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Among the many contributing factors in addictions there are also those describing the individual characteristics and ways of dealing with various life challenges. Despite numerous studies in this area, there is still no unambiguous data on the nature and specificity of this relationship in different age groups. The aim of the study was to assess the relationship between personality dimensions and strategies of coping with stress and the level of Internet addiction. The study was funded by the Ministry of Health under grant no. 93/HM/2015. The study was carried out in a group of 383 persons aged 15 to 19 (M = 16.6, SD = 0.77) attending secondary schools. The following research tools were used: Ten Item Personality Measure, Brief Cope and Internet Addiction Test. Both specific personality traits and styles of coping with stress are related to the addiction to the analysed medium. The personality traits most strongly associated with the risky Internet use were conscientiousness and emotional stability. An association was demonstrated between Internet addiction and the use of coping strategies, such as disengagement, substance use and self-blame. The results obtained demonstrate a major role of personality-related factors in the development of Internet addiction. The attitude to difficulties seems to be the key issue. The findings presented also make it possible to delineate the areas for improvement (e.g., through psychoeducational interventions) to protect young people from the risk of developing the addiction.

Background: Professional pharmacists should be directly involved in patient healthcare as members of therapeutic teams are not the only dispensers of medication. Public perceptions of the professional role of pharmacists is expressed through patients’ attitudes, trust, and expectations as health and illness consultants, or qualified retailers of medicines. This perception is influenced by numerous determinants, both health-related and social. Objective: This research intends to describe the range of social roles pharmacists play from the perspective of potential pharmacy customers/patients. Methods: The data presented in the article comes from cross-sectional survey-based research, undertaken in 2018, on a representative sample of 600 Polish adults. Results: Over-the-counter medication is purchased by almost all Polish adults, but they do not tend to ask for advice at pharmacies. Most respondents consider a pharmacist to be “a person qualified to sell medicines”, with some of the participants regarding pharmacists as “ordinary retailers”. A small number of respondents are interested in benefiting from pharmaceutical care, but the pharmacy is still perceived to be a point of purchase for medication. Conclusions: Respondents do not treat pharmacists as health advisors and reduce its role to that of dispensing medication. Sociodemographic variables have no significant effect on social perception of pharmacists.

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This study estimated the levels of involvement in e-gambling and problem e-gambling in Poland and identified selected sociodemographic variables associated with e-gambling activities. The study was conducted using a representative sample of the adult inhabitants of Poland (n = 2000). The survey contained questions measuring three aspects of gambling (involvement in e-gambling, types of e-gambling activity, and problematic e-gambling). Results suggested that 4.1% of respondents were involved in e-gambling and 26.8% of them could be classified as problem gamblers. The most popular e-gambling games were lotteries and sports betting. Gender, age, size of city of residence, level of education, and income were identified as significant predictors of involvement in e-gambling. The results indicated that men, younger people, and people who earnt less were more often involved in e-gambling. Having children, playing online scratch cards, and online sport betting—but not online lotteries—turned out to be typical for problem online gamblers. The prevalence of problem gambling among Polish e-gamblers suggests that extended research in this area is needed.

Over the past few decades, there has been a dynamic development of biobanks collecting human biological material and data. Advances in biomedical research based on biobanks, however, are highly dependent on the successful enrolment and participation of human subjects. Therefore, it is crucial to recognise those factors affecting the willingness of individuals to participate in biomedical research. There are very few studies pointing to the role of trust, preferred values and specific psychological factors. The aim of our study was the analysis of the most significant relationships between selected moral and psychological variables (i.e., preferred values, types of trust and personality) and willingness to donate biological material to biobanks. The research was carried out on a Polish representative national sample of 1100 people over 18 years of age. Statistical methods with regression models were used during the analyses. The willingness to donate samples to a biobank was associated with different types of trust and specific values. Based on regression analysis, the most important factors related to the willingness to donate material to biobanks seemed to be (1) trust towards scientists and doctors and (2) selected preferred values such as knowledge, self-development and tradition. Other values or personality traits did not seem to be as important in this context. The obtained results can be useful in building the social responsibility of biobankers and scientists, issuing more appropriate opinions by research ethics committees and planning better communication strategies between participants and biobanks.

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The willingness to donate human biological material for research purposes is shaped by socio-cultural factors; however, there is a lack of studies analysing the social perception of different human tissues, which may affect such willingness. This study aimed to distinguish different sociocultural categories of human tissues and types of potential donors based on their willingness to donate material. Quantitative research was conducted on a sample of 1,100 adult Poles representative in terms of sex, place of residence and education. According to the study, people were most willing to donate urine (73.9%), blood (69.7%), hair and tears (69.6%) and the least willing to donate post-mortem brain fragments (20%), sperm (males; 36.4%) and egg cells (females; 39.6%). A factor analysis revealed four sociocultural categories of donated tissues: irrelevant, redundant, ordinary and sensitive. Based on these sociocultural categories of tissues, four types of donors were identified: reluctant, highly cooperative, average cooperative and selectively cooperative. The willingness to donate human samples for research is shaped by the sociocultural perception of different body parts and tissues. The lower the sense of “personal relationship” with a specific type of tissue, organ or part of the body, the higher the motivation to donate such biological material for research purposes. Additionally, the willingness to donate is mostly shaped by social trust in physicians and scientists, and potential donors’ engagement in charity activities.