This study aims to explore the impact of religion in building up a culture of human rights in today’s Italy. It firstly gives an overview of the main human rights’ issues discussed in the contemporary public debate in Italy, focusing on civil rights, socioeconomic rights, immigrants’ and refugees’ rights and the right to life, namely its limitation through abortion and euthanasia. Secondly it presents the teachings on these issues expressed by the Catholic Church, which has a virtual religious monopoly in Italy. Finally, it explores empirically the impact of religion at grassroots level, namely researching to what extent religious variables have an impact on what young Italians believe about human rights, because young people will determine the future of a human rights’ culture in Italy. This empirical investigation took place among Italian secondary school students (N = 1087) and aimed to measure the impact of religious attitudes (e.g., religious beliefs and practices, religious socialization) on human rights attitudes, namely attitudes towards civil rights (e.g., women’s and gay rights, religious freedom), socioeconomic rights, immigrants’ and refugees’ rights and towards the limitations of the right to life through abortion and euthanasia. The impact of religious variables on human rights was controlled by adding further independent variables in the regression analyses, namely personal characteristics (e.g. gender, geographical location), psychological and socio-political traits of the students. In summary, results show that religious variables are the strongest predictors of attitudes towards abortion and euthanasia, while psychological and socio-political traits are the main predictors of the young respondents’ attitudes towards civil rights, socioeconomic rights and the rights of immigrants and refugees. The findings of this study show that religion exercises nuanced and differentiated effects on the human rights debate in Italy; this impact cannot be underestimated within this public contemporary discourse and raises further questions and challenges for theological reflection and church practice.