Search Results (154)

Background: The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of online health consultations, as they can help reduce the risk of contagion and infection. However, due to limited trust, these services have not yet gained widespread adoption and usage among patients. Objective: This research aims to examine the impact of perceived quality on patients’ adoption and usage of online health consultations from three perspectives: emotional support, responsiveness, and service continuity. Additionally, this research further explores the moderating effects of online service prices on these relationships. Methods: Based on trust theory, this research constructs theoretical models and empirically tests them by using a panel dataset that comprises 1255 physicians and 65,314 physician–patient communication records. Results: The empirical results confirm that emotional support, responsiveness, and service continuity positively influence patients’ adoption and usage behaviors. Additionally, higher online service prices negatively moderate the impact of emotional support and responsiveness on adoption behavior. Moreover, increased online service prices weaken the positive relationship between emotional support and usage behavior while strengthening the positive relationship between service continuity and usage behavior. Conclusions: This research extends the existing literature on online health services and provides practical guidance for platform managers, physicians, and policymakers to improve overall service acceptance. Full article

This study investigates the mechanisms underlying the diffusion of risk information about genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. Drawing upon social contagion theory, we examine how endogenous and exogenous mechanisms shape users’ information-sharing behaviors. An analysis of 388,722 reposts from 2444 original GMO risk-related texts enabled the construction of a comprehensive sharing network, with computational text-mining techniques employed to detect users’ attitudes toward GMOs. To bridge the gap between descriptive and inferential network analysis, we employ a Shannon entropy-based approach to quantify the uncertainty and concentration of attitudinal differences and similarities among sharing and non-sharing dyads, providing an information-theoretic foundation for understanding positional and differential homophily. The entropy-based analysis reveals that information-sharing ties are characterized by lower entropy in attitude differences, indicating greater attitudinal alignment among sharing users, especially among GMO opponents. Building on these findings, the Exponential Random Graph Model (ERGM) further demonstrates that both endogenous network mechanisms (reciprocity, preferential attachment, and triadic closure) and positional homophily influence GMO risk information sharing and dissemination. A key finding is the presence of a differential homophily effect, where GMO opponents exhibit stronger homophilic tendencies than non-opponents. Despite the prevalence of homophily, this paper uncovers substantial cross-attitude interactions, challenging simplistic notions of echo chambers in GMO risk communication. By integrating entropy and ERGM analyses, this study advances a more nuanced, information-theoretic understanding of how digital platforms mediate public perceptions and debates surrounding controversial socio-scientific issues, offering valuable implications for developing effective risk communication strategies in increasingly polarized online spaces. Full article

Understanding the dynamics of public opinion formation in digital environments is crucial for managing technological communications effectively. This study investigates stance interactions and opinion reversal phenomena in technical discourse through analysis of the Manus AI controversy that generated approximately 36,932 social media interactions during March 2025. Employing an integrated methodology combining Large Language Model (LLM)-enhanced stance detection with agent-based modeling (ABM), we reveal distinctive patterns challenging traditional public opinion theories. Our cross-correlation analysis identifies significant lagged interaction effects between skeptical and supportive stances, demonstrating how critical expressions trigger amplified counter-responses rather than inducing silence. Unlike prior conceptualizations of counter-silencing that emphasize ideological resistance or echo chambers, our notion of the “counter-spiral of silence” specifically highlights lagged emotional responses and reactive amplification triggered by minority expressions in digital technical discourse. We delineate its boundary conditions as arising under high emotional salience, asymmetrical expertise, and platform structures that enable real-time feedback. The agent-based simulation reproduces empirical patterns, revealing how emotional contagion and network clustering mechanisms generate “counter-spiral of silence” phenomena where challenges to dominant positions ultimately strengthen rather than weaken those positions. These findings illuminate how cognitive asymmetries between public expectations and industry realities create distinctive discourse patterns in technical contexts, offering insights for managing technology communication and predicting public response trajectories in rapidly evolving digital environments. Full article

In the globalized economic system, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors have emerged as critical dimensions for assessing non-financial performance and ensuring the long-term sustainable development of businesses, influencing corporate behavior, investor expectations, and regulatory landscapes. This article applies the VAR-DY network analysis method to construct a large-scale financial volatility spillover network covering all Chinese stocks. It explores the risk transmission paths among different ESG-rated groups and analyzes the patterns and impacts of risk transmission during extreme market volatility. The study finds that as ESG ratings decrease from AAA to C, the network’s average shortest path length and average connectedness strength decreases, indicating that highly rated companies play a central role in the network and maintain their ESG ratings through close connections, positively affecting market stability. However, analyses of the 2015 Chinese stock market crash and the COVID-19 pandemic show a general increase in volatility spillover effects. Notably, the direction of risk spillover in relation to ESG ratings was opposite in these two events, reflecting differences in the underlying drivers of market volatility. This suggests that under extreme market conditions, traditional risk management tools need to be optimized by incorporating ESG factors to better address risk contagion. Full article

