Markus Kaakinen

Does Social Belonging to Primary Groups Protect Young People From the Effects of Pro-Suicide Sites?

BACKGROUND The Internet has facilitated the existence of extreme and pathological communities that share information about ways to complete suicide or to deliberately harm or hurt oneself. This material is user-generated and easily accessible. AIMS The present study analyzed the buffering effect of social belonging to a primary group in the situation of pro-suicide site exposure. METHOD Cross-national data were collected from the US, UK, Germany, and Finland in spring 2013 and 2014 from respondents aged 15-30 years (N = 3,567). Data were analyzed by using linear regression separately for women and men for each country. RESULTS A higher level of belonging to a primary group buffered the negative association of pro-suicide site exposure with mental health, measured as happiness, although the results were not consistent in the subgroups. US male subjects showed a significant buffering effect of the sense of belonging to family while the belonging to friends had a buffering effect among four other subgroups: British female and male subjects and Finnish female and male subjects. CONCLUSION The results underline the positive potential of primary groups to shield young peoples mental health in the situation of pro-suicide site exposure.

Do routine activities help predict young adults’ online harassment: A multi-nation study

This study examined the feasibility of routine activity theory in predicting online harassment victimization of people aged 15 to 30 years in the USA, Finland, Germany, and the UK. Logistic regression models controlled for socio-demographic factors, exposure to offender, target suitability, and absence of guardianship. According to the results, between 15 percent and 20 percent of respondents reported having been victims of online harassment. Of routine activity theory variables tested, only exposure to offenders was statistically significant in each of the four countries. Females were more likely to be victims than males in Finland, but not in other countries. Those with an immigrant background had a higher likelihood of being victims in Germany, but not in the other countries, whereas the protective role of guardianship was supported in the USA and Germany. Our findings indicate that while routine activity theory is a useful tool for predicting online victimization, its feasibility varied across countries.

Did the Risk of Exposure to Online Hate Increase After the November 2015 Paris Attacks? A Group Relations Approach

This study analyzed the impact of the November 2015 Paris attacks on online hate. On the basis of social identity based theories of group relations, we hypothesized that exposure to online hate will increase in social climate of fear, uncertainty, and polarization. We expected that the increase of hate will be evident in the case of online hate associated to ethnicity or nationality, religion, political views, or terrorism, but not specifically other hate-associated categories. Societal level determinants of the temporal changes in online hate exposure have not been tested before. Our study utilized two cross-sectional, demographically balanced datasets to analyze the change in online hate exposure among Finnish young people aged 15 to 30. The first sample was collected in MayJune 2013 and the second one in December 2015, only 1 month after the November 2015 Paris attacks. The results supported the hypotheses indicating that the quantity and quality of online hostilities are affected by the wider societal conditions. We suggest that more evidence of societal level determinants of online hostility is needed in order to understand online hate exposure rates at different times. Online hate is a global phenomenon.This study measured online hate before and after the November 2015 Paris attacks.Online hate increased after the November 2015 Paris attacks.Online hate took new forms and became related to a social climate of uncertainty.The quantity and quality of online hate are affected by wider societal conditions.

Victimization and Exposure to Pro‐Self‐Harm and Pro‐Suicide Websites: A Cross‐National Study

The study of websites displaying methods of both physical self-harm and suicide has become an important aspect of deliberate self-injury and suicide research. However, little is known about contextual factors related to entering such sites. Using data from 3,567 respondents aged 15-30 in the US, UK, Germany, and Finland, we found that experiences of victimization are associated with entering pro-self-harm sites and pro-suicide sites. Also, the victimization context had relevance, as online victimization was particularly related to pro-self-harm behavior. The findings suggest a need to organize more specific online support for the victims of violence and online aggression.

Young people who access harm-advocating online content: A four-country survey

The articles in Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace are open access articles licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (CC BY-NC 3.0) which permits unrestricted, non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited. The author of the work thus grants Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace a non-exclusive license and all publishing rights are therefore left to the author without any further restrictions.

Perceived societal fear and cyberhate after the November 2015 Paris Terrorist Attacks.

ABSTRACT Fear is one of the negative outcomes of terrorist attacks. Currently, there is a need to understand how societal fear and fear of terrorism might be shaped and induced by social-media discussions. This study analyzed how exposure to cyberhate was associated with perceived societal fear after the November 2015 Paris terrorist attacks. Demographically balanced data sets were collected from France, Spain, Finland, Norway, and the United States four weeks after the attacks. Cyberhate exposure was associated with higher perceived societal fear in all countries studied even when adjusting for confounding factors. This was particularly evident in the case of cyberhate related to terrorism. Hateful online communication after disruptive events may contribute to a social climate of fear and escalate societal uncertainty. There are, however, indications that social trust may bolster against perceived societal fear, hence enhancing resilience.

