Search Results (322)

This article examines developmental communication as one of the key factors influencing health and the overall functioning of the family. The aim of the study is to highlight the importance of interpersonal communication and religious values in fostering family bonds, shaping health-promoting attitudes, and enhancing the psychological, social, and spiritual well-being of family members. The article is theoretical and analytical in nature and is based on a literature review spanning family studies, pedagogy, sociology, psychology, and the psychology of religion. The findings indicate that open, dialogue-oriented communication supports the development of strong emotional bonds, a sense of security, and family resilience in the face of crisis situations. The importance of marital relationships, parent–child communication, and intergenerational relations for the psychosocial health of family members is emphasized. The study also highlights the role of religion and spiritual values as factors that strengthen family cohesion, foster a sense of meaning in life, and enhance coping with adversity. The conclusions suggest that developmental communication, supported by moral and spiritual values, is a key element in building a healthy and sustainable family system. Full article

Background: Exclusive breastfeeding is recognized as an effective public health intervention; however, its practice is shaped by complex social, emotional, and cultural dynamics, particularly within collectivist societies. This study aims to explore in depth the meaning of exclusive breastfeeding in the early postpartum period within the socio-cultural context of the Banjar community with a focus on postpartum stress and the dynamics of social support. Methods: This qualitative study, grounded in a constructivist paradigm and designed as a case study, was conducted among 15 Banjar mothers aged 18–35 years with infants aged 0–6 weeks in Banjarmasin City and Banjar Regency, South Kalimantan, Indonesia. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke between May and August 2024. All interview data were translated and verified through collaborative review among bilingual researchers to ensure accuracy. Results: The analysis identified five main themes: breastfeeding knowledge, social support, postpartum stress, attitudes toward breastfeeding, and exclusive breastfeeding practices. Although some participants experienced formula introduction, breastfeeding practices were often described as efforts to maintain exclusive breastfeeding rather than continuous exclusive adherence. The findings reveal that breastfeeding is interpreted not only as nutritional provision but also as a relational, moral, and religious practice embedded within collectivist values and Islamic teachings. Social support is experienced as ambivalent, functioning as both a protective and normative force within extended family structures. Postpartum stress specifically related to breastfeeding emerges from limited early initiation of breastfeeding, surrounding formula-feeding dilemmas, and internal conflicts between feelings of guilt and commitment to breastfeeding. Maternal attitudes are shaped by personal commitment, religious beliefs, and critical reflections on medical interventions, while exclusive breastfeeding practices are enacted through adaptive strategies, breast milk management, and reinforcement from the social environment. Conclusions: This study provides a context-sensitive understanding of early postpartum exclusive breastfeeding as a culturally embedded maternal experience. By highlighting how social support, cultural expectations, postpartum stress, and maternal attitudes intersect to shape breastfeeding practices, the study contributes new insights for culturally grounded maternal health interventions in collectivist Muslim societies. Full article

The effectiveness of waste recycling systems in developing contexts is constrained not only by limited infrastructure but also by insufficient behavioral engagement. This study advances the understanding of recycling behavior by proposing and testing an integrated framework that investigated the combined effects of environmental concern, recycling knowledge, and moral norms, as well as their indirect effects through attitudes toward recycling. Using a cross-sectional survey administered on 516 university students in Libya, the study employed regression and mediation analyses. The results demonstrate that recycling knowledge is the most significant predictor of attitudes toward recycling, while attitudes serve as a critical mechanism driving recycling behavior. Environmental concern and moral norms were found to exert significant direct and partially mediated effects, revealing multiple pathways through which these factors influence recycling behavior. These findings provide empirical support for a multidimensional explanation of recycling behavior in which cognitive, normative, and attitudinal factors jointly shape outcomes. This study provides evidence from an underexplored context and extends existing models of pro-environmental behavior and highlights the role of knowledge-driven and attitude-based interventions. The findings provide actionable insights for designing behavior-focused interventions to enhance recycling participation and improve sustainable waste management outcomes in developing regions. Full article

