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The literature on problem gambling (PG) has received little attention regarding the role of how people make sense of their social experiences and community settings. Based on a semiotic and cultural perspective, the present study used a cross-national approach to investigate whether there are significant differences in the socio-cultural dimensions characterizing problem gamblers in two different European countries, Italy and Malta. Perceived social support, cultural models and PG were assessed in a convenience sample of 134 subjects, balanced by gender, job status and educational status (Malta n=67; mean age 42.00±16.268; Italia n=67; mean age 43.37±14.446). Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was applied to test the relationships among variables; multi-group technique was used to test for any effects defined by the country variable. The findings show that the lower the perceived social support, the higher the likelihood of PG for both national groups. Maltese and Italians exhibited differences vis-à-vis the cultural models that constitute a risk factor for PG. In the case of Italy, a devaluation of the context one belongs to, along with the feeling that one can only rely on oneself, is related to PG. In the case of Malta, PG appears to be related to a trusting attitude toward the micro- and macro-social context. This study suggests that understanding why people engage in hazardous behaviours requires an in-depth consideration of the socio-cultural contexts and networks where people’s ways of evaluating their social experience develop. Implications for designing community PG prevention interventions are discussed.

Various forms of political participation are found in democratic societies, and these are diversifying at a steady pace. Scholarly literature presents us with an array of typologies of participation, some of which were conceived theoretically, and others derived from empirical research. This paper studies how political participation surfaces in media discourse in Italy and Greece. Specifically, it seeks to understand the social representations of political participation in both countries between 2000 and 2015, and to see which typologies of political participation are reflected in such representations. A media analysis was carried out on a sizeable corpus of newspaper articles in both countries. Data were analysed using a combination of correspondence and cluster analysis. The results indicate higher internal differentiation and gradualness characterising the social representations of political participation in the Italian corpus. In Greece, there was the presence of more radical ideological alternatives to electoral participation. Moreover, results indicate temporal stability in the themes pertaining to political participation over the years. The main contribution of this paper lies in showing that content pertaining to various typologies of political participation (e.g., relating to influence, in/formality and protest) features in the social representations of political participation in newspaper media. Findings are discussed in view of the temporal distribution of representational content, and by comparing country-specific typologies (for Italy and Greece) with those present in the literature., peer-reviewed

This chapter is an extended version of the paper: Salvatore et al. (2018a). Symbolic universes between present and future of Europe. First results of the map of European societies’ cultural milieu. PLoS ONE 13(1): e0189885. With respect to that work, the current chapter presents an extension of the levels of analysis (i.e. the detection of the lines of semiotic force) and a more comprehensive sample (i.e. the inclusion of Dutch and Danish subsamples).; International audience; The chapter reports the main findings of an analysis of cultural milieus of a sample of 11 European countries (Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom). The analysis is based on a questionnaire (View of Context—VOC) applied to a sample built through a two-step procedure of post-hoc random selection from a broader dataset based on an online survey. According to the methodological framework outlined in the previous chapter, responses to the questionnaire were subjected to multidimensional analysis—a combination of Multiple Correspondence Analysis and Cluster Analysis. We identified three fundamental dimensions of meanings, interpreted as lines of semiotic forces comprising the semiotic field of European societies: Affective connotation of the world—foe versus friend; Direction of desire—passivity versus engagement; Form of demand—demand for systemic resources versus demand for community bond. Moreover, 5 symbolic universes were mapped. Each symbolic universe corresponds to a basic, embodied, affect-laden, generalized worldview: People in this study see the world as either (a) an ordered universe; (b) a matter of interpersonal bond; (c) a caring society; (d) consisting of a niche of belongingness; (e) a hostile place (others’ world).