Excessive Gambling and Online Gambling Communities

The Internet provides an accessible context for online gambling and gambling-related online communities, such as discussion forums for gamblers. These communities may be particularly attractive to young gamblers who are active Internet users. The aim of this study was to examine the use of gambling-related online communities and their relevance to excessive gambling among 15–25-year-old Finnish Internet users (N = 1200). Excessive gambling was assessed by using the South Oaks Gambling Screen. Respondents were asked in a survey about their use of various kinds of gambling-related online communities, and sociodemographic and behavioral factors were adjusted. The results of the study revealed that over half (54.33%) of respondents who had visited gambling-related online communities were either at-risk gamblers or probable pathological gamblers. Discussion in these communities was mainly based on sharing gambling tips and experiences, and very few respondents said that they related to gambling problems and recovery. In three different regression models, visiting gambling-related online communities was a significant predictor for excessive gambling (with 95% confidence level) even after adjusting confounding factors. The association of visiting such sites was even stronger among probable pathological gamblers than among at-risk gamblers. Health professionals working with young people should be aware of the role of online communities in terms of development and persistence of excessive gambling. Monitoring the use of online gambling communities as well as utilizing recovery-oriented support both offline and online would be important in preventing further problems. Gambling platforms should also include warnings about excessive gambling and provide links to helpful sources.

The conceptualisation of pupils’ problems by Finnish and Norwegian primary school teachers: performance, welfare and behaviour

Abstract Drawing on the tradition of childhood studies, this study explores how children’s problems are being conceptualised by primary school teachers in Finland and Norway and what kind of institutional childhood is reflected in those conceptualisations. I use thematic content analysis to analyse data derived from two primary schools in Tampere, Finland, and two in Trondheim, Norway. In both Nordic contexts, problems were conceptualised in terms of children’s performance, welfare and behaviour. The results imply that the welfare (or care) perspective to childhood, along with more instrumental perspectives of learning outcomes and behaviour management, is essential in Nordic primary education.

Social Tie Strength and Online Victimization: An Analysis of Young People Aged 15–30 Years in Four Nations

Online interaction through the use of social networking sites (SNS) continues to be a significant component of the socialization of young people today, yet little research exists toward linking various relational forms to prevalent and much-studied online risks cross-nationally. This article provides a link between relational dynamics and online risks identified in previous research toward a new perspective on how social tie strength is related to experiences of hate victimization and harassment online. The analysis is based on survey data of Finnish (n = 555), American (n = 1033), German (n = 978), and British (n = 999) young people aged 15–30 years. Variables, including age, gender, main activity, SNS use, quantity, and extent of online and offline social networks including social tie strength and online community identification, were analyzed toward finding their associations with online hate victimization and harassment. Results showed that experiences of hate victimization and harassment were similar cross-nationally and that those who were personally harassed online also reported high SNS activity. Furthermore, no association was found between social network size and negative experiences. Notable cross-national differences were also detected in the results. Findings emphasize the importance of understanding variables fostering online risks for young people while providing a new perspective on what aspects of social life may help negate negative effects online.

Proeating disorder websites and subjective well‐being: A four‐country study on young people

OBJECTIVE Proeating disorder (pro-ED) communities online encourage harmful weight-loss and weight-control practices. This study examined the association between exposure to pro-ED content online and subjective well-being (SWB) among adolescents and young adults in four countries. METHOD Cross-national data were collected in the US, Germany, the UK and Finland from Internet users aged 15-30 years (N = 3,557; 50.15% male). The questionnaire assessed SWB, exposure to harm-advocating websites, online activity, prior victimization, and social belonging. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression models assessed the relationship between SWB and pro-ED exposure and adjusted for a number of confounding factors. RESULTS Of the participants, 17% had been exposed to pro-ED content (US 20%, Germany 7%, UK 21%, Finland 22%). Exposure to pro-ED content online was negatively associated with SWB in the US, Germany, and Finland, also after adjusting for the confounding factors. Offline social belonging moderated the association between pro-ED and SWB. DISCUSSION Participants who visited pro-ED websites reported lower SWB than others did. The potentially harmful impact of visiting these sites was buffered by the strong offline social belonging. Given the observed similarities across the countries, it is important for families, health professionals, and educators to stay abreast of online communities that have possible contra recovery influences and to be able to discuss such Internet contents in a way that increases treatment motivation.