After almost 20 years since the end of the armed conflicts in former Yugoslavia, we are witnesses to the fact that the main causes of the conflicts have not been overcome. Reconciliation between ethnic groups that had been in conflict by means of economic and political cooperation, must have a psychological foundation. This study investigates the relations between Conspiracy Mentality, basic lexical social attitudes, and the factors important for Croatian-Serbian and Kosovo Albanian-Serbian reconciliation, i.e., the Ethos of Conflict and the Readiness for Reconciliation. We hypothesize that Conspiracy Mentality will predict the propensity for reconciliation over and above basic social attitudes, and that will mediate the relations between basic social attitudes and factors contributing (or preventing) reconciliation. With the samples of Serbs from Central Serbia (n = 307) and Northern Kosovo (n = 271), Conspiracy Mentality, Ethos of Conflict, Readiness for Reconciliation and five basic lexical social attitudes (Traditional Religiosity, Unmitigated Self-Interest, Communal Rationalism, Subjective Spirituality, and Inequality-Aversion) were measured. Results showed that Conspiracy Mentality is negatively related to the Readiness for Reconciliation and positively to the Ethos of Conflict. Additionally, Conspiracy Mentality predicts Ethos of Conflict over and above the basic social attitudes. Finally, Conspiracy Mentality mediates the relationships between Traditional Religiosity, Inequality-Aversion and Subjective Spirituality on the one hand, and Ethos of Conflict on the other. The results suggest that Conspiracy Mentality should be taken into consideration when creating policies and programmes focused on reconciliation.
The main goal of this research was to construct a scale to assess health beliefs about COVID-19, in the light of the Health Beliefs Model (Rosenstock, 1966). The study included 420 subjects, mean age M = 31.65 years (SD = 12.72). Two-thirds (76%) of the respondents were female. The respondents filled in a set of questionnaires via the Internet. At the very beginning, the purpose and goal of the research were explained and the consent for participation in the research was obtained. The survey was anonymous, while the data were collected from April to September, 2020. The COVID-19 Health Belief Scale showed satisfactory psychometric characteristics. Factor analysis has shown that four main components can be distinguished, which correspond to the types of beliefs included in the Health Beliefs Model (Rosenstock, 1966). Thus, four subscales were obtained: Perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 (four items), Perceived severity of COVID-19 (four items), Perceived benefit of preventive behaviour (four items), and Observed barriers to preventive behaviour (three items). This scale structure corresponds to other similar scales (HBMS, Champion, 1984; AHBS, Zagumny & Brady, 1998), based on the Health Beliefs Model (Rosenstock, 1966). The obtained average values of scores on the observed susceptibility to COVID-19 show that our respondents do not consider themselves either extremely susceptible or protected from contracting this disease. On the other hand, it is obvious that our respondents do not consider COVID-19 to be a serious enough disease, despite daily warnings that the disease is unpredictable and its consequences are serious, long - term, and even more frequent than of other viral diseases. The observed barriers to preventive behaviour are relatively low, as are the scores on the subscale. The observed benefits of preventive behaviour range from the highest possible scores. When we summarize these results, we can conclude that our respondents apply preventive measures, because they are convinced that they are useful in preventing infection, and that obstacles to their implementation have not been observed to a significant extent. However, it remains unclear why this disease is not considered serious enough. One possibility is that the information placed in the media was initially ambiguous, ranging from describing COVID-19 as a common respiratory infection to a serious illness with severe consequences. We can look for another explanation within our sample. Namely, the age of our average respondent was 31, and as many as two thirds of the respondents were women. Initial information about COVID-19, placed through the media, was that this disease seriously affects older people and, for the most part, males. Women perceived significantly more benefits from preventive behaviour, and men significantly more barriers. Respondents' burden of a chronic disease proved to be significant for two subscales: Perceived susceptibility to COVID-19 and Observed barriers to the implementation of preventive behaviour. People suffering from a chronic disease believe that they are more susceptible to the COVID-19 infection, i.e. that they are more susceptible to this disease compared to those who do not have chronic diseases. However, people burdened with a chronic disease notice several obstacles to the implementation of preventive measures at the same time. When it comes to the higher observed susceptibility to COVID-19 in married people compared to those who are not, we can assume several factors that lead to this: reduced possibility of isolation, double possibility of infection, greater social interaction due to different needs, and the like. This research has its limitations. Most importantly, we could not thoroughly examine the validity of the instrument, due to the lack of similar scales. Another important limitation is that the sample was mostly made up of women. The third important limitation concerns the average age of the respondents; this study covered only a small number of the elderly, who are most at risk during this pandemic. Nevertheless, we believe that the timeliness and novelty of the constructed scale are sufficient to indicate the need to use it, at least as a first step in the development of some future scales with a similar purpose. Recommendations for future research are such that they should respond to the stated limitations of this research; to be directed towards a thorough validation, towards different types of samples, but also towards studying both the predictors of these health beliefs and the value of these beliefs for predicting some forms of health behaviour, quality of life, adherence to medical instructions, etc.
The end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020 were marked by the appearance of the virus SARS-CoV-2, which led to a health crisis around the world. Health preventive behavior was highlighted as, at that time, the only form of prevention of the spread of the disease. Factors that will lead people to adhere to the recommended forms of behavior have become the subject of research in various scientific disciplines. The Model of Health Belief is one of the dominant frameworks for studying health behaviors, and thus behaviors related to COVID-19. Health anxiety and beliefs about illness and preventive behavior are the starting point for considering the level at which individuals adhere to the recommended measures. The main goal of this research was to examine a model in which health anxiety and health beliefs are predictors of preventive health behavior in relation to COVID-19. The sample consisted of 420 respondents, 66.3% of whom were women. They completed an online questionnaire comprising the following instruments: Short Health Anxiety Inventory, COVID-19 Health Belief Scale, and COVID-19 Health Behavior Scale with two subscales-Protection in Social Contacts and Hygiene. After controlling for effects of gender and presence of chronic disease, perceived benefit of preventive behavior and the observed barrier can predict protection in social contacts. Hygiene can be predicted by the perceived benefit of preventive behavior and the perceived barrier. Health anxiety has not been shown to be a significant predictor of health behavior. The paper discusses the theoretical and practical implications of the obtained results. The obtained results partially support the Model of Health Beliefs. In order to increase the degree to which individuals adhere to health behaviors, the benefits of preventive behaviors should be emphasized while the barriers should be reduced.
The Law on Budget System stipulates that the head of public funds is responsible for establishing and providing conditions for adequate functioning of internal audit. The Rulebook on Common Criteria and Standards for the Establishment, Functioning and Reporting of the Public Sector Financial Management and Control System stipulates that the head of internal audit reports directly to the head of the user of public funds. The unanswered question is who is the manager of the user of public funds.
Циљ овог истраживања је био испитати квалитет живота и депресивност старих особа у Србији, у релацији са различитим социо-демографским одликама. Од социо-демографских карактеристика испитали смо пол, године старости, степен образовања, брачно стање и висину прихода испитаника. За испитивање социо-демографских варијабли направљен је упитник за потребе овог истраживања; квалитет живота је мерен помоћу скале Квалитета живота старих људи (OPQOL, Bowling, 2010) и постављањем низа питања о задовољству браком, послом, собом као родитељем и присуству неке хроничне болести; депресивност је је мерена помоћу Геријатријске скале депресивности-краћа верзија (GDS-SF, Greenberg, 2007). Узорак истраживања је пригодан, а чинили су га 497 испитаника, 50,35% мушкараца и 49,7% жена, старости од 65 до 92 године. Добијени резултати указују на то да је квалитет жи-1
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.