Despite the growing attention paid to sustainability education, limited quasi-experimental research has examined how metacognitive guidance can integrate cognitive, affective, and agency-oriented learning in food-related climate education. This classroom-based quasi-experimental study, complemented by student interviews, investigated a six-lesson metacognitive guidance-based unit designed to strengthen ninth-grade students’ sustainable food literacy (SFL), climate-change perceptions and attitudes, and constructive hope. Participants were 59 students from two intact classes in northern Israel; one class received the intervention, and the other received traditional instruction on the same content. Quantitative data were collected through a sustainable food and climate change knowledge test and a climate change literacy questionnaire and were analyzed using mixed-design repeated-measures ANOVA, t-tests, and multiple regression. Qualitative data were obtained from individual semi-structured interviews with students in the experimental group. Results indicated significant intervention-related gains in SFL knowledge, climate-change perceptions, climate-change attitudes, and constructive hope, with moderate-to-large time × group effects across the main outcomes (partial η² = 0.16–0.33). Climate-change perceptions emerged as the strongest post-intervention predictor of constructive hope (β = 0.92, p < 0.001). Interviews illustrated how reflective prompts, self-monitoring, discussion, and learning artifacts supported conceptual understanding, moral responsibility, perceived agency, and self-reported short-term intentions for sustainable food choices. The findings suggest that metacognitive guidance can support integrative, hope-oriented sustainability learning among adolescents. These findings should be interpreted cautiously given the small non-random sample, the use of two intact classes, the short six-lesson intervention, and the reliance on short-term self-reported outcomes. The study’s novelty lies in integrating sustainable food literacy, climate-change perceptions and attitudes, and constructive hope within a metacognitively guided food–climate unit in a culturally underrepresented Druze school context. Full article

Romans 8 contains Paul’s most concentrated reflection on the human person transformed by the Spirit, and at its center stands the rare term φρόνημα. Appearing only four times in the New Testament, all in Romans 8 (6 [x2], 7, 27), φρόνημα is commonly translated as “mindset”, “disposition”, or “attitude”. These translations are useful but insufficient. They risk reducing Paul’s term to a merely psychological state, whereas in Romans 8 φρόνημα names the deep orientation of the human person before God. This study argues that φρόνημα functions as an ethical and anthropological key: it expresses the inner direction of a life either determined by σάρξ or shaped by πνεῦμα. Through linguistic analysis, rhetorical exegesis of Rom 8:5–8 and 8:27, and dialogue with Jewish and Greco-Roman moral discourse, this article proposes that φρόνημα denotes the deep structure of Christian orientation: the Spirit-formed disposition from which perception, desire, obedience, prayer, suffering, and hope are reordered toward God. Full article

Background/Objectives: Vaccine attitudes are an individual’s beliefs, feelings, and evaluations regarding vaccines. Limited research has examined how students in faith-based university settings organize these attitudes. This study looked at vaccination attitudes among students at a religious university where faith, science, family, and politics often influence how students think and make decisions. Methods: This study used Q-methodology to examine shared viewpoints about vaccination. A concourse of 240 statements was developed from published literature, public discourse, and student interviews, then reduced to a 37-statement-Q-set. Undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory nonmajors biology course completed digital Q-sorts. We analyzed the data using by-person factor analysis, along with principal components analysis and Varimax rotation. Follow-up interviews helped us interpret the factors. Results: Three viewpoints explained 59% of the study variance. The first viewpoint, Faith-Integrated Institutional Trust, showed strong trust in science, public health agencies, and religious leaders. People in this group saw vaccination as both a moral duty and a way to protect others. The second viewpoint, Skeptical Autonomy and Institutional Distrust, emphasized personal choice, family influence, and distrust of government and official vaccine information. The third viewpoint, Pragmatic Autonomy and Science Confidence, endorsed vaccines and scientific evidence while also prioritizing individual decision-making over mandates. Conclusions: Science alone does not explain vaccination attitudes among college students. Trust, identity, and personal autonomy also play an important role. Vaccine communication should therefore connect scientific evidence with students’ moral commitments, trusted relationships, and concerns about freedom, especially in settings where faith influences health decision-making. Full article

