Italian Community Psychology in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Shared Feelings and Thoughts in the Storytelling of University Students

Abstract

This study investigated how young Italian people experienced the period of peak spread of COVID-19 in their country by probing their emotions, thoughts, events, and actions related to interpersonal and community bonds. This approach to the pandemic will highlight social dimensions that characterized contextual interactions from the specific perspective of Community Psychology. The aim was to investigate young people's experiences because they are the most fragile group due to their difficulty staying home and apart from their peers and because they are, at the same time, the most potentially dangerous people due to their urge to gather in groups. The research involved 568 university students, 475 females, and 93 males, with an average age of 21.82 years (SD = 4.836). The collected data were analyzed with the Grounded Theory Methodology, using the Atlas 8.0 software. From the textual data, representative codes were defined and grouped into 10 categories, which reflect the individuals' prosocial attitudes, behaviors, and values. These categories formed three macro-categories, called: “Collective Dimensions,” which includes Connectedness, Solidarity, Italian-ness, Social Problems, and Collective Mourning; “Prosocial Orientation,” which includes Trust and Hope; and “Collective Values,” which includes Values of Freedom, Respect of Social Rules, and Civic-Mindedness. All these macro-categories are indicative of the shared feelings experienced by Italians during the first time of the pandemic. Further practical implications of these results will be discussed, including a consideration of the risk of developing distress and improving well-being, as well as promoting preventive behaviors.

Community dimensions and emotions in the era of COVID‐19

“…Anxious emotions took over and the community dimensions took on more specific and coordinated forms, less impromptu, and community was mostly considered a problem by individuals. As stated in other contributions (Di Napoli et al, 2021 ; Migliorini et al, 2021 ) in the first phase of emergency, strong feelings of fear (Pulcini, 2001 ), together with the awareness of being united with other human beings as well as intense perception of vulnerability and weakness, induced people to renew the desire for bonding, generating and reinvigorating their desire for community (Marta, Marzana, Aresi, & Pozzi, 2016 ). In the following phase, the drive for sociality and solidarity was more ambiguous, and the personal behavioural responses were more varied, also due to anxiety.…”

First-Year University Students’ Mental Health Trajectories Were Disrupted at the Onset of COVID-19, but Disruptions Were Not Linked to Housing and Financial Vulnerabilities: A Registered Report

“…Feelings of psychological distress that accompany perceptions of unfulfilled societal expectations (Culatta & Clay-Warner, 2021) may have thus been diminished or absent. And indeed, feelings of solidarity and community may have been heightened (Di Napoli et al, 2021).…”

Prosocial Orientation of Russians During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Caring for Others and Yourself

“…One of the factors of prosocial behavior and caring for others in a crisis is the emerging sense of common identity and collectivism, which stem from a common experience of being in straitened circumstances (Drury et al, 2009 ; Cruwys et al, 2020 ; McKinley, 2020 ). Di Napoli et al ( 2021 ) and Politi et al ( 2021 ) found that prosocial attitudes during the COVID-2019 pandemic are driven by collective values and solidarity. Developing a sense of loyalty can help coordinate threat management efforts (Haslam and Reicher, 2006 ) and promote group commitment and social norms (Ellemers et al, 2002 ; Neighbors et al, 2010 ; Stevens et al, 2019 ).…”