A Complexity Approach to Psychological Well-Being in Adolescence: Major Strengths and Methodological Issues

Psychological well-being in adolescence is an increasing field of study. Deepening in its knowledge during this period of life can be of a lot of help to the designing of more adjusted prevention programs aimed to avoid or reduce the problems adolescents might be experiencing. Complexity theories can be a productive alternative to the important limitations explanations about psychological well-being in adolescence have nowadays. Answers to a questionnaire have been obtained from a sample of 968 Catalan adolescents from 12 to 16 years old including 29 psychological well-being indicators measuring 8 dimensions related to satisfaction with specific life domains, self-esteem, perceived social support, perception of control and values.A structural equation modelling approach to complexity that focuses on the non-linearity property has been followed. Given the large number of dimensions, the model has been estimated in two steps. First, a confirmatory factor analysis model has been fitted to the 29 indicators and appropriate factor scores have been saved. Then all possible products and squared terms of the factor scores have been computed and have been used as predictors of the dependent variable using an ordered logit model.The results show that a non-linear model including interaction effects among the 8 dimensions, age and gender, has a higher explanatory power to predict satisfaction with life as a whole, compared to a linear model estimated from those same indicators.This work must be understood as a first step, basically a methodological one, to the future elaboration of new models of psychological well-being in adolescence to be based on the principles defended by complexity theories.     

Relationships Between Parents’ And Children’s Salient Values For Future And Children’s Overall Life Satisfaction. A Comparison Across Countries

In this paper, a model is set forth relating (a) overall life satisfaction of children to children’s values and (b) children’s values to parents’ values. Using confirmatory factor analysis models three dimensions of values (materialistic values, capacities and knowledge values and interpersonal relationship values) consistently emerged in 5 countries (Brazil, South Africa, Norway, Spain and India) for both parents and children. There was a considerable amount of missing data, mainly because the parent’s questionnaire was often not returned. Full information maximum likelihood estimators with missing data were thus used.Multiple-group analyses were next performed to assess factor invariance of the three value dimensions across the five countries for both parents and children. This implies testing the equality of factor loadings and intercepts across groups. This equality is required to ensure that factors have the same interpretation in all groups, which is necessary when comparing any aspect of the factor distribution across groups.The only two countries for which the interpretation of value dimensions was invariant for both parents and children were Brazil and Spain. The results of other countries could thus not be compared. Multiple-group structural equation models revealed that both parents and children scored higher on most values in Brazil than in Spain. In both countries, each child value dimension was only significantly predicted by the same value dimension of the parents. R-squares were in the 4–12% range and slightly higher in Brazil. The only value dimension that had some effect on overall life satisfaction was capacities and knowledge, which was so in both countries.Acknowledgements are due to the country project directors and their associates Per Egil Mjaavatn (Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway), Usha Nayar (Tata Institute of Social Sciences, India), Irene Rizzini (Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), Rose September (Western Cape University, South Africa) and Ferran Casas (Catalan Network of Child Researchers – XCIII – in co-operation with the University of Girona, Spain) for permitting us to use part of their project and to Childwatch International, Oslo, for sponsorship.     

The abundance of yellow-legged gulls Larus michahellis breeding in the historic centre of Venice,Italy and the initial effects of the new waste collection policy on the population

The yellow-legged gull Larus michahellis has undergone widespread colonization of the urban environment in the recent past. The first urban breeding gulls were recorded in the historical centre of Venice, Italy, in 2000, and by 2005 there were already 24 roof-nesting pairs, with this number increasing significantly over the last decade. In 2016, a new door-to-door garbage collection system was introduced in Venice to prevent the accumulation of rubbish in the streets and limit the trophic resources available for the species. This study provides an up-to-date estimate of the Venice yellow-legged gull urban population using distance sampling method. We also studied the effect of the new waste collection system on the species by comparing the population estimate before (2017) and after (2018) the full implementation of this change and by analysing the trend of individuals collected in the old town by the wildlife recovery service during 2010–2018. Results estimated ca. 430 breeding pairs in June 2018 showing a 36% decrease with respect to 2017. We also found a decrease in the number of 1-year-old birds and pulli collected by the wildlife recovery service starting from 2016, when the policy implementation began. Our data did not show a significant decrease in the overall number of individuals, suggesting that the new policy has a stronger effect on the breeding success of the species than on adult survival. This study emphasizes the importance of preventing rubbish accumulation in the streets as factor for reducing the abundance of urban yellow-legged gulls.

     

Is Arbitration Habit Forming? The Narcotic Effect of Arbitration Use

This paper explores the existence of structural state dependence in arbitration use where it is legally mandated to resolve labor–management bargaining disputes. Previous studies have found both positive state dependence (the narcotic effect) and negative state dependence. This paper reports a negative state dependence for the Minnesota public sector during the period 1973 to 1980. A weak positive trend in arbitration probabilities and a positive relationship between current arbitration probabilities and the proportion of bargainers engaging in arbitration during the same calendar year are also found. An analysis of the dynamic implications of these findings does not support fears that compulsory arbitration schemes are unstable or lead to arbitration as the dominant settlement mode.