Socialinių inovacijų laboratorijų tinklas / Social Innovations Laboratory Network

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.

The report is based on an integrated approach, in which the resilience of social organizations is conceptualized as an organization's dynamic ability to adapt to change, learn, maintain operational stability and create long-term value. Modern organizations operate in an environment of constant uncertainty and social transformations, in which employee well-being, engagement and motivation become essential prerequisites for sustainable performance, especially in the social services sector, which is characterized by high emotional load and the risk of professional burnout. The goal is to reveal how strategic human resource management, leadership, employee engagement and performance optimization contribute to the formation of organizational resilience and ensuring sustainable performance. The study was conducted in September 2025, using the expert assessment method. The results of the study revealed that the resilience of social service organizations is formed as a complex system of interacting strategic factors, in which human resources become the central connecting link between the organization's strategy, operational efficiency and long-term sustainability. The developed model for building resilience in social service organizations is based on a systemic and integrated approach, in which organizational resilience is conceptualized as a constantly changing organizational characteristic, formed through a set of interacting strategic, managerial, and human factors.

Child welfare specialists work in high-stress environments and psychologically demanding roles, which can lead to high attrition rates, burnout, decreased mental health, secondary trauma, or compassion fatigue. Some studies suggest that self-care may help mitigate these negative effects. However, research specifically focused on child welfare specialists is scarce, and findings regarding the role of self-care remain inconclusive. Additionally, scientific literature suggests that other cognitive and emotional factors may also be important when addressing compassion fatigue in this population. The aim of this study was to identify predictors of compassion fatigue among child welfare specialists in Lithuania. It was hypothesized that higher cognitive rigidity, lack of emotional clarity, and lower levels of personal and professional self-care would predict higher levels of compassion fatigue. Child welfare specialists completed this self-reported survey after participating in a brief competency training based on simulated questioning of child avatars. Compassion fatigue was measured using the Compassion Fatigue Inventory. Self-care was assessed using the Self-Care Practices Scale, which distinguishes between professional and personal self-care. Cognitive rigidity was measured using the Cognitive Rigidity subscale from the Detail and Flexibility Questionnaire, and emotional clarity was assessed using the Lack of Emotional Clarity subscale from the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to examine these relationships. Preliminary results from the first two waves (n = 107) of this ongoing study indicate that all three variables significantly predicted compassion fatigue. Higher cognitive rigidity and lack of emotional clarity were associated with increased compassion fatigue. Lower levels of professional self-care also predicted reduced compassion; however, personal self-care did not have any significant effect. These findings highlight the importance of cognitive and emotional factors in high-stress work environments that may be related to compassion fatigue. Furthermore, they underscore the complex role of self-care as a potential protective factor in maintaining healthier boundaries at work. The practical implications of these findings will be discussed in detail.

This study investigates how audience segmentation can support strategies to address climate change disinformation. A nationally representative survey conducted in Lithuania in 2024 used latent class analysis (LCA) to identify four audience segments based on perceptions of science, trust in research, and media use: “Engaged Enthusiasts,”” Informed Sceptics,” “Occasional Observers,” and the “Hard-to-Reach.” While the segmentation structure is comparable to earlier findings from Switzerland, differences were observed in demographic composition, media practices, and engagement levels. The questionnaire was adapted to the Lithuanian context by including nationally relevant media sources and a section on climate change. Attitudes toward climate change vary across the segments. “Engaged Enthusiasts” strongly align with the scientific consensus and support climate science. “Informed Sceptics” also accept the reality and human causes of climate change, despite their more critical views of science. “Occasional Observers” show the weakest agreement with key climate statements, reflecting low scientific interest. The “Hard-to-Reach” segment, although disengaged from science generally, expresses relatively strong concern about climate change. These findings suggest that counter-disinformation strategies should differentiate between audience segments and align communication with their trust levels and information behaviors.

