1,721,012 research outputs found
Gender Differences and Physical Limitations in the Association Between Subjective Well-Being and Cultural Consumption Among Older People
Full text linkThe present study examines the association between patterns of cultural engagement and subjective well-being amongst older adults, with a focus on gender differences and physical limitations. We carried out a latent class analysis using Italian data from a 2018 survey to identify the profiles of cultural consumers, exploring the relationship between these profiles and life, leisure, and friendship satisfaction. The results show that allocating more time to diverse cultural experiences was associated with higher levels of subjective well-being, even in the presence of gender differences and physical limitations. Women who engaged in diverse cultural experiences with increased intensity and who participated in highbrow activities exhibited higher levels of leisure and friendship satisfaction than men. Moreover, the analysis emphasizes the potential of cultural participation for aging adults dealing with physical challenges documenting that their participation in a diverse range of cultural activities is positively associated with friend and leisure satisfaction. The findings highlight the importance of cultural participation in enhancing older adults' well-being; it is hoped that they will be used to inform the development of targeted welfare policies
Psychological reactance as an explanation of Italians'resistance to observe the safety measures during COVID-19 outbreak
Full text linkAfter the World Health Organization
(WHO) declared the coronavirus disease
2019 (COVID-19) a pandemic (March
11th-2020), precise recommendations
about ways to prevent and to contain
the infection have been indicated. More
specifically, a review commissioned by
WHO showed that quarantine combined
with other public health measures, such as
hand washing, face covering, and social
distancing, help prevent incidence and
mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic
(Nussbaumer-Streit et al., 2020).
However, many people in Italy refused to
obey the above recommendations.
This irrational behavior has been
observed especially among young, who
even after the closure of schools and
colleges, continued to host house parties,
meet with friends at parks without social
distancing, travel, and so on. Not only
young people, but also many adults
manifested a low willingness to cooperate
in order to prevent and contain the spread
of the coronavirus, refusing for example
to wear a mask at the grocery store or to
practice social-distancing. The illogical
behavior of Italians during the COVID-19
pandemic can be explained through a
well-known psychological mechanism,
named psychological reactance
L'effetto del sovraccarico di scelta: un'indagine su bambini, adolescenti, adulti e anziani
No full textL’effetto del sovraccarico di scelta è stato finora studiato prevalentemente su
adulti. L’unico studio condotto su fasce di età diverse dagli adulti ha fornito una
prima dimostrazione del fatto che le conseguenze negative dell’avere troppa scelta
non si estendono in egual misura a bambini, adolescenti, adulti e anziani.
Il presente lavoro si propone di indagare ulteriormente le conseguenze negative
dell’avere troppa scelta su bambini, adolescenti e anziani. I dati suggeriscono
che mentre gli adolescenti sono influenzati dal fenomeno in modo simile agli
adulti, i bambini e gli anziani sembrano invece esserne immuni.
Sono discusse le implicazioni teoriche e pratiche dei risultati e sono forniti
spunti per ulteriori ricerch
Critical issues in the management of the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy: the role of some organizational flaws on the adoption of collaborative governance models
Full text linkIn March and April 2020, in Italy, there was a fast and uncontrolled spread of COVID-19. The number of infected people and deaths multiplied quickly; in some regions of the Country the phenomenon got out of control. Intensive Care Units (ICUs) were rapidly saturated by COVID-19 patients, generating pressures on the Regional Health System that forced to the public decisionmakers to suspend all non-emergency services.
In this short note we argue that Italy’s inability to contain the outbreak of the epidemic in the first phase was due to the low willingness of public organizations to apply effective collaborative governance model
Choose as many as you wish: Consumer satisfaction and purchase rate increase when choice from large assortments is flexible as opposed to constrained
No full textFive studies across a range of domains show that consumers who can choose as many
alternatives as they wish (“flexible choice”), report more positive affective states and
purchase more than those who have to choose a pre-defined quantity of products
(“constrained” choice). The benefits of choice “flexibility” are stronger in large than
small assortments, and are replicated in field and laboratory settings: when people
chose cookies after a meal in a restaurant, possible dating partners on a simulated
dating website, energy bars from descriptions, and soaps for personal use. The findings
have theoretical implications for advancing choice-overload research, as well as
practical implications for retailers and assortment designers. Counter to traditional
recommendations that satisfaction and purchases improve by “offering less,” our
studies show that offering more can still lead to satisfied consumers, as long as
consumers are free to choose as much or as little as they wish. 
