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Online communities have become a central part of the internet. Understanding what motivates users to join these communities, and how they affect them and others, spans various psychological domains, including organizational psychology, political and social psychology, and clinical and health psychology. We focus on online communities that are exemplary for three domains: work, hate, and addictions. We review the risks that emerge from these online communities but also recognize the opportunities that work and behavioral addiction communities present for groups and individuals. With the continued evolution of online spheres, online communities are likely to have an increasingly significant role in all spheres of life, ranging from personal to professional and from individual to societal. Psychological research provides critical insights into understanding the formation of online communities, and the implications for individuals and society. To counteract risks, it needs to identify opportunities for prevention and support., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

We examined well-being profiles among Finnish employees before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and their links with personality trait profiles. Longitudinal survey data were collected in 2019-2021, and 733 respondents participated in all five surveys. The data were analyzed with a person-centered approach using latent profile analysis (LPA). Measures included burnout, work engagement, psychological distress; and Big Five personality traits. Six well-being profiles: Disengaged, Declined, Engaged, Fluctuated, Stable, and Burned-out, and four personality profiles: Ordinary, Reserved, Resilient, and Overcontrolled were identified. Resilient participants typically belonged to the Engaged well-being profile and Reserved to Burned-out and Fluctuated well-being profiles. Although some separation in developmental well-being profiles existed, overall, well-being was rather stable. Personality trait profiles played a crucial role in maintaining well-being., (© 2022 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology published by Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted workers globally during 2020-2022 and it has had major psychological implications for workers' wellbeing. This longitudinal study analyzed risk and protective factors predicting COVID-19 anxiety among workers in Finland. Longitudinal national sample of Finnish workers (n = 685) participated in a five-wave study conducted in 2020-2022, covering multiple waves of the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath. Our outcome measure was COVID-19 anxiety. Predictors were psychological distress, work exhaustion, technostress, and loneliness. Models also controlled for self-regulation; social support at work and remote working; and socio-demographic background factors. Both within-person and between-person effects were analyzed using multilevel hybrid regression models. COVID-19 anxiety varied between time points which is explained by changes in circumstances during the pandemic. Highest anxiety was expressed in the middle of the Delta variant surge and lockdown in spring 2021. Within-person changes in psychological distress, work exhaustion, technostress, self-regulation, and perceived loneliness were all associated with COVID-19 anxiety. Between-person results showed that distressed, exhausted, technostressed, and lonely workers expressed more anxiety than others. Remote workers reported higher anxiety over time than others. Those who had reported high self-regulation reported lower anxiety than others. Female gender and younger age were associated with higher anxiety. COVID-19 anxiety continues to be an important phenomenon with a magnitude of consequences on people and numerous industries. This study showed that general mental health and work stressors predict COVID-19 anxiety. Promoting social support and workers' self-regulation skills can be beneficial for overcoming anxiety during and after the pandemic.

Hostile online communication is a global concern. Academic research and teaching staff are among those professionals who routinely give public comments and are thus vulnerable to online attacks. This social psychological and criminological study investigated online harassment victimization among university researchers and teachers. Survey participants ( N  = 2,492) were university research and teaching staff members from five major universities in Finland. Victimization was assessed with a 20-item inventory. The study included a wide range of both background and general measures on well-being at work. Participants also took part in an online experiment involving a death threat targeting a colleague. Results showed that 30% of the participants reported being victims of online harassment during the prior 6 months. Victims were more often senior staff members, minority group members, and from the social sciences and humanities. Those active in traditional or social media were much more likely to be targeted. Victims reported higher psychological distress, lower generalized trust, and lower perceived social support at work than non-victims. Individuals who were targeted by a colleague from their work community reported higher post-traumatic stress disorder scores and a higher impact of perceived online harassment on their work compared to other victims. In the experimental part of the study, participants reported more anxiety when a close colleague received a death threat. Participants also recommended more countermeasures to a close colleague than to an unknown person from the same research field. Results indicate that online harassment compromises well-being at work in academia. There is an urgent need to find ways of preventing online harassment, both in workplaces and in society at large., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors declare no competing interests., (© The Author(s) 2021.)