The contemporary world is increasingly shaped by multiple overlapping threats, including pandemics, socio-economic inequality, geopolitical tensions, climate change, and technological risks. These challenges create new forms of uncertainty that affect both individuals and societies. In this context, strengthening human and societal resilience has become an important condition for sustainable development. This paper examines the impact of this new complex of threats on human and societal resilience in the Baltic Sea Region (BSR) countries during periods of shocks. The aim of the study is to assess how major global threats influence human development and resilience in the BSR countries and to identify possible directions for strengthening resilience. The analysis focuses on ten countries of the region: Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Norway, and Iceland. The research relies on the analytical framework of the United Nations Development Programme and uses indicators such as the Human Development Index (HDI), the Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI), and the Planetary Pressures-adjusted Human Development Index (PHDI). The results show that although human development in the BSR countries has generally improved, significant differences remain between country groups. Inequality and planetary pressures reduce the potential of human development and weaken resilience, while countries with higher development levels demonstrate greater capacity to withstand shocks. The findings highlight the importance of reducing inequality, strengthening human potential, and integrating social, economic, and environmental policies in order to build more resilient societies in the Baltic Sea Region.

Friends and popular peers are important sources of influence across the transition into adolescence. The present study examines the assertion that the magnitude of influence from friends and popularity-based norms varies across behavioral domains. Participants were 543 (268 girls, 275 boys) students from 29 5th–8th grade (ages 10 to 14) classrooms in three Lithuanian public middle schools. Most were ethnic Lithuanians. Self-reports of socioemotional adjustment, including emotional problems, lack of emotional clarity, problem behaviors, social media use, and weight concerns, were collected in the fall and winter of a single academic year, approximately three months apart. Popularity and academic achievement were assessed through peer nominations. Top-ranked best friends were identified from outgoing nominations. Status-based norms, calculated separately for each socioemotional adjustment variable in the fall (Time 1), represented popularity-weighted classroom averages. Results from longitudinal Group Actor-Partner Interdependence Model analyses indicated that best friends and status-based norms exerted differing amounts of influence over different behaviors. When both were included in the same model (with shared effects removed), best friends influenced emotional problems, lack of emotional clarity, and problem behaviors. Among older adolescents, best friends also influenced academic achievement. Status-based norms influenced social media use and, among older adolescents, weight concerns.

This Afterword offers a philosophical engagement with Nehal Bhuta’s Foreword “Social Rights and the Origins of the Social Constitution” from the standpoint of Aristotelian–MacIntyrean virtue ethics, supplemented by Marx’s critique of capitalism. While endorsing Bhuta’s historical thesis—that natural social rights and their discourse preceded and helped constitute the modern welfare state—this Afterword argues that the language of rights is ethically and ontologically secondary. Rights emerge not as first principles of justice but as derivative claims arising from the breakdown of consent within social relations. The Afterword develops an alternative framework grounded in “activity,” “practice,” and “excellence” (aretē) as the foundational modes of human existence and cooperation. It then articulates two ethical-political principles: “consent,” rooted in the equal dignity of persons and constitutive of social justice, and “grace,” understood as the gratuitous gift and telos of a communist life, realizable only through excellence and shared flourishing. On this view, rights function as juridical responses to ruptured consent within capitalist societies that commodify human activity and privatize the commons. While Bhuta’s genealogy persuasively demonstrates the emancipatory role of natural social rights in resisting capitalist exclusion, such rights remain dependent on positive law and political power for their validity. This Afterword concludes that socialist justice—founded on merit and solidarity—prefigures a communist order of grace, in which the language of rights itself may ultimately wither away, replaced by relations grounded in consent, excellence, and the free gift.