The financial markets are highly influential and any change in the economy can be reflected in stock prices and thus have an impact on stock indices. The relationship between stock indices and the way they are affected by extreme phenomena is important for defining diversification strategies and analyzing market maturity. The purpose of this study is to examine the interdependence relationships between the main Euronext stock indices and any changes caused by an extreme event—the COVID-19 pandemic. Copula models are used to estimate the dependence relationships between stock indices pairs after estimating ARMA-GARCH models to remove the autoregressive and conditional heteroskedastic effects from the daily return time series. The financial interdependence structures show a symmetric relationship of influence between the indices, with the exception of the CAC40/ISEQ pair, where there was financial contagion. In the case of the AEX/OBX pair, the dynamics of dependence may have changed significantly in response to the pressure of the pandemic. On the other hand, the dominant influence of the CAC40 before and the AEX after the pandemic confirms that the size and age of these indices give them a benchmark position in the market. Finally, with the exception of the AEX/OBX and CAC40/ISEQ pairs, the interdependencies between the stock indices decreased from the pre- to the post-pandemic sub-period. This result suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic has weakened the correlation between the markets, making them more mature and independent, and less risky for investors. Full article

As career success increasingly prioritizes personal satisfaction over traditional metrics, authentic leadership has emerged as a key driver of subjective career success. This study examines the mediating roles of psychological safety and mindfulness in this relationship within a sustainable work environment. Drawing on self-determination theory, emotional contagion theory, and conservation of resource theory, a mediation model is proposed. In this model, authentic leadership enhances psychological safety, which fosters mindfulness and ultimately leads to subjective career success. A rival mediation model further positions mindfulness as a predictor of psychological safety, offering a novel perspective on their interplay. A cross-sectional survey of 287 employees from diverse industries tested these models using correlation, multiple regression, and serial mediation analyses. The results confirm that authentic leadership significantly predicts subjective career success through psychological safety and mindfulness. The rival model suggests a bidirectional relationship, where mindfulness also contributes to psychological safety. These findings highlight the importance of fostering psychological safety and mindfulness to promote a sustainable work environment. This study contributes to both theoretical understanding and practical applications of authentic leadership in human resource management. Organizations aiming to enhance employee well-being and career satisfaction should implement leadership development and mindfulness training programs. Aligning these initiatives with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being; SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth) can strengthen sustainable business practices. Future research should explore the long-term impact of authentic leadership and mindfulness on career success through longitudinal studies. Full article

Prolonged exposure to public health crises in the post-pandemic era poses significant threats to global mental health. To address this, we developed a conceptual model to analyse the spatiotemporal distribution of public emotions, using Weibo data from the 2022 Beijing bar outbreak (9 June–18 August). The model integrates lexicon-based emotion analysis, spatial autocorrelation tests, and content analysis to provide a comprehensive understanding of emotional responses across stages and regions. The findings reveal a multi-peak emotional cycle spanning emergency, contagion, and resolution stages, with significant emotional clustering in emergency zones, surrounding areas, and regions visited by infected individuals. Through coding, we identified 24 main-categories and 90 sub-categories, distilled into nine core themes that illustrate the interplay between influencing factors, public emotions, and online behaviours. Positive public emotions (e.g., hopefulness, gratitude, optimism) were linked to pandemic improvements and policy implementation, driving behaviours such as supporting prevention measures and resisting misinformation. Negative emotions (e.g., anger, anxiety, sadness) stemmed from severe outbreaks, insufficient controls, and restrictions on freedoms, leading to criticism and calls for accountability. This study bridges big data analytics with behavioural science, offering critical insights into evolving public emotions and behaviours. By highlighting spatiotemporal patterns and emotional dynamics, it provides actionable guidance for governments and health organizations to design targeted interventions, foster resilience, and better manage future social crises with precision and empathy. Full article