Robotization of work is progressing fast globally, and the process has accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Utilizing integrated threat theory as a theoretical framework, this study investigated affective attitudes toward introducing robots at work using a four timepoint data ( n  = 830) from a Finnish working population longitudinal study. We used hybrid multilevel linear regression modelling to study within and between participant effects over time. Participants were more positive toward introducing robots at work during the COVID-19 pandemic than before it. Increased cynicism toward individuals' own work, robot-use self-efficacy, and prior user experiences with robots predicted positivity toward introducing robots at work over time. Workers with higher perceived professional efficacy were less and those with higher perceived technology-use productivity, robot-use self-efficacy, and prior user experiences with robots were more positive toward introducing robots at work. In addition, the affective attitudes of men, introverts, critical personalities, workers in science and technology fields, and high-income earners were more positive. Robotization of work life is influenced by workers' psychological well-being factors and perceived as a welcomed change in the social distancing reality of the pandemic., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors do not have a conflict of interest to declare., (© The Author(s) 2022.)

Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on well-being and mental health are a concern worldwide. This article is based on two longitudinal studies that investigated the role of social media use in loneliness and psychological distress before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Study 1 utilized nationally representative 3-point longitudinal data (n = 735) collected in 2017-2020 on the Finnish population. Study 2 utilized 5-point longitudinal data (n = 840) collected in 2019-2021 representing the Finnish working population. We analyzed the data using multilevel mixed-effects regression analysis. A longitudinal analysis of Study 1 showed that perceived loneliness did not increase among the Finnish population during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stronger involvement in social media identity bubbles predicted lower loneliness during the pandemic. Study 2 results showed that since the outbreak of the pandemic, psychological distress has increased among lonely individuals but not among the general working population. Involvement in social media identity bubbles predicted generally lower psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic, but it did not buffer against higher psychological distress among lonely individuals. The findings suggest that perceived loneliness is a risk factor for prolonged negative mental health effects of the pandemic. Social media identity bubbles can offer meaningful social resources during times of social distancing but cannot protect against higher psychological distress among those who perceive themselves as often lonely., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic restricted everyday life during 2020-2021 for many people worldwide. It also affected alcohol consumption patterns and leisure activities, including the use of social media., Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze whether social media use predicts increased risky drinking over time and during the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions in particular., Methods: This 5-wave longitudinal survey study, based on a nationwide sample of workers, was conducted in Finland in 2019-2021. A total of 840 respondents (male: 473/840, 56.31%; age range 18-64 years; mean age 43.90, SD 11.14 years) participated in all 5 waves of the study. The outcome variable was risky drinking, measured using the 3-item Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C). Multilevel linear hybrid modeling enabled the investigation of both within-person and between-person effects. Predictors included social media use and communication, involvement in social media identity bubbles, psychological distress, and remote working. Controls included sociodemographic factors and the Big Five personality traits., Results: Increased involvement in social media identity bubbles was associated with an increase in risky drinking behavior. Of all social media platforms examined, online dating app use was associated with riskier use of alcohol over time during the COVID-19 crisis. Daily social media communication with colleagues about nonwork topics was associated with risky drinking. Female gender, younger age, university education, nonindustrial occupational field, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroticism were associated with lower levels of risky drinking., Conclusions: Social media use during a pandemic carries some risks for alcohol consumption. Involvement in social media identity bubbles and online dating are risk factors for excessive drinking during the COVID-19 pandemic., (©Atte Oksanen, Reetta Oksa, Nina Savela, Magdalena Celuch, Iina Savolainen. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (https://www.jmir.org), 02.12.2021.)

The global crisis caused by the outbreak of a novel coronavirus and the associated disease (COVID-19) has changed working conditions due to social-distancing policies. Many workers started to use new technologies at work, including social media applications. In this longitudinal study, we investigated the potential stress effects of social media communication (SMC) at work. Based on our integrative theoretical model, we expected that SMC at work would burden some workers, but those who were accustomed to SMC at work would be better off when the crisis started. We collected a nationally representative sample of Finnish workers before ( N  = 1308) and during ( N  = 1081) the COVID-19 crisis. Outcome measures included technostress and work exhaustion. Multilevel linear mixed-effects regression models investigated formal and informal SMC at work. Covariates included cyberbullying at work, social media usage, personality, occupational status, and sociodemographic factors. Results showed that formal SMC increased and predicted higher technostress. However, technostress and work exhaustion decreased among workers already accustomed to using SMC at work before the crisis. The results indicate a disparity in workers' resilience during remote work and highlight a need for organizational level support., Competing Interests: None of the authors have a conflict of interest to declare., (© 2021 The Author(s).)