The shift to circular agrosystems necessitates using new ideas like sustainable biochar, which provides many eco-beneficial attributes like enhancing soil fertility, storing atmospheric carbon dioxide, and retaining soil moisture. However, there is still a small number of farmers worldwide (particularly those located in low-income countries) adopting biochar. Accordingly, this research is focused primarily on determining how factors affecting behavior will influence the decision of wheat producers in Marvdasht County, in Iran’s Fars Province, to use biochar as a circular technology for farming. The study will focus on addressing issues related to environmental challenges (e.g., degradation of soil and drought) through the implementation of resource-efficient, sustainable agricultural technologies. The intent of this paper was to research the behavioral characteristics associated with wheat farmers who choose to use biochar in the city of Marvdasht, Fars Region, Iran, using a new Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). The model is theoretically enriched through the inclusion of personal norms and connectedness to the land, allowing for a more comprehensive understanding of pro-environmental decision-making. Data was collected from a total of 386 wheat farmers through the use of a structured survey. The data was analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with the software Smart-PLS 3.0. The results reveal that attitude (β = 0.342, p < 0.001) and personal norms (β = 0.278, p < 0.001) are the strongest predictors of behavioral intention, while perceived behavioral control showed a weaker but significant effect (β = 0.178, p = 0.049). Subjective norms do not have a significant direct effect (β = 0.115, p = 0.199) but significantly influence intention indirectly through personal norms (β = 0.100, p < 0.001). Furthermore, connectedness to the land strongly affects personal norms (β = 0.420, p < 0.001) and exerts a significant indirect effect on intention (β = 0.117, p < 0.001), highlighting the importance of emotional attachment to land. The findings are significant because they demonstrated that farmers’ biochar adoption decisions are shaped not only by rational evaluations but also by moral obligations and emotional relationships with land. This study makes significant theoretical contributions by extending TPB with moral and relational constructs and empirically demonstrating their mediating roles in agricultural innovation adoption. The novelty of this study lies in integrating personal norms and connectedness to the land into the TPB framework to explain biochar adoption behavior within the context of circular agriculture in a developing country. Practically, the findings provide evidence-based insights for designing policies that integrate cognitive, ethical, and emotional drivers to promote biochar adoption and advance circular agriculture. Specifically, policymakers and extension agencies should prioritize behavioral-level strategies such as awareness campaigns, farmer training programs, and community-based initiatives that strengthen positive attitudes, environmental responsibility, and farmers’ emotional connection to land in order to enhance biochar adoption. Full article

Beliefs about free will shape how individuals judge moral responsibility and support different forms of punishment. Most research has relied on single-country samples, limiting understanding of how cultural and institutional contexts might influence these beliefs. Therefore, this study compared free will beliefs and punitive attitudes across three nations with contrasting justice traditions: Norway and Sweden, which emphasise rehabilitation and are more compatible with determinist perspectives, and the United Kingdom, which has historically incorporated stronger libertarian and retributive elements. A total of 328 participants (98 Norwegian, 115 Swedish, 115 British) completed measures of libertarian free will, determinism, and dualism, alongside a task assessing preferred severity of punishment for a hypothetical crime. The results showed that British participants scored higher on libertarian free will and dualism, whereas Norwegian and Swedish participants reported lower overall free will beliefs and selected less severe punishments. Across the full sample, stronger belief in free will was associated with harsher sentencing preferences, while associations involving determinism and dualism were more varied. These findings indicate that national context may play a role in shaping free will beliefs and punishment attitudes, suggesting that both cultural and institutional features could contribute to differences in how individuals judge responsibility. Full article

Recycling residual plastic film is an important measure to prevent plastic pollution and achieve farmland sustainability, with farmers’ participation being the key. To understand the determinants of farmers’ participation in the recycling of residual plastic film, this study developed an extended TPB framework by introducing moral norm and responsibility attribution as additional explanatory constructs. Based on questionnaire responses from 429 cotton farmers in southern Xinjiang, China, the proposed relationships were examined through structural equation modeling. The empirical results indicated that recycling intentions were mainly determined by attitudes and perceived behavioral control, and responsibility attribution had a positive effect on subjective norm. Furthermore, the influence of moral norm served as a minor mediating factor in the connection between subjective norms and intentions to recycle. These findings not only deepen the understanding of the behavioral mechanisms underlying residual film recovery, but also provide policy-relevant insights for strengthening government efforts to address plastic film pollution. Full article