Inequalities Among Older People: Exploring Differences in Deprivation Patterns.
No full textIn the last twenty years, a large body of literature has explored socio-economic inequalities focusing on the fuzzy nature of deprivation. From a meth-odological point of view, numerous approaches have been used to measure dif-ferences in the concept of deprivation between different target groups. However, despite the relevance of this issue, no previous research has evaluated the attrib-utes resulting from the combination of variety and intensity of different depriva-tion indicators among the older population within the Italian context. In this ex-ploratory study, using data from the 2018 Italian Multipurpose Survey on House-holds, through Latent Class Analysis we identify three distinct profiles of depri-vation based on different degrees of hardship related to specific deprivation indi-cators. This innovative approach allows us to better understand the specific in-terplay between varying degrees of severity across different deprivation items. Our results show that food deprivation exhibit a more uniform distribution within the older population. In contrast, housing and material deprivation are more dis-tinctly characterized, particularly among the population over 75, those living in the Southern Italy, and families with traditional structures. This calls for further research in this direction, underscoring the need for nuanced investigations that consider the diverse forms of deprivation across subpopulations
Maximizing versus satisficing in the digital age: Disjoint scales and the case for construct consensus
No full textA question facing us today, in the new and rapidly evolving digital age, is whether searching for the best option – being a maximizer – leads to greater happiness and better outcomes than settling on the first good enough option found – or “satisficing.” Answers to this question inform behavioural insights to improve well-being and decision-making in policy and organizational settings. Yet, the answers to this fundamental question of measurement of the happiness of a maximizer versus a satisficer in the current psychological literature are: 1) conflicting; 2) anchored on the use of the first scale published to measure maximization as an individual-difference, and 3) unable to describe the search behaviour of decision makers navigating the digital world with tools of the 21st century - apps, smartphones or tablets, and most often all of them. We present, based on a review and analysis of the literature and scales, a call to stop the development of more maximization scales. Furthermore, we articulate the argument for a re-definition of maximizing that balances the face validity of the construct and the relevance to decision making in an age of digital tools so that future scales are useful for future choice architects and researchers
Are maximizers more normative decision-makers? An experimental investigation of maximizers’ susceptibility to cognitive biases
No full textThe present study tested the hypothesis that maximizers – people who routinely seek to make optimal decisions rather than quickly settling for an acceptable one – are less susceptible to cognitive biases. Experiment 1 showed that high maximizers are less swayed by irrelevant differences in the framing of a decision-making scenario than are low maximizers. Experiment 2 confirmed that maximizers are also less likely to neglect important base rate information when making decisions. Experiment 3 showed that maximizers are less likely to stick with a bad plan in which they have already invested (the sunk-cost bias) and therefore are quicker to switch to a more attractive alternative plan. Thus, we conclude that maximizers are generally more normative decision-makers. The present study also confirms the importance of using refined maximizing scales
When is More Really More? The Effect of Brands on Choice Overload in Adolescents
No full textResearch on choice overload with adult participants has shown that the presence of a brand significantly mitigates the phenomenon. The aim of this study is to investigate whether these findings can be expanded to a population of adolescents, where it has already been shown that choice overload occurs in a similar way as adults. We present evidence from two studies that when facing either a large or a small amount of choice options that are associated with brand names, choice overload disappears among adolescents. Conversely, when no brands are associated to the choice options, adolescents report choice overload, that is a greater dissatisfaction, difficulties, and regret with larger (versus smaller) assortments. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed
Choose as much as you wish: Freedom cues in the marketplace help consumers feel more satisfied with what they choose and improve customer experience.
Full text linkConsumer satisfaction and customer experience are key predictors of an organization’s future market growth, long-term customer loyalty, and profitability but are hard to maintain in marketplaces with abundance of choice. Building on self-determination theory, we experimentally test a novel intervention that leverages consumer need for autonomy. The intervention is a message called a “freedom cue” (FC) which makes it salient that consumers can “choose as much as they wish.” A 4-week field experiment in a sporting gear store establishes that FCs lead to greater consumer satisfaction compared to when the store displays no FC. A large (N = 669) preregistered process-tracing experiment run with a consumer panel and a global e-commerce company shows that FCs at point-of-sale improve consumer satisfaction and customer experience compared to an equivalent message that does not make freedom to choose any amount salient. Perceived freedom mediates the effect. FCs do not change the time spent or clicks on the website overall but do change the focus of the choice process. FCs lead to greater focus on what is chosen than on what is not chosen. We discuss practical implications for organizations and future research in consumer choice
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