Psichologijos institutas / Institute of Psychology

Growing research highlights significant yet complex links between eco-anxiety and pro-environmental behaviour (PEB). It remains unclear to what extent this relationship is shaped by additional factors, and longitudinal investigations are particularly needed to capture the dynamic interplay between the constructs. This study examines how eco-anxiety relates to PEB in young adults over time, focusing on the roles of hope and coping. The study employs a longitudinal two-wave design. A convenience sample of 560 participants was collected for the first wave of the study. After excluding data due to several reasons, the final sample comprised 455 adults aged 18 to 35 years (M = 22.47; SD = 4.40), with 71.5% female. The participants who agreed to be further contacted will be invited to participate in the second wave of the study at the beginning of 2026. Items from the Climate Change Anxiety Scale (Clayton & Karazsia, 2020), the Coping Strategies instrument (Ojala, 2012; Ojala & Bengtsson, 2019), and the Hope Index (Sangervo et al., 2022) are used, together with questions about environmentally friendly consumption. The structural equation modelling framework will be applied to data analysis. Drawing on prior findings and theories such as the transactional model of stress and coping, we expect robust longitudinal links between eco-anxiety and PEB, with hope and coping playing significant explanatory roles. Anxiety is anticipated to predict the behaviour over time, while coping strategies and hope may uniquely mediate/moderate this relationship. Clarifying these mechanisms is crucial for designing interventions that foster adaptive responses to environmental crises.

Pokalbis su MRU Psichologijos instituto profesore, Taikomosios psichologijos laboratorijos tyrėja Goda Kaniušonyte, atliekančia ilgalaikius tyrimus ir stebėjimus tiek Lietuvoje, tiek kitapus Atlanto, gilinantis į vaikų ir paauglių gyvenimą, jų sėkmingą raidą.

Adolescence is a pivotal developmental stage marked by heightened sensitivity to social acceptance. During this period, adolescents increasingly rely on peer feedback to form their sense of self and identity. Susceptibility to peer influence can be linked both to maladaptive behaviors and to adaptive changes (Laursen & Veenstra, 2021). However, not all adolescents are equally influenced by their peers; certain personality traits may heighten this vulnerability (Belsky & Pluess, 2009). This study aims to investigate how susceptibility to peer influence is longitudinally related to rejection sensitivity and body image. Data were drawn from the longitudinal research project NAVIGATE. The study was conducted in a regional town in Lithuania. The sample consisted of students from six high schools, with a total of 746 students in grades 5 - 8. Participants were aged 10 – 14 years (M = 12.33, SD = 1.17). The sample was diverse in terms of family and socio-economic backgrounds but homogeneous in terms of ethnic background. Written parental consent and student assent were obtained prior to participation. The study was conducted across three waves over one academic year. The following measures were used: Resistance to Peer Influence scale (Steinberg & Monahan, 2007), Children’s Rejection Sensitivity Questionnaire (Downey et al., 1998), Perceived Competence Scale for Children (Harter, 1985). Significant concurrent correlations were observed among all study variables across all three time points. The longitudinal interplay between the study variables was analyzed using three waves of data collected one academic year. Both direct and indirect pathways were considered. At each time interval higher rejection sensitivity predicted lower body image, and lower body image predicted higher susceptibility to peer influence. Bias-corrected bootstrapped 95% confidence intervals confirmed indirect effect: Time1 rejection sensitivity predicted Time 3 susceptibility to peer influence via Time 2 body image (β=.004 [.001, .014]. Thus, the hypothesis was confirmed.

Nature connectedness, a widely used psychological construct which encompasses affective and cognitive aspects of the relationship a person has with nature, has become a central variable of interest in environmental psychology literature. This interest is motivated partially by its enhancing effects on well-being outcomes. However, comprehensive international evaluations of the link between nature connectedness and well-being remain sparse. In this registered report, we propose a secondary analysis of previously collected data to examine how individual differences in nature connectedness relate to multiple aspects of well-being (i.e., purpose in life, hope, mindfulness, life satisfaction, and optimism) across 75 countries (N = 36,803). Within-country and between-country analyses (linear and mixed regressions) suggested that nature connectedness is a robust positive predictor of well-being. Our findings highlight the importance of nature connected for well-being globally, especially for communities with low access to nature and social resources.

