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This paper aims to examine the characteristics of students who withdrew from a university counselling service in northern Italy. Differences found in the socio-demographic characteristics of counselling completers and dropouts and in the scores obtained in questionnaires administered at the outset were analysed. Furthermore, in order to identify reasons for dropping out, a qualitative approach was also used. The results suggest that premature termination is not a unitary phenomenon and that dropouts are a heterogeneous group. It is important not to always consider dropouts as a negative outcome of university counselling services. Additional research on dropouts is needed to help university counselling services to serve students more effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The paper complements an epidemiological analysis of secondary data that compared levels of consumption, alcohol-related mortality and morbidity in territories in Piedmont (N-W Italy), characterized by a different involvement with wine culture, and which showed lower alcohol-related risks in areas of production. Aims: The main aim is to shed light on these epidemiological results through qualitative methods, focusing on meanings attributed to drinking and on mechanisms of regulation that could explain why in wine-producing areas alcohol-related risks appear to be lower. Methods: Eighty-one in-depth individual interviews have been conducted. The sample consisted of males and females, from three cohorts (aged 18–25; 45–52; 70–77 years) and covering two areas (with higher versus lower vineyard acreage). Results: In areas characterized by wine production the traditional alcohol socialization process within the family is more persistent. In these areas, the traditional drinking culture has been not only valued, but also renewed, by emphasising the importance of proper drinking and the knowledge related to it. Conclusions: The alcohol socialisation process and the emphasis on wine as a cultural product seem to be the most relevant protective factors, contributing to the lower alcohol consumption and counteracting the widespread risk of alcohol consumption patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted global interdependencies, accompanied by widespread calls for worldwide cooperation against a virus that knows no borders, but responses were led largely separately by national governments. In this tension between aspiration and reality, people began to grapple with how their own lives were affected by the global nature of the pandemic. In this article, based on 493 qualitative interviews conducted between 2020 and 2021, we explore how people in Argentina, Austria, Bolivia, Ecuador, Ireland, Italy and Mexico experienced, coped with and navigated the global nature of the pandemic. In dialogue with debates about the parameters of the 'global' in global health, we focus on what we call people's everyday (de)bordering practices to examine how they negotiated (dis)connections between 'us' and 'them' during the pandemic. Our interviewees' reactions moved from national containment to an increasing focus on people's unequal socio-spatial situatedness. Eventually, they began to (de)border their lives beyond national lines of division and to describe a new normal: a growing awareness of global connectedness and a desire for global citizenship. This newfound sense of global interrelatedness could signal support for and encourage transnational political action in times of crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Objectives: The implementation of new health services is a complex process. This study investigated the first phase of the adaptive implementation of the Dutch Meeting Centres Support Programme (MCSP) for people with dementia and their carers in three European countries (Italy, Poland, the UK) within the JPND-MEETINGDEM project. Anticipated and experienced factors influencing the implementation, and the efficacy of the implementation process, were investigated. Findings were compared with previous research in the Netherlands. Method: A qualitative multiple case study design was applied. Checklist on anticipated facilitators and barriers to the implementation and semi-structured interview were completed by stakeholders, respectively at the end and at the beginning of the preparation phase. Results: Overall, few differences between countries were founded. Facilitators for all countries were: added value of MCSP matching needs of the target group, evidence of effectiveness of MCSP, enthusiasm of stakeholders. General barriers were: competition with existing care and welfare organizations and scarce funding. Some countries experienced improved collaborations, others had difficulties finding a socially integrated location for MCSP. The step-by-step implementation method proved efficacious. Conclusion: These insights into factors influencing the implementation of MCSP in three European countries and the efficacy of the step-by-step preparation may aid further implementation of MCSP in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary objectives: This study aims to describe psychological problems, self-esteem difficulties and body dissatisfaction in a sample of adolescents with acquired brain lesions and to compare them with an age- and gender-matched control group. Research design: In an experimental design, the psychological profile of 26 adolescents with brain lesions of traumatic or vascular aetiology, aged 12-18 years, was compared with that of 18 typically-developing subjects. Moreover, within the clinical group, patients with TBI were compared with patients with vascular lesions. Methods and procedures: The psychological and adaptive profile of the adolescents was assessed by a specific protocol, including CBCL, VABS, RSES, EDI-2 and BES. Main outcome and results: Adolescents with brain lesions showed more marked psychological problems than their healthy peers; they also presented with a greater impairment of adaptive skills and a lower self-esteem. No significant differences were found between patients with traumatic lesions and patients with vascular lesions. Conclusions: Adolescents with acquired brain lesions were at higher risk to develop psychological and behavioural difficulties. Furthermore, in the clinical sample, some variables such as the long hospitalization and isolation from family and peers were associated to a greater psychological burden than the aetiology of the brain damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative study intended to assess how intergenerational transformative family mediation is a resource in promoting and supporting coparenting during the transition of divorce. There were 2 goals: to assess parents’ perceptions of key topics of family mediation and to compare their perceptions concerning different moments of the intervention. Fifteen Italian parents were interviewed using an ad hoc semistructured interview. Data were analyzed using the textual analysis software T-LAB. Findings showed mediator, pragmatic aspects, and family relationships as the most salient aspects of mediation. Significant differences emerged among the beginning, the middle phase, and the end of this intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To describe and compare psychological, behavioural and adjustment problems in pre-school patients with acquired brain lesions of different aetiology. Methods: Three groups of patients with acquired brain lesions (14 patients post-TBI, 18 brain tumour survivors and 23 patients with vascular or infectious brain lesions), ranging in age between 24-47 months, received a psychological evaluation, including the Child Behavior Checklist for Ages 2-3 (CBCL) and the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS). Results: About half of the total sample (47.2%) showed psychological and behavioural problems. Difficulties vary according to the aetiology of the brain lesions. Brain tumour survivors showed more marked internalizing problems, whereas children with vascular or infectious brain lesions scored higher on the CBCL externalizing scales. Children with traumatic brain injury reported intermediate scores on most of the CBCL scales. Conclusions: Psychological and behavioural difficulties are very common, not only among school-aged children and adolescents, but also among pre-schoolers with acquired brain lesions. The relevance and the impact of these difficulties must necessarily be considered when developing psychological treatment and rehabilitation plans and planning for social re-entry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To compare the hospital management of childbirth with respect to women’s perception and satisfaction. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 first-time Italian mothers, who were recruited in the obstetrics and gynaecology operative unit of a large public hospital in Northern Italy during the 3 days following the births of their children. Data were electronically coded with ATLAS.ti software and a qualitative analysis was conducted. Women’s childbirth narrations were compared with the formal procedures stated in the corporate documents of the hospital. Results: Expectations, control-medicalisation, and the relationship with the caregivers were the main themes that emerged from the interviews. The women’s expectations were related to the hospital’s reputation, which centred on medical specialisation and humanisation. Their actual experiences were characterised by their trust for hospital staff and willingness to give up internal control in order to accept medical interventions. These factors were related to the external control that the women accepted in order to preserve their child’s and their own safety. Although the hospital organisational model was centred on the humanisation of care and patient-centred service, these directives did not correspond to the women’s actual experiences. Conclusions: Health services should take into account the consumers’ perspective and address personal agency in order to increase satisfaction and guarantee a more respectful childbirth care. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]