Background: The nursing profession is recognized as a high-risk occupation, with the emotional toll on healthcare workers reaching a critical point. A complex interplay of anger and cynicism, often stemming from systemic pressures and chronic moral injury, seems to increasingly affect nurses’ professional and personal lives. This psychological strain does not end when the shift ends; rather, it often manifests as insomnia and nightmare distress, creating a vicious cycle of exhaustion and emotional instability. This article explores how anger, cynical distrust, nightmare distress and insomnia are interrelated and jeopardize the well-being of nursing staff and what these “invisible” symptoms reveal about the current state of healthcare by confirming their prevalence rates. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted online in October 2025 and included 441 hospital nurses who completed the Dimensions of Anger Reactions-5 (DAR-5), the 8-item Cynical Distrust scale (CDS-8), the Nightmare Distress Questionnaire (NDQ) and the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS). Results: The prevalence rates of anger, nightmare distress and insomnia were 41.5%, 6.6%, and 62.1%, respectively. Based on the CDS-8 scores, a notable proportion (20.9%) of nurses fell within the highest quartile of CDS-8 scores (CDS-8 > 29), indicating relatively elevated cynical distrust within this sample; this threshold is sample-derived and does not correspond to a validated clinical cut-off. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that the DAR-5 explained 22.1% of the variance in AIS, while an additional 10.2% was explained by NDQ and another 1.5% by the CDS-8. Both cynical distrust and nightmare distress displayed a chain mediation pattern in the association between anger and insomnia; however, given the cross-sectional design, the temporal order of these variables cannot be confirmed. Conclusions: Anger exhibited significant direct and indirect associations with insomnia, with cynical distrust and nightmare distress acting as serial mediators in this cross-sectional model. Findings from this cross-sectional study tentatively suggest that future intervention efforts targeting insomnia in nurses might benefit from addressing anger alongside nightmare distress and cynical attitudes; however, experimental studies are needed to confirm whether such interventions would be effective. Full article

This article examines the emergence of Jamaican Dancehall Gospel (JDG)—a genre that fuses Christian-themed lyrics with dancehall rhythms—during its formative years (1998–2006). Despite its religious content, JDG artists expressed that they were often rejected in religious spaces and their music was excluded from worship spaces, based on debates between gatekeeping religious actors and the artists about the music’s appropriateness and authenticity. Using Koskoff’s concept of musical canon as a framework, the study explores why JDG failed to embody the “philosophical and aesthetic principles” of many ecclesial institutions. Drawing on media discourse, artist interviews, and observations, the analysis addresses four contested elements: artists, music, language, and dance. Findings reveal that resistance stemmed from JDG’s association with secular dancehall culture, its use of Jamaican patois, and its incorporation of dance—practices historically stigmatized as “low class” and incompatible with sacred spaces. While proponents argued for cultural relevance and the neutrality of musical forms, critics viewed JDG as a threat to traditional worship norms and moral order. The paper situates these tensions within broader struggles over identity, authenticity, and cultural hierarchy, highlighting the persistence of colonial attitudes privileging Euro-American aesthetics over indigenous expressions. Ultimately, JDG’s gradual acceptance—facilitated by international recognition and generational shifts—underscores the dynamic interplay between religion, popular culture, and identity politics in Jamaica. This study contributes to scholarship on Caribbean sacred music by documenting the sociocultural negotiations surrounding JDG’s emergence and its implications for redefining worship practices in postcolonial contexts. Full article

Background: Contemporary pediatric oncology confronts medical staff with challenges that are not only clinical but also ethical and existential in nature. The aim of this study was to identify the cognitive and affective factors associated with medical professionals’ attitudes toward fertility preservation procedures (oncofertility) in pediatric patients. In particular, the association of “existential vacuum” (lack of life goals, sense of meaninglessness), value systems, and religiosity on the level of competence and emotional acceptance of these procedures was examined. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted between January and September 2024 in pediatric oncology centers in Poland (Gdańsk, Lublin, Łódź, and Poznań). The study group consisted of 62 medical professionals (62.9% physicians and 37.1% nurses) selected using purposive sampling. The research protocol included an Author-Designed Questionnaire, the Scheler Value Scale (SVS), the Life Attitude Profile—Revised (LAP-R), and the Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS-15). Statistical analyses comprised Pearson’s r correlations, multiple regression analysis, and cluster analysis using the k-means method. Results: Participants demonstrated a moderate level of substantive competence in oncofertility (M = 2.31 on a 5-point scale). Regression analysis revealed that “existential vacuum” was the strongest negative predictor of competence (B = −0.34; p = 0.001), which was found to be a significant negative correlate of professional development in this area. In the affective domain, a pronounced normative conflict was observed: religiosity was negatively correlated with emotional acceptance of the procedures (r = −0.42; p < 0.001), indicating tension between medical imperatives and worldview-based beliefs. At the same time, the regression model showed that internalized religiosity and moral values might theoretically function as an “axiological buffer”; however, due to the severe psychometric limitations of the emotional acceptance measure (α = 0.268), these affective associations are highly tentative and unstable. Alternative measurement strategies are required to validate this hypothesis. Exploratory cluster analysis suggested the potential existence of two professional profiles: “Axiologically Integrated” staff members and a larger group of “Existential Skeptics”, who exhibited higher “existential vacuum” and lower psychosocial resources. Conclusions: Viewed through a dual-process interpretative lens, a theoretical phenomenon of cognitive–affective dissociation was explored. The highly tentative data suggest that “existential vacuum” might represent a hypothesized barrier to competence acquisition. Furthermore, findings regarding the affective domain—limited by the low reliability of the emotional measure—suggest religiosity could act as a potential source of normative tension. These exploratory profiles serve as hypotheses for future intervention designs rather than definitive clinical mechanisms. Full article

