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Phubbing could be defined as a new form of addiction; however, checking the phone and ignoring the speaker could also be linked to the increased availability of virtual social environments. We developed a multidimensional model for phubbing considering psychological dimensions and information and communication technology related habits. We collected data through online questionnaires and surveys. The best model obtained from our data was constituted by Information and Communication Technologies’ (ICTs) usage behaviours, Trait Anxiety, Virtual Sense of Community and Neuroticism. Finally, our study confirmed a strong connection between phubbing and online addiction behaviours.

Does social media addiction impair the well-being of non-clinical individuals? Despite the Internet being able to be considered as a promoting factor for individual empowerment, previous literature suggests that the current massive availability of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) may be dangerous for users’ well-being. This article discusses the relationship between the most used social media addiction measures (i.e., the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale—BFAS, the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale—BSMAS) and well-being. A systematic review considering all the publications indexed by PsycInfo, PsycArticles, PubMed, Science Direct, Sociological Abstracts, Academic Search Complete, and Google Scholar databases was performed to collect the data. Ten of 635 studies were included in the qualitative synthesis. Overall, most of the included works captured a negative but small relationship between BFAS/BSMAS and well-being, across multiple definitions and measurement.

The prolonged lockdown imposed to contain the COrona VIrus Disease 19 COVID-19 pandemic prevented many people from direct contact with nature and greenspaces, raising alarms for a possible worsening of mental health. This study investigated the effectiveness of a simple and affordable remedy for improving psychological well-being, based on audio-visual stimuli brought by a short computer video showing forest environments, with an urban video as a control. Randomly selected participants were assigned the forest or urban video, to look at and listen to early in the morning, and questionnaires to fill out. In particular, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) Form Y collected in baseline condition and at the end of the study and the Part II of the Sheehan Patient Rated Anxiety Scale (SPRAS) collected every day immediately before and after watching the video. The virtual exposure to forest environments showed effective to reduce perceived anxiety levels in people forced by lockdown in limited spaces and environmental deprivation. Although significant, the effects were observed only in the short term, highlighting the limitation of the virtual experiences. The reported effects might also represent a benchmark to disentangle the determinants of health effects due to real forest experiences, for example, the inhalation of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOC).

The 21st century is characterized by unpredictable and changing environments that require individuals and organizations to adapt to these challenges and prepare for continuous transitions in the work environment. Optimism and hope are positive resources that are key factors in navigating this post-modern work scenario. Emotional intelligence can be considered as another important variable in this context and furthermore, research has shown it can be increased through specific training. The aim of the present study is to examine the contribution of emotional intelligence in mediating the relationship between personality traits and both optimism and hope. The Big Five Questionnaire (BFQ), the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue-SF), the Life Orientation Test Revised (LOT-R), and the Hope Scale (HS) were administered to 201 Italian workers. Correlations among variables were calculated and mediation analyses were performed. The results showed that the relationships between personality traits and both optimism and hope are mediated by emotional intelligence. In particular, the contribution of emotional stability, agreeableness, and extraversion on optimism was mediated by emotional intelligence; the contribution of extraversion, emotional stability, and conscientiousness on hope was mediated by emotional intelligence. These results open new possibilities for research and interventions to enhance the personal resources of workers in the fluid scenario of the 21st century by promoting optimism and hope that are facilitated by emotional intelligence in the perspective of enhancing psychological aspects of sustainability and sustainable development.