Land degradation is a global ecological and environmental issue to which the drylands with vulnerable socio-ecological systems are particularly sensitive. Ecological restoration is regarded as a vital approach to halt, curb or reverse land degradation. However, the lack of accurate information on land degradation dynamics poses a significant barrier to developing effective restoration strategies. Here, we selected fourteen typical land degradation processes in China's drylands, employed a generalised additive model to identify degradation thresholds and classify degradation states, and analysed degradation trends using the Theil-Sen slope statistic and Mann-Kendall test. We then applied the convergence of evidence method to conduct a comprehensive, multidimensional assessment coupling degradation states and trends, ultimately identifying priority areas for ecological restoration. The results showed that aridification, loss of soil organic carbon, and soil alkalisation are the most widespread forms of land degradation facing China's drylands. 70.33 % of the area is affected by 1 to 7 types of land degradation (mildly degraded state), 25.63 % is affected by 8 to 14 types (severely degraded state), and 4.04 % shows no signs of degradation (non-degraded state). While land degradation across all three states generally exhibits a stable trend, mildly degraded areas showed signs of improvement, whereas severely degraded areas remain at risk of further degradation. Based on the states and trends of land degradation, China's drylands can be categorised into restoration-priority areas (6.79 %), conservation-priority areas (11.74 %), and management-priority areas (81.47 %), each with distinct focus and intervention needs. This study can help decision-makers understand the dynamics of land degradation and develop priority strategies for ecological restoration.

The rapid expansion of the European Union’s digital regulatory framework and recent adoption of the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) has introduced complex, overlapping compliance obligations for AI systems, and consequently, their developers and users. These challenges are amplified for dual-use AI systems, which may be developed for civilian markets yet deployed in military contexts, requiring alignment with both EU regulatory instruments and defence-specific frameworks such as NATO policies. Existing approaches to regulatory compliance remain largely manual, fragmented, and difficult to scale, particularly when legal requirements must be translated into actionable, system-level specifications for dual-use contexts. This paper proposes a novel ontology-based methodology for automated regulatory compliance requirements specification for dual-use AI systems. The methodology systematically integrates legal and technical perspectives by structuring compliance obligations across deployment domains (civilian and defence), system lifecycle phases, and requirement categories, including privacy- and security-related obligations. Implemented as a machine-readable knowledge graph using RDF/Turtle, the approach enables executable compliance modelling, where regulatory obligations are formalised as machine-interpretable entities that can be queried, validated, and deployment-specifically configured through semantic reasoning and SPARQL-based analysis. The methodology is validated through a detailed case study of an AI-powered espionage detection system, demonstrating how context-aware semantic reasoning and SHACL-based validation can ensure that regulatory requirements are consistently specified and mapped to concrete system components. The proposed framework advances the state of the art by providing a rigorous, extensible foundation for compliance-by-design and automated analysis, thereby reducing compliance risk and supporting responsible AI engineering in complex omni-use regulatory environments.

Akademinė karjera grindžiama aukšto produktyvumo lygio, profesinio mobilumo ir nuolatinio pasiekiamumo lūkesčiais, todėl tėvystė ir motinystė akademinėje aplinkoje tampa aktualiu darbo organizavimo ir karjeros galimybių klausimu. Straipsnio tikslas – atskleisti nevienodų karjeros galimybių akademinėse organizacijose vaikų turintiems darbuotojams prielaidas. Tyrimas grindžiamas kokybiniu interpretaciniu dizainu, duomenys rinkti pusiau struktūruotu interviu. Tyrimas išryškino tris tarpusavyje susijusius procesus, kuriems vykstant akademinėje aplinkoje formuojasi nevienodos karjeros galimybės. Tai – profesinių reikalavimų persikėlimas už formaliai apibrėžto darbo laiko ribų, sąlygiškai taikomas ir nevienodai prieinamas lankstumas bei šių procesų poveikis darbuotojų profesiniam tempui, įsitraukimui ir karjeros sprendimams. Nustatyta, kad darbuotojų patirtys skiriasi ir tai priklauso nuo lyties, karjeros etapo bei turimų paramos išteklių. Straipsnyje parodoma, kaip kasdienės akademinio darbo praktikos tampa karjeros galimybių nelygybės formavimosi prielaida.