The profound physical, emotional, and social changes that accompany adolescence typically coincide with increases in maternal stress and decreases in the quality of the mother–child relationship. Does one follow from the other? The present longitudinal study tested the hypothesis that perceived changes in adolescent children forecast increases in maternal stress, which contribute to deteriorating mother–child relationship quality, anticipating more perceived changes in children. Participants were 299 mothers (Mage = 40.19, SD = 5.01 years) in two-parent households, with children (152 boys and 147 girls; ages 9–13) attending public primary and middle schools in an eastern Lithuanian community. Nearly all participants were ethnic Lithuanian. Maternal reports of stress, perceived changes in children, and mother–child relationship quality (i.e., negativity and social support) were collected three times over the course of a year. Direct longitudinal associations emerged from maternal perceptions of changes in the child to heightened maternal stress, from maternal stress to deteriorating mother–child relationship quality, and from diminished relationship quality to escalating changes in children. Full-longitudinal mediation analyses confirmed each of the hypothesized indirect effects: (a) Time 1 perceived changes in the child → Time 2 maternal stress → Time 3 mother–child relationship quality, (b) Time 1 maternal stress → Time 2 mother–child relationship quality → Time 3 perceived changes in the child, and (c) Time 1 mother–child relationship quality → Time 2 perceived changes in the child → Time 3 maternal stress.

Simulation-based training is used to improve child interviewers’ questioning skills. However, not all trainees benefit equally. While some show clear improvement, others make little or no progress. To better understand this variation, we conducted a mega-analysis of four studies (interviews N = 4,634; participants N = 1,838). We examined whether interviewers’ task appraisals, specifically viewing the task as a challenge rather than a threat, could predict their performance in avatar-based child interview simulations. The results showed that higher challenge appraisals were associated with better performance during the immediately following interview simulation. In addition, interviewers who increasingly viewed the task as a challenge over time also demonstrated greater learning gains, such as asking more recommended questions and obtaining more accurate information. These effects were especially strong among those with less prior experience. However, interviewers with more experience did not always improve, and in some cases performed worse. These findings suggest that how interviewers evaluate the task potentially plays a key role in both immediate performance and long-term learning. Training programs should address evolving appraisals to enhance effectiveness.

Background Childhood maltreatment is associated with dissociative experiences later in life, but it remains unclear which characteristics of maltreatment are most relevant for such experiences. This study examined cumulative maltreatment exposure, maltreatment types, and developmental timing experienced during childhood years. Method A representative sample (N = 2000, 47.65% women, M age = 23.89, SD = 3.59) of Lithuanian young adults (ages 18–29) completed measures of childhood maltreatment (MACE) and dissociative experiences (DES-II), a dimensional measure capturing a broad spectrum of dissociative phenomena. Results Hierarchical linear regressions with bootstrapped confidence intervals were conducted controlling for sociodemographic variables. Greater cumulative maltreatment experienced during childhood was associated with higher frequency of dissociative experiences in young adults. Physical abuse and non-verbal emotional abuse were significant predictors when examined simultaneously. Participants who experienced single and multiple types of maltreatment differed from those who did not have such experiences, however, no differences between the 2 groups were found. Developmental timing (age of onset, age of exposure, cumulative age of exposure periods) variables were not significant. Family disharmony was indirectly associated with dissociation through cumulative maltreatment. Conclusions Cumulative and threat-related maltreatment were modestly associated with frequency of dissociative experiences, whereas developmental timing and the number of maltreatment types showed more limited associations.

Experiencing child sexual abuse (CSA) can be considered a traumatic experience. Many negative shortand long-term consequences are linked with CSA. Dissociative experiences are one such consequence. The goal of the present study was to investigate the differences in nonperitraumatic dissociative experiences in different types and circumstances of CSA. Method: The present study utilized a representative sample of Lithuanians aged 18–29 (N = 2,000). The frequency of dissociative experiences was investigated between groups of participants who experienced different types of CSA (contact, noncontact, and verbal) and different circumstances of abuse (age of onset, number of perpetrators, and instances of abuse). Results: Participants who indicated having experienced multiple types of CSA demonstrated a higher frequency of dissociative experiences compared to those with no indicated CSA or a single type of CSA. No significant differences were found between different types of CSA. Contrary to expectations, no significant differences were found based on age of onset, number of perpetrators, or number of CSA instances, even though their strength of relationship with dissociation differed. Notably, those unable to recall CSA experiences consistently reported a higher frequency of dissociative experiences. Conclusions: Taken together, our findings confirm that there is a difference in frequency of dissociative experiences between those who experienced CSA and those who did not. Findings of the present study would suggest that different types of CSA should not be joined into one, since there may be important differences between them.