Maria Giuseppina Pacilli

On children's independent mobility: the interplay of demographic, environmental, and psychosocial factors

In the past 50 years, a marked reduction has occurred in European and North American childrens freedom of movement and outdoor play. Using a structural equation model, the present study investigates the interaction between personal, environmental, and psychosocial factors that affect childrens independent mobility. The study involved 313 mothers of 8–10-year-old Italian children. The results supported the hypothesized model: the age of the child, the maternal perception of social danger, and positive potentiality of outdoor autonomy were the most influential variables on childrens independent mobility, measured as an index. Further, the maternal perceptions mediated the influence of the other demographic, psychosocial, and environmental variables on independent mobility.

Children and the public realm: antecedents and consequences of independent mobility in a group of 11–13-year-old Italian children

Access to several play environments, as well as exploration of public spaces and socialization with peers, is crucial for childrens development. Western children are often deprived of these opportunities and independent mobility is constantly decreasing. In the present study, we aimed to test an integrative model of the antecedents and consequences of independent mobility and to preliminarily explore the relationship between parenting styles and independent mobility in a group of 589 Italian children. We expected and found that being female and being younger predicted less independent mobility. In turn, we found that lower independent mobility predicted greater feelings of loneliness through the mediation of a weaker sense of community, a lower sense of safety and less frequent social activities with friends. Moreover, we found that independent mobility changed according to different configurations of parenting styles.

From political opponents to enemies? The role of perceived moral distance in the animalistic dehumanization of the political outgroup

In this paper, we analyzed the relationships among political identity, the perception of moral distance between the political ingroup and the political outgroup, and outgroup animalistic dehumanization. One correlational and one experimental study revealed a positive correlation of ingroup identification (Study 1, N = 99) and salience of ingroup membership (Study 2, N = 96) with the degree to which participants dehumanized the outgroup. This relationship was mediated by the perceived moral distance between the ingroup and the outgroup. The limitations, implications, and possible developments derived from the present findings are discussed.

She’s Not a Person . . . She’s Just a Woman! Infra-Humanization and Intimate Partner Violence

This article examines the association between a target’s perceived humanness and individuals’ willingness to provide help and support in cases of violence against women (VAW), specifically, intimate partner violence (IPV). In an experimental study, undergraduates read a fictitious article from a newspaper describing an IPV episode of a man hitting his wife and accusing her of cheating on him. According to the experimental condition, they then read that the victim either had or had not admitted the infidelity. Participants then judged the victim on an infra-humanization scale and expressed their willingness to provide help and support to the victim herself as if they were a neighbor witnessing the attack. Results showed that a victim admitting an affair with another man (admission condition) elicited lower perceived humanness and lower willingness to provide help than a victim denying such adultery (no admission condition). Moreover, targets’ perceived humanness mediated the effect of contextual features on participants’ willingness to provide help to the victim. Results are discussed in terms of victim blaming, and practical implications for prevention strategies are presented.

When Affective (But Not Cognitive) Ambivalence Predicts Discrimination Toward a Minority Group

ABSTRACT Individuals often hold ambivalent attitudes (i.e., positive and negative attitudes at the same time) toward groups and social categories. The aim of the present research was to examine the differential effects of affective and cognitive dimensions of ambivalence on the (amplification of) responses towards a minority group. We asked 188 students from the University of Perugia to read a short description of a fictitious group of immigrants. After expressing their affective and cognitive attitudes toward the target group, participants received positive, negative, or no supplementary information about this group. Discrimination was assessed by asking participants to allocate to the target group a percentage of a financial support fund for poor people (both Italian and immigrant) living in their regional area. As expected, we found that only affective ambivalence amplified either negative or positive responses toward the group.