This study advances understanding of how Catholics and Protestants in the United States reconcile capitalist ideology, religious commitment, and sustainability orientation, a triadic relationship largely unexplored in existing scholarship. By integrating System Justification Theory with multidimensional approaches to religiosity, we demonstrate that Economic System Justification and Fair Market Ideology operate through distinct cognitive and motivational logics with divergent implications for sustainability. Religiosity emerges as a demographically contingent moderator, reshaping how market ideology translates into sustainability attitudes differently across age cohorts and income strata. The study extends System Justification Theory by establishing the theoretical independence of defensive system-preserving motivations from proactive market beliefs, while reconceptualizing religious commitment as a conditional mechanism activated under specific biographical and material circumstances rather than a uniform force. Crucially, spiritual resources retain capacity to reorient believers’ navigation of economic participation and sustainability responsibility, illuminating how moral frameworks rooted in religious tradition counterbalance market logic’s encroachment upon value systems. These insights offer pathways for faith communities, sustainability practitioners, and policymakers seeking to foster sustainable attitudes through demographically calibrated interventions that leverage the ethical scaffolding religious commitment provides. Full article

This study uses the Motivation–Opportunity–Ability (MOA) framework to examine the drivers of food waste behavior among Generation Z, a demographic that contributes disproportionately to household food waste. Using structural equation modeling on survey data from 349 undergraduate students, the influence of morals and attitudes toward food waste (motivation), cooking and grocery shopping skills (ability), food purchase triggers, and frequencies of grocery shopping and cooking (opportunity) was investigated. The results indicate that strong moral convictions and creative cooking skills significantly reduce waste. Conversely, susceptibility to marketing-driven purchase triggers increases wasteful behavior. Notably, other factors such as shopping frequency and attitudes toward food waste showed no significant impact. These findings highlight the need for targeted interventions for young consumers that reinforce moral motivations, enhance practical culinary abilities, and mitigate the impact of predatory purchase triggers to effectively curb food waste. Full article

This study explores what motivates farmers in Fars Province, Iran, to consider adopting LCA practices, with a focus on behavioral, moral, and institutional influences. Data were collected from 386 farmers selected through stratified random sampling and analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) in Smart Partial Least Squares (PLS) 3. The results confirmed that the measurement model was reliable and valid, and the structural model showed strong explanatory power, explaining 76% of the variance in adoption intention (R² = 0.766) and 64% in moral norms (R² = 0.642). Farmers’ intentions were significantly shaped by attitude (β = 0.210, p < 0.001), perceived behavioral control (β = 0.175, p < 0.001), moral norms (β = 0.307, p < 0.001), policy support (β = 0.202, p = 0.003), and perceived climate risk (β = 0.176, p < 0.001). In contrast, subjective norms and trust in institutions did not directly influence intention, although trust strongly strengthened moral norms (β = 0.387, p < 0.001). In general, the findings highlight that farmers’ decisions are shaped not only by practical and economic considerations but also by their sense of responsibility, confidence in their abilities, and perceptions of climate risk and institutional support. The study contributes to sustainability research by integrating moral and institutional perspectives into behavioral models and offers practical insights for policymakers to support the transition toward low-carbon, climate-resilient agriculture in Iran. Full article