The severity of MeV infection has been greatly reduced by the development of a live attenuated vaccine, which has been incorporated into vaccination programs in many countries. However, poor access to health facilities, and above all, the increase in anti-vaccination movements, has prevented the achievement of sufficient vaccination coverage. In outbreak scenarios, a rapid and transportable method can improve differential diagnosis, including removing ambiguity in suspected measles cases, contacts, or a cohort. In response to the need, we have developed a new RT-qPCR-based MeV detection assay. The LOD of the developed assay was determined on different PCR machines and the higher threshold was 1–1.2 10³ copies/mL. The joint diagnostic sensitivity of ELISA and RT-PCR (used together) was 100%, and used combinedly, these two methods enable detection of all measles-infected persons, which is extremely important for controlling contagion and spread of infection. During the clinical validation of the assay on 200 clinical samples from measles-suspected cases using ELISA, 157 samples showed a positive result, while 163 positive cases were confirmed by the RT-qPCR assay. The concordance between the two techniques was 93%. According to our results, the real-time RT-PCR approach used in our study is more sensitive and appears to be a more promising method for measles diagnosis during early stages of the disease, likely before the rise of specific IgM antibodies detected by ELISA. Full article

The emotional expressions in live streaming e-commerce possess a strong contagious effect, enabling viewers to easily resonate with the specific emotions conveyed by the streamers and consciously build an empathy transmission chain. This study constructs a regression model based on the emotional contagion theory and explores the impact of empathy between streamers and viewers on sales performance. Using data from 30 live streams, totaling 22,707 min, from one of China’s most popular live streaming rooms, “East Buy”, between February and April 2024, we demonstrate the significant positive impact of empathy between streamers and viewers on sales. Additionally, product type positively moderates this relationship. The unexpected thing is that live streaming time does not significantly affect the relationship between empathy and sales. This study employs text sentiment analysis methods to extract emotional features from the streamers’ speech and real-time comments from viewers. Our research extends the application of emotional contagion theory to the context of live-streaming e-commerce, enriches the literature on emotional interaction in service marketing, and provides practical insights for live-streaming platforms and streamers. Streamers can optimize marketing strategies and achieve sales goals by creating a more engaging and empathetic live-streaming experience. Full article

Background. T1DM is a significant chronic condition that necessitates regular medical monitoring, dietary and physical activity supervision, and daily blood glucose monitoring and insulin therapy. The management of this disease and the transition to adolescence often have a significant psychosocial impact on the individual and their family. Objective. The objective of this correlational study was to examine the reciprocal influence between adolescents and their caregivers, with a particular focus on the beneficial effect of receiving psychological support sessions from family members and adolescents with T1DM in a pilot study. Methods. An indicator variable was developed to facilitate an analysis of changes occurring prior to, as well as following, the administration of the treatment in question. Family caregivers received two therapy sessions, and we analyzed their perceived caregiver stress. Adolescents had five sessions, and the reduction in emotional distress was studied in them. Results. The sample comprised 15 adolescent–family caregiver dyads. All parents were mothers of adolescents, with a mean age of 47.67 and 13.47 years, respectively. Descriptive statistics and Spearman correlations were conducted. Following the completion of the psychological counseling sessions, the data revealed a significant positive correlation between the perceived reduction in global stress experienced by the caregiver and the adolescent’s emotional distress, with correlation coefficients of 0.74 and 0.61, respectively. Furthermore, a positive relationship was observed between the reduction in existing difficulties in family role adjustment and the reduction in emotional distress among diabetic youth, with correlation coefficients of 0.72 and 0.57. The frequency of emotional distress of the caregiver also correlated with adolescent emotional distress, with a coefficient of 0.60. Conclusions. The findings of this study provide evidence for the circularity of family systems change. A positive emotional contagion effect is observed in the improvements in stress and emotional distress experienced during adolescence and in the family’s adjustment to T1DM, as reported by caregivers and their children who received psychological support sessions. Full article

The COVID-19 pandemic and the confinement measures adopted by most countries have impacted global mental health, with particular interest in the effects on adolescents due to the tension between lockdown measures and the challenges of their developmental stage. Therefore, this study examined the distress and positive experiences reported by adolescents in northern Chile during the pandemic. A comprehensive study was conducted among adolescents in northern Chile. Discussion groups were utilized to investigate their experiences during the pandemic. The discussions were transcribed, and their content was analyzed by thematic analysis to create emerging categories and subcategories. Eleven discussion groups were conducted with a total of 51 adolescents. The findings were organized into two categories: distress and positive experiences during the pandemic. The distress experiences category included experiences related to confinement, educational tensions, risk of contagion, being an adolescent, and anxious–depressive emotions and symptoms. Meanwhile, the positive experiences category highlighted experiences related to interpersonal relationships through social networks, hobbies, activism, and pets. This research provides guiding results for policymakers and mental health authorities to incorporate this information when creating initiatives for working with the adolescent population. It considers the impact on them, but also incorporates the reported positive experiences as coping mechanisms for other difficulties. Full article