Automatic reactions to the labels “minority” and “majority” are asymmetrical: Implications for minority and majority influence

Majority and minority sources usually exert different kinds of influence, which has been ascribed to the fact that the former are socially appreciated while the latter are derogated. In the present research we aimed to determine whether the differing evaluations of minority and majority represent automatic reactions. In two studies participants completed a lexical decision task in which the words “majority” and “minority” were introduced as primes. “Majority” as prime activated a slower recognition of negative than positive words, supporting the idea that the reaction to the term “majority” is primarily positive. The term “minority,” without any supplementary qualification, instead appeared unable to trigger a clear automatic reaction. Implications for social influence research are discussed. This research was supported by a grant from The Italian Ministry of Education and University (PRIN n. 2007PJYAKF_002). The authors contributed equally to this article: their names are listed in alphabetical order.

Ingroup Identification, Outgroup Infrahumanization, and Intention to Mobilize in Land Use Conflicts:

Based on the application of a social psychology intergroup perspective to the analysis of people–place relationships, we conducted an experimental study in the context of a land use conflict revolving around the construction of a bridge over the Messina Channel (Italy). We aimed to analyze the relations between the salience of the identification with the ingroup defined by being pro- versus antibridge, outgroup infrahumanization, and the intention to mobilize in the conflict. In two community samples, from Reggio Calabria, where the structure should be placed (n = 107), and from Sciacca, which is more than 200 kilometers away from it (n = 100), the salience of ingroup identification influenced the intention to mobilize via the partial mediation of outgroup infrahumanization. The attitude toward the bridge and the distance from it did not moderate the paths that we have analyzed. Strengths, limitations, and implications for environmental psychology research are discussed.

Perception of risk for volcanic hazard in Indian Ocean: La Réunion Island case study.

In 2011 a research project on volcanic risk assessment at La Reunion Island (Project Alea, Institute de Physique du Globe de Paris, France) was conducted in order to determine more efficient strategies to manage future volcanic crises. The project included the evaluation of volcanic scenarios through field and historical data analysis, as well as a survey on volcanic risk perception in resident population. A clear scientific information and an effective communication with public play a crucial role in risk mitigation strategies. Moreover the evaluation of the public perception during both volcanic crises and dormant periods is an important element in developing actions focused on specific social and cultural contexts. For this porpose a questionnaire was developed based on the ones used in similar researches conducted on Italian active volcanoes. Items were designed to measure variables connected with personal perception of hazard and risk, trust in mitigation actions and in information received about these aspects. In addition, specific items related to the peculiarities of La Reunion Island environment were included. A total of 2000 questionnaires were distributed taking into account factors such as the proximity to the volcano and the involvement of communities in recent volcanic emergencies. Main results coming out from this survey, if on the one hand show an adequate residents’ perception of natural hazards, on the other hand highlight their poor knowledge of the island’s active volcano, a similar lacking knowledge of emergency plan for volcanic crises, but also a high confidence in scientists to provide accurate and reliable information on volcanic risk and hazards in contrast with Local Authorities. Remarkable findings of this study assess some key elements that should be considered by the institutions in charge for defining policies aimed at volcanic risk mitigation and management of future volcanic crises.

Elective Abortion Predicts the Dehumanization of Women and Men Through the Mediation of Moral Outrage

This research addresses the important issue of abortion, still controversial in Western countries. It provides a new perspective by examining attitudes not to abortion itself, but to women and their partners who decide to have an abortion. Through two experimental studies, we expected and found that the decision to abort increased moral outrage toward a woman (Study 1 and Study 2) and her male partner (Study 2). Moreover, we found that the decision to abort reduced a woman’s (Study 1 and Study 2) and man’s (Study 2) humanness through the mediation of elicited moral outrage. These findings clarify the continuing prevalence and perpetuation of disparaging attitudes toward those who seek an abortion, and suggest many directions for future research.

System justification moderates the relation between hostile (but not benevolent) sexism in the workplace and state anxiety: An experimental study

ABSTRACT In an experimental vignette study performed with 92 Portuguese women, we analyzed the relations between exposure to hostile sexism (HS) and benevolent sexism (BS) in a workplace context, system justification (SJ), and anxiety, measured after participants were exposed to an HS, a BS, or a neutral communication about the context of the industry they would have worked in, if selected. The results indicated that both HS and BS fostered participants’ anxiety, and that SJ moderated the relation between HS and anxiety. Anxiety was highest among participants low in SJ. Main contributions of the study, limitations, and possible future research directions are discussed.