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has changed work life profoundly and concerns regarding the mental well-being of employees' have arisen. Organizations have made rapid digital advancements and have started to use new collaborative tools such as social media platforms overnight., Objective: Our study aimed to investigate how professional social media communication has affected work engagement before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and the role of perceived social support, task resources, and psychological distress as predictors and moderators of work engagement., Methods: Nationally representative longitudinal survey data were collected in 2019-2020, and 965 respondents participated in all 4 surveys. Measures included work engagement, perceived social support and task resources, and psychological distress. The data were analyzed using a hybrid linear regression model., Results: Work engagement remained stable and only decreased in autumn 2020. Within-person changes in social media communication at work, social support, task resources, and psychological distress were all associated with work engagement. The negative association between psychological distress and work engagement was stronger in autumn 2020 than before the COVID-19 outbreak., Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic has exerted pressure on mental health at work. Fostering social support and task resources at work is important in maintaining work engagement. Social media communication could help maintain a supportive work environment., (©Reetta Oksa, Markus Kaakinen, Nina Savela, Jari J Hakanen, Atte Oksanen. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (https://www.jmir.org), 15.06.2021.)

Aims: The global crisis caused by the outbreak of a novel coronavirus rapidly increased working remotely in many countries. The aim of this study was to analyze psychological stressors predicting increased drinking during the COVID-19 crisis. Also, individual and socio-demographic differences were analyzed., Methods: A nationally representative sample of Finnish workers (N = 1308) was collected before the crisis in September-October 2019 and 82.02% of them responded to a follow-up survey conducted in March-April 2020. Increased drinking was the outcome variable and it was measured with the AUDIT-C before and during the COVID-19 crisis. Predictors measured before the crisis included cyberbullying victimization at work, psychological distress, burnout and work climate. Additional measures included personality factors, socio-demographic factors and occupational information., Results: One-fourth of Finnish workers (25.37%) reported increased drinking during the COVID-19 crisis. Cyberbullying victimization at work and psychological distress before the crisis predicted increased drinking during the crisis. Conscientious workers and those working in educational and health and welfare sectors were less likely to increase drinking, while increased drinking was most common among workers under 30 years of age., Conclusions: Psychological stressors are risk factors for increased drinking in unusual times such as the COVID-19 crisis. Cyberbullying victimization at work and psychological distress were found as major risk factors. The results suggest that preventive work should be done at workplaces. This is particularly important if alcohol consumption is used as a means of coping during a stressful time., (© The Author(s) 2020. Medical Council on Alcohol and Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.)

Working life has digitalized considerably in recent decades and organizations have taken into use new forms of collaborative technologies such as social media platforms. This study examined the relationship between social media use at work and well-being at work for millennials and members of former generations in Finland. The research data contained focus group interviews ( N = 52), an expert organization survey ( N = 563), and a nationally representative survey ( N = 1817). Well-being measures included technostress, burnout, psychological distress, and a set of background variables. Content analysis and linear regression models were used as analysis methods. The results showed that millennials have various intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for social media use at work. Intrinsic motivations included employees' personal choice and their pure interest to follow the market and discussions in their own field. Extrinsic motivations were related mainly to organizations' work culture and personal branding. The survey findings revealed, however, that millennials were not only more active social media users for work, but they also experienced higher technostress and burnout than members of former generations. Social media use motivations were associated with both higher and lower technostress and burnout depending on motivation, indicating that social media use can have both positive and negative effects. Overall, our findings suggest that employees tend to utilize social media more if their needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness are fulfilled.

Background : The COVID-19 crisis has changed the conditions of many all over the globe. One negative consequence of the ongoing pandemic is anxiety brought about by uncertainty and the COVID-19 disease. Increased anxiety is a potential risk factor for wellbeing at work. This study investigated psychological, situational, and socio-demographic predictors of COVID-19 anxiety using longitudinal data. Methods : A nationally representative sample of Finnish workers ( N = 1308) was collected before and during the COVID-19 crisis. Eighty percent of the participants responded to the follow-up study ( N = 1044). COVID-19 anxiety was measured with a modified Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Psychological and situational predictors included perceived loneliness, psychological distress, technostress, personality, social support received from the work community, and remote working. A number of socio-demographic factors were also investigated. Results : Perceived loneliness, psychological distress, technostress, and neuroticism were identified as robust psychological predictors of COVID-19 anxiety. Increase in psychological distress and technostress during the COVID-19 crisis predicted higher COVID-19 anxiety. A recent change in their field of work and decreased social support from work communities predicted COVID-19 anxiety. Women and young people experienced higher anxiety. Conclusions : Different factors explain workers' COVID-19 anxiety. Increased anxiety can disrupt wellbeing at work, emphasizing the organizations' role in maintaining an inclusive and caring work culture and providing technical and psychological support to workers during crisis.