Previous studies have found that passive social media use (PaSMU) tends to induce upward contrast, thereby affecting well-being. However, this perspective alone may overlook the mechanisms of other social comparison phenomena. This study analyzes the influence mechanism of PaSMU on subjective well-being (SWB) by categorizing social comparison into upward identification, upward contrast, downward identification, and downward contrast while incorporating social comparison orientation (SCO) as a moderating variable. This study surveyed college students who use RED (Xiaohongshu) and collected 352 valid questionnaires. A two-stage hybrid structural equation modeling (SEM)–artificial neural network (ANN) method was employed, utilizing path and mediation effect analysis to verify the moderating effect of SCO in the process of PaSMU affecting SWB. PaSMU is positively correlated with upward contrast and downward identification, both of which negatively affect SWB. Upward contrast and downward identification are associated with lower SWB, while downward comparison is positively correlated with SWB. High SCO strengthens the association between upward contrast and reduced SWB. Furthermore, upward contrast and downward identification were found to have comparable mediating effects between PaSMU and SWB. In contrast to previous studies, this research highlights that downward identification plays a comparably significant mediating role alongside upward contrast. Downward identification significantly mediates the relationship between PaSMU and SWB due to increased risk awareness, higher sensitivity to negative information among socially anxious students, emotional contagion from negative content, and anonymity that fosters an “imagined community”. Additionally, students with high SCO are more affected by idealized self-presentations and rely on upward contrasts for social feedback, lowering their SWB. This study reveals the complex correlation of PaSMU and SWB, providing new theoretical insights and practical strategies to encourage positive social media use among college students. Full article

Global ecosystems are facing challenges posed by warming and excessive carbon emissions. Urban areas significantly contribute to carbon emissions, highlighting the urgent need to improve their ability to sequester carbon. While prior studies have primarily examined the carbon sequestration benefits of single green or blue spaces, the combined impact of urban blue–green spaces (UBGSs) on carbon sequestration remains underexplored. Meanwhile, the rise of machine learning provides new possibilities for assessing this nonlinear relationship. We conducted a study in the Yangzhou urban area, collecting Landsat remote sensing data and net primary productivity (NPP) data at five-year intervals from 2001 to 2021. We applied the LightGBM-SHAP model to systematically analyze the correlation between UBGSs and NPP, extracting key landscape metrics. The results indicated that landscape metrics had varying impacts on NPP. At the patch and type level, the Percentage of Landscape was significantly positively correlated with NPP in green space, while the contiguity index and fractal dimension index favored carbon sequestration under certain conditions. The contribution of blue space was lower, with some indicators exhibiting negative correlations. At the landscape level, the contagion index and aggregation index of UBGS had positive effects on NPP, while the division index and landscape shape index were negatively correlated with NPP. The results enhance the understanding of the relationship between UBGS and carbon sequestration, and provide a reference for urban planning. Full article

Backgroud and Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of SAVE-6 in the medical student population and assess its gender invariance. Subjects and Methods: The sample consisted of 320 medical students aged 18–23 years (153 men and 167 women) who completed an anonymous online questionnaire. Data collection took place in June 2024. To assess the scale structure, a descriptive analysis of the items was carried out, followed by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). To analyze whether there were differences in the invariance of the measure by gender, a multigroup CFA was performed. Results: SAVE-6 showed high internal consistency, α = 0.89 and ω = 0.92, a minimum score of 12, a maximum score of 22, an unifactorial structure, and adequate convergent validity. Specifically, the following were found: the positive and significant relationship with HADS was 0.98 for the full scale, 0.76 for depression, and 0.91 for anxiety, and there was a negative and significant convergent validity with resilience (−0.82) and resilience to suicide attempts (−0.88). Regarding the gender invariance, relevant data is that the factor loadings between each item and the SAVE-6 factor were not the same, so women present a higher level of anxiety than men (Δχ 2 (6) = 42.53). Discussion: The results showed good internal reliability of SAVE-6 and good suitability. Data also revealed that they were not equal in relation to gender. Specifically, the scalar invariance revealed significant differences by items between men and women in anxiety. Conclusions: This scale can be applied to medical students as a reliable and valid instrument to assess the anxiety response to disease contagion in future health professionals. Full article

Given the risk and impact of infectious-contagious X diseases, which are expected to increase in frequency and unpredictability due to climate change and anthropogenic penetration of the wilderness, it is crucial to advance descriptions and explanations that improve the understanding and applicability of current theories. An inferential approach is to find analogies with better-studied contexts from which new questions and hypotheses can be raised through their concepts, propositions, and methods. Kinematics emerges as a promising analog field in physics by interpreting states’ changes in a contagion process as a movement. Consequently, this work explores, for a contagion process, the representations and conceptual equivalents for position, displacement, velocity, momentum, and acceleration, introducing some metrics. It also discusses some epistemological aspects and proposes future perspectives. Full article